Moving, looking to upgrade in the process..

So I've currently got a 29G FOWLR that's been running for 4-5 months. In a little over a month I am planning to move to a new apartment and have been tossing around ideas on exactly how to make the move. As where I am now is currently family, I do have the luxury of being able to leave the current tank setup through the transition, so I began thinking the best solution was to setup a new tank, get it cycled then move the livestock.

With that idea, I began also thinking about upgrading to possibly a 40B. The first challenge is a stand for it, in which I have been playing with the idea of building a custom one. I have seen several good examples of custom ones for 40B's specifically, and have a good idea of what I want to do. My father was a carpenter, so I know I definitely have a leg up there.

As far as equipment, I have a Fluval 300 canister filter and an expandable 4x T5 light fixture that will fit on a 40B just fine. As I'm fairly new to the hobby (about 6 months), i don't know much about sumps/refugiums but I have begun a little research and thinking about adding one of those as well at some point. I know I do plan on getting a skimmer of some sort, just not sure if I will place it directly into the tank, or hold it for the sump/refugium.

Ultimately my plan is to move to the 40B. My brother has a 10 year old freshwater angel that's outgrowing his 20g. I plan to give him the 29g to move that to, then possibly look at turning his 20 into a sump/refugium. My question with that is would it be possible or difficult to add that at a later time, or should I look into adding that when I get it all setup initially? Any pointers on that setup with also be greatly appreciated..

Current stock in the 29g is a Bangaii cardinal, one occellaris, cleaner shrimp & a YT damsel. I don't want to leave them for an extended amount of time in the old tank, so I do want to get the new one setup relatively quickly. While I can leave them, it will be a PITA to have to go over every day and feed them/maintenance until it's all transferred. I do plan to move over the live rock that's in it (which is about 25lbs), and probably add about 30lbs more of rock, which will hopefully reduce the cycle time greatly. The downside I know is that removing the LR from the current setup will cause spikes in ammonia/nitrites until I remove the livestock, or atleast I assume. I do not plan to reuse the sand, just going to replace all of that.

I know all that is quite lengthy, but any help or advise would be greatly appreciated. =)

 

Adding a sump/fuge later on is fine if your plans are for using an overflow box-if you plan on drilling the tank I suggest you do so before setting it up
The 20g would make a fine sump. Especially if it's a 20L.
Seeding the new tank with some LR and a cup of your old sand would work great as well. I'm pretty sure it will not cause your present tank any issues.
You've done your research! Your plans sound well thought out. Good luck and have fun with your upgrade!!