need advice about replacing new tank.

[NVTE]

I am going to check my tank soon, but I don't know how to do it without killing my livestock. here the the plan.
I am going to drain my old 60gal water into the big trash can and put the rock & attached livestock into that trash can. Move the old tank out and put the new tank in same place. Add the sand from old tank to new tank. Put the live rock with livestock in and pump the water from trash can to new tank. I try to do it within 40 min interval. can softies survived without water for 15 min or so ? if not, I have to take all the attached livestock out and epoxy them later.

[savethereef]

dont reuse your sand just replace it. And use some off the old sand to see the new one. As for your corals just keep them in some water. And plan for a longer move it never take 40 min

[Steve1714]

Your plan should work fine, if you are concerned about the soft corals you can always just splash some tank water on them every few minutes. In nature they are sometimes exposed to the air at low tide and recover without a problem.
Probably should do a water change a day or two after refilling the new tank, there will be allot of nutrients stirred up from moving the sand bed.

good luck, don't rush it.
Steve G

[Steve1714]

As long as you don't smell a foul sulfur oder from the sand while scooping it out, all will be fine. I had to do this to move a 400 gal tank and all parameters were back to normal after about 1 - 2 weeks. my move took about 3 hr.

[NVTE]

My sand is fine . why do I have to change the new one ? The old sand is ready cycle compare to new one. I know the move already stress coral. I don't want to add more stress for them.

Can I do water change along the move? I can use some old water to clean the sand by stirring them up and just power filter to take out as much waste as I can. Now I think that I should put the LR and Corals in new tank first. I will add sand later. That way I can avoid the detrius flowing around the tank.

[Steve1714]

it's best not to disturb the sand too much, i would recommend scooping it into a container, then add just enough water to keep the sand under water. then once the new tank placed in the correct spot scoop the sand to the tank and be careful not to disturb it to much with the rocks and water. If you were to wash the sand with salt water prior to placing back in tank you will kill more of the beneficial anaerobic bacteria and this will lead to a higher nitrate and phosphate level in the tank = algae problem.
This only matters if you are using this sand as a deep sand bed. if it is only there for looks and is only 1-2" deep, it won't mater too much if you washed it or not. So This is how i would do it in your situation, Sand goes in first, gently fill the tank 2/3 with salt water from old system, add lr and corals, fill the remaining with salt water, run filters to clarify water, next day 25% wc, if you have a nitrate test kit run one test before you move the system and another the day after you do the water change, if reading is higher than normal do another 25% water change.

Steve G

[xtm]

With softies, you have almost nothing to worry about as they are very tolerant of 'abuse', for a lack of a better word. I would be extra careful if it were SPS..

This is how I do my moves:

-empty tank water into another container
-move corals to another tub (submerged, with circulation and heater - using old tank water)
-move rocks to another container (submerged, using old tank water)
-scoop out sand, transfer to a bin, submerged with old tank water
-using the old tank water, RINSE the sand thoroughly. Drain out the dirty water.
-setup the new tank. Fill it HALFWAY with clean, newly mixed saltwater. Adjust pH if needed. Bring temp to normal. (~80')
-put in the clean, rinsed sand. There should be minimal cloudiness since it has already been rinsed.
- put in the rocks. Start aquascaping.
-put in the corals
-if needed, pour in some old tank water to fill up the tank
-Do some minor tweaks.. you're done.

[NVTE]

My sand is about 2" height.
XTM I have most of my softies attached to the rock. if I move the rock, the softies will come along with it. That is why I want to put the LR with coral in first.