Hi everyone,
Right now i've got a 20 Gallon cycled tank with 5 goldies in it. I know, i know it's too many. But right now they are pretty small and are doing very well. I check my water almost daily and it is alway good. I do a 30% water change every week and i'll do more if i have to.

Now for the good part. I just bought a new 55 gallon tank and i should receive it in a few weeks (i hope).

How should i got about the transfer from my 20 gallon to the 55 gallon ?

My 20 gallon has a fluval 104(full of ceramic rings) and a whisper 20 running. And an air pump also.

For the 55 gallon i bought a fluval 305. Will this be enough ?

Should i take some of the bio-max ceramic rings from my filter that's running right now and put it in my new fluval(305) to start the cycle?

Should i take the gravel from the 20 gallon and put it in the new tank ?

How would you go about doing this move ? Any suggestions.

Thanks

First off, I would get the 55 gallon set up and running for about a week with fresh water and all the water treatment stuff in it. You could also add some of those bio rings into the filter to help jump start it. Yes I would add the old gravel in there. Personally I use river rocks because there big and it leaves the bottom sort of open so it stays clean longer and doesn't build up with poop. Plus when the fish get bigger they won't be able to potentially choke on the gravel. Secondly a fluval 404 or other brand like eheim would have been better, but the 304 should be good enough with your other filters combined. The goal is to have 10x filtration so for your 55 gallon i would say 550 gph. When I moved my three fish from my 10 gallon to my 33 gallon. I just transfered them. The tank had been running empty for about a week or two with nothing old in it. I just made sure to do my best to match the temps and put the fish in. My fish handled it perfectly fine I just added a bit of aquarium salt here and there and I was good to go. I didn't change it after that for about a month just to give it time to kinda start the cycle.

the transfer shouldn't be too bad... i'd just suggest that you make sure you have a water testing kit handy so you can check water parameters every day.

my suggestions include:
- aquarium pharmaceuticals freshwater master test kit
- seachem prime
- and if you don't already have one, a python or a syphon will help out LOTS with a large tank

using media from your previous filter is fine to jump start the cycle. it's really up to you. i think when i start up my new tank, i'll probably start from scratch just to make sure i don't introduce any ickies from my other tanks in the event i have any.

as calicofantail said, 550 gph is recommended for goldies, but it doesn't hurt to go a little over. as long as your goldies have areas in your tank to rest from any strong current there may be. you can also add plants and decorations to break up the current as well.

the number one thing is to test your water every day and make sure your babies are safe! you shouldn't have any problems... the main thing is water quality. if it's picture perfect, your fishies will be happier than ever!

congrats on the new tank btw!!! i'm sure you're anxious to get it!

A couple of additional comments in addition to what Calicofantail said - Given that you have the Fluval 305, you might want to supplement it with an HOB filter. That would give you some good mechanical filtration and get you to 10X. Also, I would suggest that after you get your 55 gallon running, that you transfer one of your fish to the tank. Ideally, you should leave that one fish in there for a month to cycle the tank. Then transfer the rest. If you don't have the patience for that, keep testing the water!

Dennis

I just recently upgraded from an overstocked 10 gallon to a 40 gallon tank, including adding two new filters.

My first suggestion would be that if you have any extra media hanging around, float it in your current tank in a stocking. It'll start the colonization process and help you seed your new filter.

If you break up your current media and disperse it between *all* your filters on your new tank, it should help it cycle in *much* less time.

I got a lot of good advice from Daryl when I was asking some of the same questions here.

Personally I would set up the new tank, make sure it's full of good clean dechlorinated water that has a PH identical to your current tank and then just move *everything* over.

When I moved mine, I broke down the 10 gallon, put the fish in a 5 gallon bucket with their filter running on it, set up the 40 gallon put the gravel from the 10 in, filled it up, set up the filters and then transfered the fish into the tank, and they were fine.

They were slightly surprised to be swimming around in something with so much room, but they are now happy as clams.

