Transfering "Live Sand" from one tank to another

[Z-ReefKeeper]

Any suggestions on the best way to tranfer my live sand from one tank to another without causing major problems?

I need to transfer everything from my established tank of 1 year (Live Rock, fish, Inverts, coral) to another tank that I have. I plan on using the same water as the tanks are the same size.

Should this be an easy tranfer?

Any thoughts?

Thanks for your help

[sassafrass]

Please don't try it use new sand with a cup full to seed it(from the top inch) I have never heard of a sandbed transfer working , just disasters .
Lee

[Z-ReefKeeper]

sassafrass thanks for the info,

Should everything else transfer into the new tank without any major problems as long as I use new sand then?

[Tswifty]

Originally posted by sassafrass
Please don't try it use new sand with a cup full to seed it(from the top inch) I have never heard of a sandbed transfer working , just disasters .
Lee

+1

[Z-ReefKeeper]

I should be OK using the original water though right?

I just want to avoid any kind of cycle.

[tiff393]

I did a sand bed transfer but I didn't have any thing in the tank for like a week or more and then slowly added things for the next 4 weeks. But I also didn't have a set up this was when I first started.

[Tswifty]

Originally posted by Z-ReefKeeper
I should be OK using the original water though right?

I just want to avoid any kind of cycle.

I would do the water transfer, before touching the bed... sorry if I stated the obvious

I would use about 50-75% of the old water, and the rest make up new like a water change.

[stingythingy45]

I did a complete sand bed move from a 55 gallon to a 90 gallon with NO ill effects.The 55 gallon was 1 year old.Had to add more new sand but never showed any ammonia and trates stayed at zero.Reused every drop of water from the 55 that I could salvage and had to add 40 gallons of newly mixed water.
I have a 70 gallon basement sump.

[Z-ReefKeeper]

Thanks for your help.

What if I decided to not have any sand and go bare bottom.

Pro's and Con's?

[sassafrass]

Stingythingy45 how deep was your sandbed I have on l heard of problems trying that and my own experience when I moved my 55 and replaced my existing sand bed after removing it caused a 2 week cycle and lost about half my livestock.
Lee

[stingythingy45]

Cons

Detritus build up and constant battle with nitrates.
No place for CUC like nassarius snails.
Doesn't look natural.
Fish bouncing off the bottom if you don'tput down something to block the reflection(stress on fish)

Pros

Nothing for the powerheads to disturb when they fall off the glass.lol

[stingythingy45]

Originally posted by sassafrass
Stingythingy45 how deep was your sandbed I have on l heard of problems trying that and my own experience when I moved my 55 and replaced my existing sand bed after removing it caused a 2 week cycle and lost about half my livestock.
Lee

My sandbed was 4-6 inches.
IIRC it was 100lbs of sand.
I had to move my 55 gallon out of the way to put the 90 in it's place.I kept the sandbed in a shallow plastic bin with 3 inches of water over the top and kept rocking it back and forth every 1/2 while working on the 90.I had to plumb that into the basement sump. About 2 hrs into the project I changed out the sandbed bins water with tank water.Kept all my fish corals in a 100 gallon stock tank while making the move.
Before I introduced the sandbed back into the 90 gallon I rinsed several times with tank water to flush as much detritus as possible.Then I used a cup and just slowly added it after filling the tank half way.I even put all old sand on one side of the tank and new on the other half.Just wanted to see if there would be a difference.I eneded up with the typical cyano bloom,but everything worked out.Total time was about 3 1/2 hrs to make the move.

[Z-ReefKeeper]

stingythingy45:

That's good to hear.

I only have about 30 Lbs of sand that I need to move. I am transfereing everything from one 30 gallon system to another 30 gallon system.

I know it sounds weird going from one 30 to another, I sold the tank that everything is in and I need to make the move to keep everything alive. I am going from an all in one Red Sea Max to a standard 30 gallon long.

Do you think that with the system's being smaller I stand a greater chance of having problems?

[sassafrass]

I didn't rinse mine
Lee

[stingythingy45]

Originally posted by Z-ReefKeeper
stingythingy45:

That's good to hear.

I only have about 30 Lbs of sand that I need to move. I am transfereing everything from one 30 gallon system to another 30 gallon system.

I know it sounds weird going from one 30 to another, I sold the tank that everything is in and I need to make the move to keep everything alive. I am going from an all in one Red Sea Max to a standard 30 gallon long.

Do you think that with the system's being smaller I stand a greater chance of having problems?

It's hard to say as I didn't move a small system.
My total water volume is about 160 gallons.
I moved from a 20 gallon long to a 55 gallon.But on that one I started out with a new sandbed as I wanted to switch from crushed coral to sand.But I also never had a cycle even when I added the new sand after the very cured LR was in.I kept live stock out for 2 weeks just to make sure.
There's always some die off no matter what you do when making a move.

[Z-ReefKeeper]

Thanks again for your help.

[Sk8r]

If you do a sandbed transfer, you should wash the sand very thoroughly in discard tank water and use your hands to scoop it up sans the crud that saturates the water. This doesn't remove all the good bacteria--it does remove enough to prevent disaster, and I can't swear it would be ok if it were the ONLY sandbed you've got going. I did it with a fuge, where it's my primary sandbed, and got out with not a ripple in the chemistry, but new sand is truly safer. Put your fish and corals in qt if you can, or have one available and ready in case you see ammonia. YOu might also have a bottle of Amquel standing by: the stuff doesn't hurt corals or fish if used as directed and carefully so.

[Z-ReefKeeper]

Sk8r:

Thanks for the info.

I think I am going to try and salvage the sand that I have. I will clean the sand like you mentioned and hope for the best.

I will keep a QT tank close in the event of any ammonia spikes.

Thanks again

[Sk8r]

Crossing fingers: test every 6 hours for the first couple-3 days, then figure things are going to settle and go down to once a day, or if you see any evidence of discomfort. Shrooms are a good barometer for trouble: they're faster reacting than some other things.