Moving And Dreading It

So I'm moving in 3 weeks and I'm dreading the idea of moving my aquarium. Could use some advice. It's a 38 gallon freshwater stocked with 20 fish (1 turquoise, 2 bleeding heart platy, 6 harlequin rasboras, 5 serpae tetras, 2 sterbaI cory and 4 bandit cory.
I was also planning on changing from medium gravel to a course sand substrate so I'll make that change during the move.

This is the plan as of now but looking for input: 72 hours before move, do a water change . 48 hours before move, stop feeding . Night before the move, drain tank and move fish into 5 gallon bucket (or giant tote if I can get one) filled with tank water. Place filter media in a plastic bag with tank water to keep wet and keep BB alive. Overnight keep the heater in the bucket and an airstone. Movers come at 9am the next day and hope to get it all loaded by noon. I'll then unplug the heater and air stone and put fish into my car. Movers and I drive 1 hour to the new place and start unpacking. I expect that to be done around 4pm at which point I can start getting water into the tank and fish back in. Fish back in around 6pm to 7pm.

So...
1) will fish be ok in the bucket for 24 hours? Or is that too long?
2) is 5 gallon bucket ok for that many fish or do I need multiple buckets?
2b) if separate buckets needed, how should I separate them
3) can I put the lid on the bucket and seal it while driving to prevent spillage? Or does this restrict oxygen too much

Any othe advice or help? I'm so anxious about this. Moving is fine. Moving a tank ugh. I went looking for companies that move tanks but nobody willing to move a tank under 50 gallons.

 

I would use more than 1 bucket personally. I would keep the Corys and serpae tetras in one (the serapes can get extra nippy if stressed and the corries should stick mostly to the bottom so they would be bothered less). Also if you have any light decor like silk plants that will allow for hiding spots but have no risk of falling and injuring a fish I would use the in the buckets. If you have Prime I would use that as well. Sealing the lid will restrict a lot of oxygen but you might be okay for 1 hour if you have the bubbler going before and after the 1 hour drive? Not sure how quickly the oxygen would deplete. If you have a tough plastic wrap you would put over the top and poke holes in that might be better while still preventing major water catastrophes.
Good luck!

 

One hour, no problem.

2 buckets may be better as previously mentioned.

I transfer fish in bags 5 hours regularly with no issues.

 

Try to keep as much of the original water as you can and keep the filter running as long as possible. There is little to no bacteria in the water but it is the water your fish and the bacteria are used to. If you can keep at least half of the water it will just seem like a big water change to them and shouldn't shock them like a much bigger water change might.

If you can get a medium sized storage bin you could put all the fish in there along with some of your softer deco. If you use 5 gallon buckets I would do as Fish0n suggested and use at least 2 buckets.

Bacteria grows on every surface in your tank so you want to keep everything wet. I would go so far as covering the top of the tank with some kind of plastic wrap to keep the moisture in there. Bacteria will be growing on the walls of the tank. You will probably experience a minI cycle since you are switching out the substrate so you want to try to keep all the bacteria you can.

The fish tank would be the last thing I broke down before the move and the first thing I would set back up. Just let the movers know ahead of time and they should work with you by putting the tank in last and take it out first when they get to the new place.

 

Fish get shipped in bags for sometimes days. Buckets will be fine, temp would be my focus

 

Fish get shipped in bags for sometimes days. Buckets will be fine, temp would be my focus

When fish are shipped pure oxygen is added if possible rather than regular air. I don't know if it is accurate to compare fish shipped in bags because of that.

 

You have planned very well. The fish will do well in a bucket covered for the drive. They won't freak out so much if it is dark. I have transported many fish in buckets and bags for 3-12 hours of driving. Just make sure the temperature doesn't drop significantly. Wrap your bucket with blankets to help keep the water warm. Once in your new place, start your air and heater in the bucket while you re-set the tank. God Bless You for taking good care of your fish family during the move.

 

Take great care putting an aquarium heater in a bucket. Especially one rated for a larger water volume. You can easily overheat your fish if heater is not totally submerged not to mention melting a plastic bucket!
You might be safer getting a small under gravel heater designed for 2-5 gallon tanks, bury it under some gravel in a small glass dish and place at the bottom of the bucket. I'd test it a day or two ahead of time in the bucket without fish to make sure it doesn't overheat. There are also tiny submersable filters if you ever need one. I've transported fish in small tanks for 2-3 days using these plugged into an inverter that plugged into the cigarette lighter outlet of my car. Works great!

 

Take great care putting an aquarium heater in a bucket. Especially one rated for a larger water volume. You can easily overheat your fish if heater is not totally submerged not to mention melting a plastic bucket!
You might be safer getting a small under gravel heater designed for 2-5 gallon tanks, bury it under some gravel in a small glass dish and place at the bottom of the bucket. I'd test it a day or two ahead of time in the bucket without fish to make sure it doesn't overheat. There are also tiny submersable filters if you ever need one. I've transported fish in small tanks for 2-3 days using these plugged into an inverter that plugged into the cigarette lighter outlet of my car. Works great!

Use coolers instead.

A couple of 5 gallon water coolers are a great investment.

I use a plastic bin as a quarantine tank but was advised against using it to move water, just not strong enough.

A cooler, on the other hand, is designed to hold heavy ice and drinks. And will protect against temperature swings.

 

Just remember to close the drain plug!! LOL

 

I was recently given a rechargeable air pump. You should get one!
This one is called a Hopar AC/DC Air Pump. It's small and quiet, has 2 outlets and pumps vigorously for hours. It's brilliant for moving fish, blackouts, or even an emergency pump as it is for me right now. It is currently running 2 sponge filters move than adequately.