Tank Upgrades ... How ?

[Daetarek]

Hi Guys,

I am in the process of getting an upgrade from my 4ft tank (220l) to a 6ft (700l) tank.

What is the best way to approach this ? i was thinking, clean the new gravel thoroughly, transfer the old filters, and plants, fill around half way with aged water, then transfer 75% of the old tank water to the new tank, fill the rest of the way, wait until temp normalises then transfer fish.

so the only new stuff will be a 6ft tank, gravel and a sump

I will run my two eheims, and transfer all plants and driftwood

1) will this be ok ?
2) in effect this will mostly cycle in the new tank right ?
3) is there a better way ?
4) any thoughts ?

ta
Rob

[Merrilyn]

Rob, your plan is perfect. Is there a reason you don't want to transfer the old gravel. If it's a different colour to what you want, how about putting it in your new sump. The gravel is home to a lot of beneficial bacteria which you should save if you can.

Doing all the things you mentioned, your tank will be fully cycled and shouldn't go through an ammonia spike.

[FishLover]

I agree with Ladyred, you may want to have some of the old gravel in the new tank.

Otherwise, you may have a mini cycle that will last few days with cloudy water. Since you are transfer the filters, I don't see a big problem. One thing you may want to consider is the water movement. You want to be sure there is no dead spot in the new tank. This is the perfect time to plan and arrange the return outlets to direct the water movement. Spray bars are perfect for thes.

Another issue is that you want to make sure the filters can handle the new added valume. I assume they were used for the 4 feet tank. As long as they can handle the valume of the 6 feet tank, you are in good shape. You may want to leave the fish in the old tank untill you arranged all decos and plants. Less stress for them.

Oh, one more thing, I'm sure you tested the new gravel that would not change your PH level, right?

I did almost the same thing about a year ago (from a 4 feet 55g tank to a 6 feet 125 g tank) and I really enjoy my new bigger tank. I wish I went for the 8 feet instead of the 6. Boy, that was a beauty! I could not afford the big one. I had a tough time getting my wife to agree on the 6 footer at that time.

Good luck.

[Daetarek]

Thanks for the help guys

the only reson i am not moving the gravel is cos i am keeping that tank running for a small community tank, and since i am changing the filters wanted to leave some beneficial bacteria in there