Just use all the equipment and decor from your original tank and you shouldn't have too bad a bump in your cycle. Watch it carefully though, but you seem to already do that.

I never saw any ammonia or nitrite readings after my upgrade, just straight nitrates.

well what i did to help my 55 gallon fully cycle is i took the media from my filter in my 30 gallon and put it in the filter of the 55 gallon. i also put some of the water from the 30 and put it in the 55. it took about a week to cycle.

when i moved the fish, i put them in bags and floated them to make sure the temp was even. once i did that, i kinda swished the water in and out of the bag to make sure the ph was even too

Fuzzy Peaches,
You're "spot on" so far. As others have stated, I'd run both the 104 and the 304, mostly cuz you got 'em, you can't overfilter. You can add a HOB for additional filtering as well as water movement (aeration). But it may not be necessary, while 10x is a good rule of thumb for filteration, it really applies more to HOBs than canisters. The benefit of a canister is the volume of filter media. Even the 404/405 that was recomended, only runs at 340 gph, yet it's rated for a 100 gallon tank. The key is that it holds over 2 gallons of media. Could you imagine a HOB that holds 2 gallons of media! Running canisters also permits you to keep the tank closer to the wall AND control where the output is.
Additionally, you can pull the 104 off to filter a QT tank (because the 304 is plenty by itself) in a pinch.
Just my take on it!

Well thank you so much for all the help.

I guess i'll start with the fluval 104 and the 304 for now. My 5 fishes are still small anyway. Of course i'll be watching the water parameters closely as i always do anyway.

If i see a need for more filtering, i'll adjust then. I would really like to be able to put the tank right up against the wall since it is bigger than the one i've got right now.

Maybe i should put the bio-media from the new fluval in my 20 gallon tank now so it gets some bacterias in it ? How long does it take to fill those ceramic rings with bacterias ?

I've changed the filter in my whisper 20 last weekend and kept the old filter in the tank and attached where the water comes out of the filter. I guess it can't hurt to have too many good bacterias in the new tank.

I have 2 100 watt heaters, will it be enough for now ? Cash is getting more and more scarce

When i receive the new tank, i'll just put my old gravel in it(and some new one), the decorations, the 20 gallon's water and with the old filters from my whisper 20. That with all the bacterias in my fluval 104 i think that the cycle won't take too much time. I have some Prime and some aquarium salt. I'll use that also to diminish the stress on my little ones. I just hope that they don't suffer. I'm off work for a while now and will have all the time in the world to do water changes. I'll do as many as it take to keep my fishes safe. Lot's of testing of course and i hope lots of luck.

I can't wait to receive my new tank. My little fishes are going to be so happy in there.

Thanks to all and i'll keep you posted later with pictures of my babies.

Ok now, my brother who has just purchased a 160 gallon tank and a fluval fx has offered to give me his eheim 2028 pro II. Should i use this ?Remember i have a fluval 305 and a 104. Also i have no room for an hob filter because i have to put the tank right up to the wall. No space behind. What would you do ?

Chipie... Thinksme, Fluvals are OK. Eheims ROCK. Rena and Eheim have taken canister filters to a whole new level of efficiency and simplicity in maintenance/operation. If your brother is planning to give the Eheim to you, take it! If you feel like you have too many filters when all is said and done, you'll probably find the Eheim is one you'll want to hang on to.

I have the same problem with my aquaclear hob, it hangs on the front of the tank because the tank is too heavy to move unless I empty it all out.

It doesn't look all that pretty but it still does the job.

Hi Annette,
Well i would be scared of my fish jumping out of the tank if i would leave a door open for the HOB. How do you prevent this?
Andrée R

Well, I have a glass lid on top of the tank so it makes it awkward.

The lid is in 2 sections so I have to push the front lid back a bit to allow for the hob. Part of the front lid sits on top of the back lid (if you get my meaning).

The gap is only about 3/4" so theoretically my fish could jump out but they haven't. The water line is about 2" below the top of the tank, perhaps that helps.