a little jaw clenching

[this is probably in the wrong section so feel free to redirect it as necessary]
anyway, today i am moving my 7 month old 55 gallon tank to my new home.... obviously this is causing me a little anxiety. i feel like i have a pretty solid game plan and it is only 20 miles or so but i wanted to see if anyone had any last minute tips, or would be so kind as to inform me of any unexpected problems you may have encountered in moving a decent sized tank. one specific question i do have is about my fish... would i be better off putting them in idividual bags or would it be ok to put two per fivegallon bucket of water...? also im going to indiviually bag my corals so they cant fall on one another and sting eachother. any advice would be great! thanks to anyone in advance!

I would put the fish straight in the buckets and not bag them. It's easier that way.

I think you will be fine! Those disposable styrofoam coolers from convenience stores work well for transporting fish and corals if you are worried about temperature changes. They are much better insulated than buckets.

Very clever, thanks biff.... Also thanks for the encouragement haha

Oh and I was planning on leaving the live sand [100 lbs] in the bottom of the tank during transport does anyone encourage or discourage this?

That's fine, but I would encourage you to clean the sand before you set the tank back up again. I'd bet there's a ton of crap in it, and you don't want that getting released into the water when you set it up.

Wash with fresh saltwater? Or can I flush it essentially with the water thats currently in the tank? I'm using mostly new and fresh water that's mixing now for the final set up.... Thanks again!

Just use the old water -- you are going to throw it out anyways.

cool thanks for the advice!!! just about to start brek down. ill keep you posted.

oh my lord... finally done. i havent hooked up my phosphate reactor but im too exhausted... the essentials are up and running and everything live is in the tank. my blenny has disappeared during the ordeal... im hoping shes hidden in some rockwork. my flame angel ended up hitch hiking in an entirely different bucket for the same reason but i found him during set up. one shrimp is also missing but for the most part im very satisfied with the move. heres some before and after shots.. still a little murky, but i lke the new aquascape a lot more... lemme know what you think guys!

before and after

Looks awesome!! Your blenny may have been hiding in a hole in the rocks. I hope he shows up!

All fish are accounted for :) the waters clearing up and my corals don't look quiet as angry. I'll get some pics tomorrow morning!