Moving with animals always brings even more hassle to an already stressful situation. This is especially true for those pets that require special conditions. When moving an aquarium to a new location, you need to provide a temporary container for your fish and plants, and carefully packing of the aquarium to avoid cracks in the glass.
However, professionals from the moving company Sherman Oaks https://got2move.com/local/los-angeles/sherman-oaks-movers/, say: if you understand well what needs to be done when moving a fish tank to a new home and preparing it for further work is quite simple. Let’s take a closer look at their advice.
How to Move an Aquarium?
As is the case with regular apartment moves, the success of moving an aquarium directly depends on the preparatory work and planning. Using our moving checklist, you can go through all stages of transportation without too much fuss.
Gather the essential supplies.
First of all, you need to collect the necessary materials to move the fish, equipment, plants, and decorations from the aquarium. You need to prepare:
- Temporary containers for fish and plants. It can be buckets or plastic bags.
- Fishnet to move fish from an aquarium to a shipping container.
- Packing tape to secure bucket lids and other packing materials.
- Siphon hose for removing water from the tank.
Auxiliary materials, such as fish food, aquarium test strips, and water de-chlorinator, pack in a separate and labeled box.
Prepare the tank.
If you have prepared all the equipment listed above, on a moving day, all you have to do is move the aquarium pets and plants into shipping containers and prepare the tank for the move:
- Turn off and remove filters and equipment.
- Pump out the water from the aquarium.
- Get and pack decorative items.
- Save the rest of the water.
- Remove gravel or sand.
- Wash and dry the aquarium completely.
Moving Your Fish and Plants
To avoid stressing the fish, wait as long as possible before moving them to the shipping containers, but keep in mind that you will need time to take the tank apart and clean it.
Movers and packers Los Angeles recommend using tank water for transport to keep the environment as comfortable and as close to what the fish and live plants are used to. Do not feed the fish 24 hours before placing them in the shipping container and be sure to leave air at the top.
Moving the tank
To ensure that the aquarium arrives at its new home in one piece, take the time to pack it as securely as possible. Pack the lid separately in bubble wrap. Lay a sheet of foam board to size on the bottom of the aquarium and fill the tank with towels or wrapping paper.
Place the tank in a box for transportation, after wrapping it in bubble wrap. If there are seams between the tank and the sides of the box, try to fill them to prevent the aquarium from shifting during moving.
Rebuild your aquarium
Upon arriving at a new place, try to quickly return the fish to the aquarium. To do this, start assembling it before you start unpacking other necessary things:
- Make sure the tank is not cracked during the move and fill it with pebbles or sand.
- Set the equipment, decorations, and plants inside, and then fill it with the water that you have left after draining the tank.
- Let the water stand and warm to room temperature, and then carefully transfer the fish there.
- After a few hours, turn on the heater and pump.
If you face troubles during any stage of the move, call professional moving services to help you.
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