Wow...I realized just now that I never actually finished this thread...oops! Had all the pictures loaded on to photobucket and everything, then forgot in the craziness that follows a big move and starting a new job.
Time to remedy that
It was 6 hours from point A to point B. I had to fit 2 dogs and all my aquarium accessories, along with my overnight bag, sleeping bag, and a pillow, into my car for the trip. I had to load everything myself. I was pretty sure, based on what my tape measure told me, that the 29 would fit into my trunk, so all of my fish stuff was going to ride back there to avoid the sun and hopefully maintain better temperature control while leaving room for the dogs in the back seat of the car.
One major advantage that I had was that when touring the new place a month before, I had filled up my water bottle at the tap and tested the water when I got home, so I knew what to expect. Namely, a
pH drop from 8.0 to 7.2 and reduced hardness as well (don't remember the hardness numbers). While my fish are SA and a Betta and this would ultimately be in their favor, it was still going to be a huge change. On the other hand, I did not have the means or space to transport water as well, so I was just going to have to do the best I could.
Supplies:
- 2 Coolers
- A lot of 1/2 gal ziploc bags...the type with the crimped bottoms so they are less likely to tip over and tend to provide more horizontal space.
- Garbage bags for the
driftwood
- Lots of plastic bags suitable for plants
- Paper towels for cleanup and for keeping plants moist
- Container to hold water-filled bags awaiting fish
- Several fish tank buckets
- Water siphon
- Prime
- Fish nets
- Python No Spill Clean & Fill (optional)
The 29 gal stand had already been moved to Point B...the tank had been moved to a board directly on the floor a few days prior during a major waterchange to allow it to stay behind with me.
6:30 a.m.
First I drained the top 6" or so of water into my ziploc bags and added a small amount of Prime to each bag to prevent ammonia issues. While the trip itself was only 6 hours, with dismantling and setup I was expecting the fish to spend a good 12 hours in those bags, and decided to play it safe.
Netted all the fish I could get to easily. Each Bolivian Ram, the Betta, and the SAE had an individual bag. The other bags: 2 bags with 4 Neon Tetras each, 1 bag with 6 Ghost Shrimp, 1 bag with the 3 29gal Otos (I thought there were four but apparently one vanished during the previous month or so...they are hard to keep track of in a planted tank) and another with the 2 10gal Otos. I didn't bother bagging any snails (I do actually like the
MTS variety)...those things would find their own way, I was sure.
Removed the filter media and bagged each set separately in used tank water to preserve beneficial bacteria colonies. Placed bags in cooler:
Removed the Anubias from the driftwood (because of the way I was transporting the driftwood, they would likely have been seriously injured/crushed), wrapped them in tank-water-soaked paper towels, and bagged them:
(don't worry, the
nana really was in this bag, even though the first pic is a
coffeefolia 
)
Removed the driftwood with Java Moss still attached and triple-bagged it in clean garage bags:
Netted and bagged remaining fish. Placed all fish bags in the coolers.
Uprooted and bagged all remaining plants according to species in the same manner as the Anubias. Placed plant bags on the fish bags and closed the coolers.
Drained remaining tank water. Prevented dogs from drinking said tank water by discarding it. Placed remaining tank equipment in buckets (heaters, thermometers, etc.) or boxes (lights, lids, power strips).
Scooped each tank's substrate into its own bucket and covered to keep moist. Residual substrate was left in the bottom of each tank...not even enough to cover the glass. Wanted to do everything I could to prevent strain on the aquariums while preserving beneficial bacteria colonies in the substrate.
Wrapped bubble wrap around both tanks since I had it handy and taped it in place.
Carried the 29 gal down the 2 flights of stairs and to my car...breathed a sign of relief when it fit in the trunk, and was even able to fit the board it was on upstairs under it in the trunk so that the tank was on a flat, even surface. Continued to load all the other fish stuff.
Loaded everything else, the dogs, and myself.
9:00 a.m.
Left Point A
3:00 p.m.
Arrived at Point B
Enlisted hubby to help unload car after moving 29gal tank stand to desired location. Replaced the substrate in both aquariums. Unable to find my Prime back, I used the dechlorinator from my pre-move
LFS which is effective for that purpose and protects slime coat, but does not detox ammonia. Used a plastic lid to reduce substrate disturbance while filling both tanks with the Python.
Went to install heaters only to realize that the plug I had planned on using near the 29gal was not grounded. Feeling like an idiot, I drained tank and renlisted poor hubby again to help me move tank and stand to a new location. Refilled tank using same method as before. Installed heaters, filters, thermocouple, etc.
When the temperature was confirmed safe, the driftwood and plants were placed in the tank. Once the water cleared sufficiently, the filters and heaters were turned on.
7:00 p.m.
Put the fish bags into their respective tanks to float and equilibrate, temperature-wise.
Once the temperatures were stable, added small amount of tank water (~1/8 cup) every 10-15 minutes or so (was unpacking other stuff during this time). When bags were full, dumped out half their water and continued the additions as before.
11:00 p.m.
Once I was satisfied that no one was going into shock due to the new water parameters, the fish were released into their tanks.
11:30 p.m.
After making sure my water
test kit had been unearthed, I collapsed and slept like a baby.
Aftermath
The next morning I had a trace amount of ammonia in both tanks and performed immediate water changes. That evening I retested...ammonia was just barely registering, so I performed more water changes. The second morning there was no ammonia, no
nitrite...just ~10
PPM nitrate which I found acceptable. While getting groceries I happened by a LFS and picked up some Prime. For the next week I did ~25% daily water changes on both tanks, adding Prime each time.
The only casualty I have sustained in the 5 months since moving is a single ghost shrimp. Everyone else has been counted and accounted for. Not sure why I lost the ghost shrimp, except that it was an adult when I got it nearly a year ago, so it may have simply died of old age...the others are still thriving so I doubt it was contamination.
So there it is...moving two small/medium-sized freshwater tanks, one fully and the other partially planted, from Ohio to Illinois. I'll try to get 'now' pics posted later tonight (hopefully it doesn't take my another 5 months to pull that off).
p.s. The snails most definitely found their way
ETA:
Things I would change for next time (oh yes, there will likely be a next time...):
- Have another rubbermade type container for the driftwood so they Anubias can stay attached
- Make sure that the location has the proper power supply readily available (as well as access to water, etc., depending on your needs)
- Make sure that more than one fish net is left unpacked...catching fish with one net among plants and driftwood is difficult and unnecessarily stressful for the fish compared to the simplicity of two nets.
Special Notes:
- I made sure all my fish were healthy and well-fed prior to the move, then gave them no food for 48 hours prior to bagging to reduce waste in the water.
- Before moving I sold off any stock that either wasn't doing as well as I hoped or that I wasn't very attached to, namely 3 albino cories (didn't like them) and a gold blush superveil Angelfish (wasn't thriving...too passive to compete with the Rams)
- Because the house temperature was 80 when I arrived (July + a/c on low due to all the in&out activity associated with moving) I placed the fish bags in the rubbermade and opened the ziplocs to allow for air exchange. Probably not really necessary considering the time line. Would not do this if the room temp is different than what the water should be or large amounts of evaporation would take place (in addition to reducing water level, evap would cool the water)
- Had two battery-powered air pumps, line, and airstones with me in case of emergency.
I can't think of anything else...feel free to add advice, criticisms, or whatever. The idea is just to give people an idea of how to approach such an undertaking.
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