STARTING UP 125 RR

[paul]

I had a 75 gallon fowlr and now have a 125 rr setup. if i drain the 75 and dump the water into the 125 and top off the rest with filtered water do i have to let the tank cycle or should i be fine moving everyting into the new tank. sand, rock, and equipment. or is it all to sudden for the fish.

[alton]

Sand may be an issue depending on how deep it is in your 75.

[paul]

the sand is about 3 inches give or take in some spots. is adding the sand the big issue due to stirring up everything.

[profntbtr]

sand has a tendency to hold nitrogenous waste. stirring your sand bed will lead to a cycle in and of itself. i personally would recommend new sand, or taking the existing sand and rinsing it well before putting it in the new tank.

[paul]

if i use all the old sand and and mix with a few bags of new sand will that work. i'll rinse the old sand first. do i just add some sand in bucket and keep adding water and dumping dirty water out until it clears up.

[randomfish]

your still gonna cycle not to mention your gonna need more live rock and that will cycle to so no matter your gonna cycle you need a safe haven to keep fish and corals imho

[profntbtr]

usually i just put a garden hose into the bottom of the bucket of sand, turn it on, and let it go until the water runs clear. be sure to stir the sand a bit while the hose is running, or else you might miss some contaminants.

[danvan75]

i've seen a pro do a friends tank, and all he did was put the old water from his old 75 into the 125 and make new water, but he did not use the same sand, he used new sand. He did the whole transfer in less then 2hrs. This was a fowlr tank, no coral to worry about.

[paul]

so far i added about 40 gallons from my 75 gallon tank into my 125 and added about 40 gallons of new water. i moved about 60 lbs of rock also and everything seems fine. fish are swimming and eating. i'll top off water this weekend and then move the rest of my rock which is about another 40lbs. i'm still iffy on the sand. i know there is a big chance of cycling if i add the old sand. i'm thinking of adding just a lbs every few days and measure. what do you think.