Upgrading from 5 gallon to 20 gallon tank

I currently have 2 neon tetra, one platy (he is huge), 1 algae eater and two african dwarf frogs in my 5 gallon tank. I am upgrading to a 20 gallon tank so I can have more fish. Is it better to put the new fish (have not bought yet obviously) and fish I currently have in the new tank all at once or do separtely? I know I have to set the 20 gallon tank up and let it cycle before doing anything.

I currently have 2 neon tetra, one platy (he is huge), 1 algae eater and two african dwarf frogs in my 5 gallon tank. I am upgrading to a 20 gallon tank so I can have more fish. Is it better to put the new fish (have not bought yet obviously) and fish I currently have in the new tank all at once or do separtely? I know I have to set the 20 gallon tank up and let it cycle before doing anything.

I have the kit that I use to check ammonia, nitrogen, and others and have well water that is very hard so get my water in town at the store.

 

If the 5 gallon tank is fully cycled you can just move everything from the 5 gallon over to the 20 gallon. Everything means filter, fish, water, all decor (plants, rock, driftwood, everything) and even the substrate. Bacteria is growing on everything in a cycled tank. By doing so there will be enough bacteria to handle the bio-load of the fish you have in the 5 gallon right now so no need to cycle the 20 before moving the fish. Give the tank a week or more before adding any more fish to the 20 gallon tank.

 

If you are upgrading to a new, larger filter for the 20 gal, you can run both filters at once until the new filter is colonized.

 

Run both filters together in the new tank for at least a month. take the used filter cartridge out of the old filter and stuff it in the new filter after a month if you dont want to run both filters anymore.

Add the old fish right away like the others said. Wait a week to add more fish.

 

If the 5 gallon tank is fully cycled you can just move everything from the 5 gallon over to the 20 gallon. Everything means filter, fish, water, all decor (plants, rock, driftwood, everything) and even the substrate. Bacteria is growing on everything in a cycled tank. By doing so there will be enough bacteria to handle the bio-load of the fish you have in the 5 gallon right now so no need to cycle the 20 before moving the fish. Give the tank a week or more before adding any more fish to the 20 gallon tank.

Thank you and 5 gallon tank is about 5 years old. Started with betta with my grandson.

 

Exciting news. What fish are you planning on getting?

 

I have the kit that I use to check ammonia, nitrogen, and others and have well water that is very hard so get my water in town at the store.

When you say very hard, how hard do you mean? Buying 2.5 gallons of water for your weekly water changes in the 5 gallon was probably an easy thing to do but buying it for a 20 gallon might be more trying. More fish in a bigger tank requires more water to be changed. If it is hard enough to leave residue on the glass it might be easier to just buy water than to have to keep it cleaned off though.

Thank you and 5 gallon tank is about 5 years old. Started with betta with my grandson.

It should have a good well established cycle then. Moving everything from it to the 20 gallon should work out well. Just keep a close eye on the parameters (ammonia, nitrite and nitrate). If you've not experienced any spikes in ammonia and/or nitrites in a week or so you can start to gradually add more fish.

 

Whatever you choose, I highly recommend you figure out a way to quarantine the newbies. Maybe you can transfer everything to the 20 gallon but find a way to leave enough behind to continue the 5 gallon cycle enough for your new fishes to quarantine in?