Okay guys, I have a question for all of you. DRUMROLL PLEASE!

Anyway, it looks like sometime in December or January, we will be moving, as I can't keep making 1-hour-each-way trips to school 3 times a week and expect my car to last until I get out of college. So I've been thinking, and pondering, and scheming, and thinking some more, and I, for the life of me, cannot figure out how I will get my Oscar moved to a new house without totally losing my biological cycle and having to start over. Oh, and how do you even go about moving your live fish, especially one as large as an Oscar? Let's just assume that the next place we find to live is roughly 45 minutes to an hour from where I live now. How would I get my fish there in one piece, and how could I go about transporting my filter/filter media to keep my cycle alive so I don't start all over when I get him to our new house? This is something that has really had me worried over the last couple of days. There is so much that goes into moving, and when you have an aquatic pet, it just adds a whole new dimension!

So, please help me out, dear fellow OFL-ites. How would I get everything moved properly?

interesting....how about your tank size, and filtration type?
I suggest you get a battery operate air pump for your fish and your bio media

hope setting up your aquarium at new home won't take too long

when i picked my albino oscar up about 2hours way from me
all i used was bucket with lid and battery powerd air pump
as for yur media keep it in a bucket with lid with tank water
will be ok for 45 mins =]

with controlled temp and water agitation while moving, good bacteria
could survived for 5 hours travel.... some people may suggest to establish
temporary tank like bathtub or kiddie pool to have a running water with
calibrated temp so that when you arrive, you can immediately run the filtration
system and transfer the water and the fish to the tank when it arrive on site...

My tank size is 55 gallons and I have 100 gallon HOB filter that uses "cartridges". I'm wondering if there is some way I might be able to get my hands on a 55-gallon drum and transfer most of my tank water to that, then take down my tank and clean it, and then move it. That way, I can just keep most of my old water, and the worst that would happen would be a 30-50% water change scenario. How big of a battery do you think I'd need to run my filter and air pump (I have an air pump rated for a 10 gallon aquarium, but it pumps air just fine through my one bubble curtain! )

I was thinking about just getting one of those power converters for a car, but then I realized that the cigarette lighter/power port in my car doesn't work. But, maybe I could get one and hook it up in my dad's truck, since he'd probably be hauling the water and everything and I could run an extension cord out to the bed of his truck, but then that brings me to a new dilemna... Temperature change. By the time we move, it will probably be pretty darn chilly, and at least a good 20-30 degrees below 77. Maybe I'll just take all the blankets in our house and wrap them around that big ass drum of water to keep it warm. I'm sure hubby would LOVE that idea!

Anyway, thanks for the ideas so far, and if you have any new ones, feel free to give them to me! I'll take any crazy advice you can give me, short of giving my fish away and getting a new one.

don't worry too much about power supply... get an ice cooler or
an ice chest... that will keep the temp constant.... as i have said
earlier, a water in a tub or drum with heater could keep the water
warm for the new set up...

full size blue bin with lid or cooler would do it with a air stone. Plug your air pump into one of these in your car:

www.amazon.com/Universal-DC-AC-Adapter-Plug/dp/B000E8V9O4

you can pick these up at any hardware store.

some good advice allready, and i must say we had members move to new homes,and with the above posted advice their media survived for several hours, without any big loss of bacteria, nor any toxic spikes.
Same with power outages for several hours.
Just plan ahead, like your doing and an hour should be no problem at all!

Well, thanks guys! It never even crossed my mind to use water coolers/ice chests to move the water, but that is an absolutely brilliant idea! I think you guys are the greatest, you know that? LOL I know exactly how to do it now, and just think: a day ago, I didn't have a clue! Fantastic! It's one less thing I have to worry about the move now.

Jenny, all I can tell you is either move the tank very first, or very last... Tear down, move, set up.. that way you aren't down any longer than you have to!

And I moved mine in a 35 gallon trash can!

like paul mentioned. I use a small ice chest while moving my fish. As long as the temperature doesn't drop drastically your fish will be fine for a couple of hours.

Years ago I bought a 9" Oscar at a fish store. The owner put the Oscar in a styraphome container(that his fish are shipped in from supplier). He also added a couple of tabs that acted like an alkaseltzer, it was blue in color. He told me it would put the Oscar in a tranquil state and make it easier for the 30 minute drive. He told me the Oscar would be a little drowsy for a while after he gets in his new tank.

Well the blue stuff worked fine, I have no idea what it was. Haven't tried to find it since and have moved fish many times since then and never lost a one. Let's see if someone knows about this "stuff".

another idea I though of earlier which is like setting up the new tank I had
give them no food for 24 hours before moving, and which they are in the new tank feed minimal and test the water for ammonia nitrite and nitrate. if nitrate stay constant and ammonia started to show feed even less till nitrite start showing, by this time ammonia should have lowered of disappear start feeding more. until nitrate start build up and ammonia and nitrite disappear feed massive to build up more good bacteria. this is more like going through half cycled tank