Moving a reef across the country?

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reefjedi82

New member
I have a 75 gallon with mostly zoas and some Lps (acans) and I am moving from Illinois to Texas any ideas on something to cycle my tank quickly I was thinking to bring my fish down with me and ship my corals should i avoid sand and use just my rock any good recommendations on a bacteria additive
 
My recommendation is to sell all the livestock and start over when you get settled in. I know two people who attempted a move like this and lost pretty much everything in the process. They both said if they could do it again they will have sold everything. They said the fish tank added too much stress to the whole moving process and when things did not go as planned everything jsut got screwed up.
 
If I were to try this I would try to cycle the tank quickly using just your LR and bottled bacteria. (I use the DFS stuff.) Hopefully you have a power inverter for your car so you can run a heater and an air pump. But I think goat585 makes a good point; your livestock might get too stressed out during the move.
 
goat585 said:
My recommendation is to sell all the livestock and start over when you get settled in. I know two people who attempted a move like this and lost pretty much everything in the process. They both said if they could do it again they will have sold everything. They said the fish tank added too much stress to the whole moving process and when things did not go as planned everything jsut got screwed up.
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if your going to go this route and sell off and start over when settled P.M. me your #
 
trackfast said:
If I were to try this I would try to cycle the tank quickly using just your LR and bottled bacteria. (I use the DFS stuff.) Hopefully you have a power inverter for your car so you can run a heater and an air pump. But I think goat585 makes a good point; your livestock might get too stressed out during the move.
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+1 When I moved to AZ.. The only thing I had to worry was the LR in the buckets. My inverter kept my pumps running!! Equipment wise was packed away and all live corals along with fish were sold. Took me about a week to settle!! But I made sure that the buckets were filled with RO everyday.

You might want to start looking for local forums and introducing yourself to the reefers in TX. Will make things much easier for you to find LFS around and Friend's

Good luck!
 
I have so many rare corals I was trying not to sell them but the fact of it is me being selfish is going to only kill some innocent livestock so as sad as it is for me to do I will probably sell my stuff do you guys think I could bring at least my clowns I am sort if attached to them
 
I will post a pic of my tank tonight
and when the time is right I will be selling mostly everything thank you for the help
 
Even with guys having bad experiences, if there is a couple of choice things that you want to keep I would try it. A pair of clowns should not be much of an issue. Use a 5 gallon bucket to move them. Have some new saltwater water made up and put them up in a 10 gallon tank. A piece of live rock or two or a seeded sponge filter and you should be okay. Personally I would sell anything that is easily replaceable and you are not attached to. It may make it so there is only a small amount of stuff to move which should be manageable. Moving a full 75 gallon tank is a lot of work. Moving a 10 gallon tank is much easier.
 
As bad as the winter has been I hope I am moving out some day...I am not sure if this is possible but the LFS you frequent, maybe they can help you out. Have them keep the livestock you want--once you get settled in texas have them over night everything. It might cost you of course but it might be worth a shot.
 
reefjedi82 said:
I have so many rare corals I was trying not to sell them but the fact of it is me being selfish is going to only kill some innocent livestock so as sad as it is for me to do I will probably sell my stuff do you guys think I could bring at least my clowns I am sort if attached to them
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Have the rare stuff held by someone you trust. They can send them priority overnight. Good luck.
 
Some great ideas. I moved a fully grown out 65 gallon tank from Chicago to the suburbs 45 minutes away and I never want to do that again. It was so stressful and I only had under an hour drive and no other stresses involved that come with a moving houses. I personally would sell off anything that is easily replicable and doesn't fit in a 5 gallon bucket. A car inverter is a great idea to power a heater and airstone. Good luck, let us know if you need any help.
 
trackfast said:
Have the rare stuff held by someone you trust. They can send them priority overnight. Good luck.
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That's exactly what I was thinking. A lot of people have people babysit their corals while they move, settle, have life changes, etc. and just offer frag of whatever they are babysitting in exchange.
 
reef of your interested, im willing to hold your clowns while you move then overnight them to you when you have everything settled in (im not paying for shipping, but willing to keep them happy and fat in a 29 biocube for the time being). That way you know they will make it. Im in South Beloit if interested.
 
reefjedi82 said:
I have so many rare corals I was trying not to sell them but the fact of it is me being selfish is going to only kill some innocent livestock so as sad as it is for me to do I will probably sell my stuff do you guys think I could bring at least my clowns I am sort if attached to them
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Maybe fine one person to buy your cherry pieces that would agree to overnight you a nice frag pack once you are settled.
 
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