Moving, taking out sand, best way to do this?

[Jcreppel]

Ok so I am moving in a bit and I have planned on taking my sand out when I do and leaving the sand out. First off, any suggestions on the easiest way to remove the sand? Secondly, I've only had my aquarium and axies for about two or so months now, so for a 60 gallon tank are there any suggestions on the best way to so this without freaking them out too much?

 

[PatchworkClocks]

Well, the best option would be to first put your axolotls in travel-safe containers with clean, cool, dechlorinated water. Then you can empty out the tank, and with a little help, you should just be able to dump all of the sand into a bucket or a bag and toss it out that way. Other than that, I believe you could just vacuum it up in small portions until all of it is gone (once the water is removed of course).

 

[auntiejude]

Your axies need to be kept cool and dark while you move - a (clean) beer cooler with lid should do nicely, just fill it with tank water adn an ice bottle. Or a large lidded bucket, even a tub wrapped in a towel to keep them dark.

How far are you moving? If it's just to the other side of town it's quite possible to preserve the cycle. You need to keep the filter turned off for the shorted possible time to keep the bacteria, or you'll need to re-cycle your tank - keep it running until the last minute, and set it up as a priority once you've moved. The bacteria will die in a matter of hours without flowing water, so it's important you consider this.

If you're going further it may not be possible. But if you keep your water and ornaments you may be able to quick satrt your cycle again.

 

[Jcreppel]

Your axies need to be kept cool and dark while you move - a (clean) beer cooler with lid should do nicely, just fill it with tank water adn an ice bottle. Or a large lidded bucket, even a tub wrapped in a towel to keep them dark.

How far are you moving? If it's just to the other side of town it's quite possible to preserve the cycle. You need to keep the filter turned off for the shorted possible time to keep the bacteria, or you'll need to re-cycle your tank - keep it running until the last minute, and set it up as a priority once you've moved. The bacteria will die in a matter of hours without flowing water, so it's important you consider this.

If you're going further it may not be possible. But if you keep your water and ornaments you may be able to quick satrt your cycle again.

I'm only moving about 2 miles down the road. I was wondering if I kept some if the water from the tank when I moved and added that to the tank once I got it set back up if that might be ok?

 

[auntiejude]

If you keep your filter wet you shouldn't need all your tank water - which means once you have water for your axies and filter to travel in you can just empty the tank - water and sand - and top up with fresh when you arrive at your new place.

 

[Jcreppel]

If you keep your filter wet you shouldn't need all your tank water - which means once you have water for your axies and filter to travel in you can just empty the tank - water and sand - and top up with fresh when you arrive at your new place.

So just to make sure, once I get there as long as I've kept my filters wet and use them, I can basically start with all new water and put them in and it will not hurt them?

 

[auntiejude]

Yes - your filter filter contains most of the cycle bacteria, if you can preserve that by keeping your filter wet and moving it quickly you won't have to re-cycle your tank even with mostly new water.
Your cycle may experience a hitch - keep an eye on your water quality - but you won't have to start all over again.

 

[Jcreppel]

Yes - your filter filter contains most of the cycle bacteria, if you can preserve that by keeping your filter wet and moving it quickly you won't have to re-cycle your tank even with mostly new water.
Your cycle may experience a hitch - keep an eye on your water quality - but you won't have to start all over again.

Good! That's what I've been stressing over the most! Is how to move like 30 gallons of water! Glad I don't need to! Lol. Thank you so much! One more question, I've been thinking about upgrading my filters, maybe a canister filter. How long should I wait until I do so and are there any precautions or steps to change filters that I need to be aware of if I do so?

 

[auntiejude]

If you run the 2 filters together - either side by side or in series - you can colonise your new filter before you remove the old one. Or you can take some of the old filter medium from the old filter and stick it in the new one.

No re-cycling needed, but again there may be a small hitch in your cycle and you'll need to watch the parameters carefully.