what to do with the fish

i want to dirt my 75 gal, but what do i do with my fish while the tank settles ???

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Permalink Reply by Jason DuBois on January 7, 2012 at 11:50pm

If you slow fill you shouldn't get much debris floating around and what does your filter should catch it pretty quick.If your filter has bio-filtration on it (bacteria) you should be able to put your fish back in pretty quick. In the mean time a clean (new might be best) bucket or 30 gallon trash can with an air stone and pump should be ok. I feel like you should be able to get it done in a day. I hope the other members back me up on this or give their opinion if it differs. Good luck.

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Permalink Reply by Nolan Luedke on January 8, 2012 at 1:25am

I think Jason is correct. I had minows and red cherry shrimp in a ten gallon and at night I took them out, then started to dirt my tank. The next morning after I ran my filters I very slowly acclimated them back in to the water. They seemed to do fine. I also kept 50% of the original water and ran it overnight with the bio filter on. The water was still pretty cloudy but there was no debri in the water.

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Permalink Reply by J B on January 8, 2012 at 1:26pm

awesome,, thanks for the input... time to start stocking up for the big move !!!!! thanks again

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Permalink Reply by Hmoobthor on January 8, 2012 at 8:03pm

when i did mine, i add them back that very same day...lol..no problem

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Permalink Reply by 2apes2gp667wr on January 8, 2012 at 8:40pm

A 20 gallon rubbermaid bin at a home improvement store will set you back about $5. If you have a HOB filter you can even hang it on the bin if you like. That's the way I do it. Or an airstone will be alright for quite a while.

And like Jason said if you slowly fill and then run your filter you should be able to add fish back very soon. The cloudiness of the water will not harm them. Just make sure your parameters are good. If you are not using the old tank water for the dirting process you will probably have a mini cycle.

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Permalink Reply by J B on January 9, 2012 at 12:34am

i will be using the water from my tank,, i never get rid of that stuff just ask my houseplants and garden,, i just thought that i had read somewhere that it took about a week before you could add your fish back in, however im glad that im mistaken.. thanks everybody for the input !!!