How to transition into a larger tank ?

[Bad Inferno]

I'm looking to upgrade my 180 litre (with Fluval404) to a 450 litre tank(with Ehiem pro 2028). I am NOT planning on moving the gravel to the new tank, like the old, it will be setup for a planted discus tank and probably use eco-complete. This idea has not achieved final approval from the boss, nor have I found any financial backers at this stage, however like to get the planning started :)

I am concerned about having a brand new tank setup with 7 discus, however hoped moving the canister substrate across to the new setup the tank would go through what I hope is a very mini cycle and everybody would be happy..

I do not really have the room to run the two tanks...when the new tank arrives I would like the transfer to be complete within a weekend.

I was thinking to collect 300 litres of water from the old tank a couple of weeks prior to the new tank arriving. At least that way I can fill the new tank with 60% of water from the old tank and then when I move the fish I will also move the canister "substrate" currently in the Fluval404 into the new canister baskets of the Eheim Pro 2028, and decommission the old tank. Maybe stick a couple of the ammonia bags in the tank as well ?

Any thoughts on how to go about this planning is greatfully accepted broken down into the following categories:

i/ technically how this can be achieved
ii/ how to sell the idea to the share holders and gain project approval.

cheers....rob

[FishLover]

According to the latest TFH words from the editor, you don't need to cycle at all by using a filter from the established tank.

Transfer the filter media will work. Or you can run both filters in the same tank for few weeks. The point is, once you add more fish, your filter will still have to play catch up with the increased bio load. Just watch the ammo build up and do more water changes will help you get over the increased bio load

Don't you think you should get the boss to approve this and get the money before you start deram? LOL.

[DiscusMad]

Don't you think you should get the boss to approve this and get the money before you start deram? LOL.

drawing diograms always helps :lol:

[shawn barker]

I had to work on Denise (The Boss) for quite a while but eventually the welfare of the fish argument prevailed and it sounds like a similar upgrade proposal you want to the one I made!

As for filtration, I moved the smaller filter from my old tank and ran it in conjunction with the filter that came with the new tank and still do.

I also got hold of enough water drums to transfer all the water from the old tank into the new, and it was pretty painless for me and the fish.

Good luck with gettng permission and you could always sell a few body parts to pay for it as well!!

[DiscusMad]

a friend of mine went out and found a 2nd hand hand crafted cabnet the size of the tank he was getting and made it more solid and dressed it up to look great and put it in the lounge his wife helped him with where it was going and she loved it.

the next day when she went to work he drilled the top of it for the sump and had the tank delivered set it in place and filled it up.

his wife came home rolled her eyes and said" you may as well keep the dam thing there!"

but you know when it cycled she went out and bought all the fish for it LOL

[mcloughlin2]

I would reccomend you buy the new Ehiem pro 2028 a week - 2 weeks in advance of recieving the new tank and then just set it up on the old one. This way it will have a chance to start cycling before being added to the new tank. When you then set up the new tank just add both cannisters on there for 2 weeks so the new one can finish its cycle for good.

There isn't alot of good bacteria in the old tank water, nor in the gravel. So don't woory about transferring the gravel over and don't work to hard getting heaps of the old tank water into the new tank. Just aim for 50% of the new tanks capacity. Make sure that if you want to keep the water clean and useful fish need to be added to the drum/holding container and a cycled filter needs to be run.

[Bad Inferno]

Shaun, hey we both have the same boss, as I have a Denise as well ! I have had the footprint marked out on the floor for probably 2 months, used some sticky tape to show the actual size increase and also left the brochure of the new tank sitting strategically around the house in various locations......problem was that Denise thought the tank was already fantastic and could not picture a tank that will be magnificent, anyhow got the OK last night so its off to the LFS to line his pockets with some cash....and also off the the classified section to EOI my current tank setup...

cheers

[Bad Inferno]

If I can negotiate the right price here it is.....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v319/rjconway/450.gif

[FishLover]

Wow, I love it.

I talked my wife into gave me a birthday gift and guess what? It is goign to be a fish tank :D .

We can only have the space of about 30" wide. I'm thinking of having one of these tall tanks that can hold about 30g of water. Too bad there is not enough room to put in a bigger tank. Hey, I'm happy for a new tank anyway!

I know tall tanks can have a problem with surface area too small. I plan to add an air stone to get enough air exchange.

[shawn barker]

So the persuasion worked in the end Bad inferno! I must confess it took a few months of dragging Denise down the fish shop every weekend to watch me drool over the tanks they had for sale before she relented and let me treat myself for my birthday. :lol:

The problem I have at the moment is keeping my hands out of the tank as I'm always finding a better way to make it look...shall have to stop soon and stick with it. :roll:

If only I could get it looking something like the planted one you have just posted, in fact I'm seriously considering the Tom Barr method of Estimative Index fertilising system in an attempt to sort out the plants but thats another story, in the meantime I'm getting there slowly. :)

[Bad Inferno]

Actually, I am planning to get one of those root/rock amazonia backgrounds. I know there expensive (and plastic) however the tank does not have to rely upon plants alone to set the aquascape. Denise has chosen the cabinet colour so I'm getting her on board the project...rob

[shawn barker]

I've looked at some of those backdrops and they look amazing!

Bit above my pricerange and it would mean starting to set up the tank again, maybe one day when I can convince "The Boss" that the fish still require a bigger home...mmmmmmm!

[ILLUSN]

The back to nature amazon backdrops are UNREAL!!!!!! the amount of space behind for a bio filter is simply astonishing! just remember they doo take up space in the tank, such a pity, thats the reason i couln't put one in myself (I REALLY need all the space I can get).

for anyone who hasn't seen heres a biofilter behind a back to nature background

http://www.backtonature.se/english/tips_filter.html

I'd love to have one of these if ever the wife lets me have a 3-3.5ft wide tank :D