Can I move a tank 5 feet with a dsb in it?

corpusse · #1 11-23-2014, 03:19 PM

Long story I was planning on moving several months ago moved my tanks to the unfinished sections in the basement, decided to stay for a few more years. One of which is a 90 gallon garden eel tank. I actually replaced most of the 200lbs of sand at the time which was worse then a living hell. I also rinsed out most of the old sand to save for when I move for real in a few years.

FF to now, I have got rid of the the salt soaked carpet and replaced with simple vinyl tile. Since I am going to be here for a while I'd like to move the tank back into the finished area next to my reef.

Catching the garden eels is next to impossible. Disturbing the dsb is not that big of a deal for the tank itself since there are no corals but its a living hell cleaning it, and with it being winter I cannot just bring 5 gallon buckets of sand outside and let the hose run all day. I finally beat the cyano that took hold in the newer sand. I would prefer 50% water changes to lower nitrates then rerinsing the sand. To be honest the sand which had been in there about 2 years when I moved the tank earlier was not that gross. Didn't even smell foul. This newer sand should be a lot cleaner.

What I want to know is would it be safe to drain the tank remove the live rock. leave the eels in the sand, put the tank on a dolly and wheel it through the door against the wall in the main room of the basement. Total travel about 5 feet. I know the tank will be HEAVY but after moving the 180g twice I can handle the weight. I will level out the sand which is currently slopped to minimize stress on the tank seems.

So to sum up, I can handle a nitrate spike, the dsb does not appear anerobic, it's sugar sized sand for the eels. My only concern is the seems of the tank lifting it on and off the dolly. If this is unsafe I may just leave it until spring but the tank is being neglected next to the freezer where you can only stand on the concrete 1 foot away to enjoy it, the eels despite the fact I've had them for years are still very skittish. I'd also like to lower the temp a few degrees and try some seahorses with them.

mikellini · #2 11-23-2014, 03:42 PM

I've moved a tank with about two inches of sand in it, had no concerns. How deep is your sand bed? A calculator I just checked on says 200lbs should be around 6", if so that's about 1/4 of the total height of the glass, and I'd be a little worried with that much sand, but I think it could be done...

Instead of 50% water changes, consider dosing vinegar to reduce nitrates. Cheap and easy, works well, if you're interested there are many threads to be found on Google. Here's one:

http://reefkeeping.com/joomla/index....arine-aquarium

whatcaneyedo · #3 11-23-2014, 05:27 PM

I moved my 120gal 7ft out from the wall so that I could build a tank-room with all of the sand, rock, coral and fish still in. I just drained it down to the last 3". I didn't have to contend with carpet so I just lifted and shifted each side a little at a time until it was located where I wanted.

corpusse · #4 11-24-2014, 04:17 PM

I moved the tank without incident more or less.

I'll post some pics when it clears up. I need to get more garden eels. Surprisingly I had 2 jump over the last few months and a couple disappear. The ones I still have I have had for more than 2 years so I know I can keep them long term. I hope to add some hitching posts lower the temp to about 75-76 and get some sea horses and pipefish. With that in mind I took the 4 chromis out of the tank and moved them to my reef.