Moving fish to new aquarium?

Question
Hello,

I am a very new fish owner. I was just recently given a present of 3 glofish that came in a 1.5 gallon tank (on Friday, 10/3). I have done some research since, because one of my glofish is bullying the others. I want to move my fish into a 5-gallon tank and add two more because I read they're happier in larger groups and that way any aggression will be spread out. I have looked up how to move fish from one aquarium into another, but have just come across a smattering of very varied answers, so I thought I'd ask an expert! How would I go about moving my fish from the 1.5-gallon tank to the 5-gallon? I haven't bought the new tank yet, but I'm going to.

Thank you!!

Answer
Hi Andrea;

It's going to be just as easy to move them as it was to bring them home. Bag them in their own tank water and float the bag on the water in the new tank for a few minutes. Net them from the bag into the tank after the temperature in the bag is the same as the new tank. Throw away the bagged water. It will contain stress hormones and other ugly things you don't want in the tank.

Get them the larger tank very soon though, and don't get more new ones right away. Your little tank is going through something called a "break-in period" as we speak so ammonia will get very high. The more fish you have in there so early, the higher the ammonia will go before it finally breaks in. That's why you should wait before getting more fish. Make a 25% water change every couple of days until the new tank is ready for them so the ammonia won't stay so high. Here is a link to my article on new tanks that will explain what's going on in there;

http://www.xanga.com/Expert_Fish_Help

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins