ricktavious

Next weekend, I'll be moving my fish back to my girlfriend's appartment since I'll be gone a good bit and he needs to get back there pretty soon anyways.

So, anyways, what is the best way to move the tank without screwing up the cycle or with the medication process. The move will be around an hour or so drive. Do I move a good portion of the tank water too? Will be looking forward to hearing all the info possible in the week leading up to the move.

However, I'm not looking forward to being without the fish for almost three weeks

mlinden84

What size tank?

sirdarksol

Not sure about the medication part, someone else will have to help with that.
As far as not screwing up the cycle, that's easy (presuming the tank's not too large). (Warning, because you are dealing with a lot of organic material, this is going to smell. I suggest getting an air-freshener for your car for after the move)
This all needs to be done just before the move, to minimize the stress to your fish.

Take the filter media out and put it in a ziplock back filled with tank water. Set this in an ice-cream bucket (Just in case the bag leaks)
Take the fish out and put them in whatever you'll be using to carry them (will be determined by the size of the fish. Plastic bags for smaller fish, perhaps a cooler for a larger fish like an oscar) along with quite a bit of the aquarium water, as well as air at the top of the bag.
Drain most of the water out, leaving just enough to keep the gravel wet.
If you have live plants, they, of course, need to be kept at least damp if not fully submerged.
I would suggest keeping all decorations damp, too, maybe by pushing them into the substrate a bit, as they are going to also have the beneficial bacteria on them.
Transport everything, set the tank up as quickly as possible, making sure to get the water temp pretty good to start out with (err on the low side, as heaters, in my experience, tend to do their work pretty quickly) Don't forget water conditioner.
acclimate your fish, then reintroduce them.

ricktavious

Sounds good folks! The tank is a 3 gallon, and the only fish in it is my betta.....from what it sounds, this shouldn't be too tough!

Phloxface

I would also keep about 1 gallon of the cleanest water from the top of the tank and put it in an empty container that has never held any food or chemicals (such as an empty water bottle). Using all fresh water to set up the tank could kill off some bacteria so if you put a little used water in first and then the fresh water it would be like a big water change. If no one is in the car to hold the tank put a large bag over the top and tape tightly all around so it won't splash too much. This will help with the smell in the car too.

COBettaCouple

something we found useful for stuff like this is the storage boxes at walmart/target.. we got a bunch of 15L containers for about $3-4 each. Great for holding an entire filter box or carrying a bunch of substrata while keeping the stuff under water. we'd put the fish into sealed bags in a cooler, held in place by towels or newspaper to minimize the movement on them. keeping the lid closed will keep them in the dark and keep out A/C and sunlight.