New tank set up

[Varanus]

Stirring up some organic matter seems possible. It should be noted though that if you are using those test strips then they aren't always the most accurate things (you want the liquid test kits for that, they don't cost much more if you're just getting ones for ammonia, and are more accurate). I'd test again in a day or two and see if anything has changed.

[JennyPenny]

Sounds good.
And I am using the liquid kits. I bought the freshwater API master test kit. The first two tests in the thread were the results from pet stores that used the strips. I was very surprised that pet stores use those strips instead of a liquid kit.

[KenCotigirl]

Tank looks great. Give it some time and the tank will mature fine.

Ken

[Mech]

You would be better getting the saltwater test kit to be honest, your tank will always have ammonia but when the cycle is complete it will be constantly and instantly eaten up and made into something less toxic by friendly Bactria.

Until all is established nothing is there to remove the ammonia. Let the tank do its thing and just keep testing the water every other day.

[Carolina]

It has been my experience that these shrimp like places to hide to reproduce... In my first tank, they only reproduce in a cave I made with lava rock. They reproduce non stop.
The second tank is starting to reproduce, and again, the momma is in a large coral that gets no direct light with lots of places to hide.
Just a tip... You might want to add some hiding places in your tank if you want those shrimp to reproduce... At least it's been my experience so far...

[JennyPenny]

It has been my experience that these shrimp like places to hide to reproduce... In my first tank, they only reproduce in a cave I made with lava rock. They reproduce non stop.
The second tank is starting to reproduce, and again, the momma is in a large coral that gets no direct light with lots of places to hide.
Just a tip... You might want to add some hiding places in your tank if you want those shrimp to reproduce... At least it's been my experience so far...

I didn't know that. I actually thought breeders kept their tanks relatively free of decorations. I appreciate the tip because I'm totally new to shrimp keeping and there is so much to learn.
Where did you find your lava rock? My local fish store doesn't carry any, so I thought about getting a bag of BBQ lava rocks. I didn't know if I will change anything right now because I'm trying to get the tank to stabilize. It's been up for almost a month but my ammonia levels went up since I rearranged stuff. I know Mustafa recommends adding shrimps after 2-3 weeks but apparently my tank is being all weird and difficult.
If you don't mind, would you post some pictures of your tanks, and their sizes? I love seeing other tanks and plan to set up at least one more.

[Varanus]

If you don't mind, would you post some pictures of your tanks, and their sizes? I love seeing other tanks and plan to set up at least one more.

Holey rocks, if you can find them, are one way to set up easy hiding places since they are full of holes. You can see my set up here: viewtopic.php?f=16&t=5771 (though at this point that little ball of macroalgae is about five times the size it was when that picture was taken).

I don't know what contributed more to the breeding in my tank, the holey rock or having the lava rocks positioned so that they created areas of darkness and shade, so you may want to try both.

As for where to find the stuff, I got the lava rocks at Petco. The holey rock was at a specialist fish store. You may want to see if any are in driving distance of you as specialist stores tend to carry a lot more variety.

[JennyPenny]

Stirring up some organic matter seems possible. It should be noted though that if you are using those test strips then they aren't always the most accurate things (you want the liquid test kits for that, they don't cost much more if you're just getting ones for ammonia, and are more accurate). I'd test again in a day or two and see if anything has changed.

I've been testing and the water is still holding steady at 1.0 for ammonia.
I'm wondering if I should stick in the filter cartridge from my 15 gallon established freshwater shrimp tank to kick start it. What's holding me back is that tank uses tap water, not distilled water. The threads here say switching filter media from fresh to salt can be OK, but I'm worried that tap water might contaminate the tank.
The only pet store in my area is Petco, and I've checked a few times and they don't have any lava or holey rocks. They have spaces for them but have been out of stock. I will just keep checking. I'm in a rural area and already drove about 90 miles round trip to find a nice tank, coral, and aragonite substrate.

[Carolina]

If you don't mind, would you post some pictures of your tanks, and their sizes? I love seeing other tanks and plan to set up at least one more.

Holey rocks, if you can find them, are one way to set up easy hiding places since they are full of holes. You can see my set up here: viewtopic.php?f=16&t=5771 (though at this point that little ball of macroalgae is about five times the size it was when that picture was taken).

I don't know what contributed more to the breeding in my tank, the holey rock or having the lava rocks positioned so that they created areas of darkness and shade, so you may want to try both.

As for where to find the stuff, I got the lava rocks at Petco. The holey rock was at a specialist fish store. You may want to see if any are in driving distance of you as specialist stores tend to carry a lot more variety.

In mine was definitely shaded areas on both tanks... On one tank I created a cave made of lava rock. That's on my 5 gallon tank.
On my ten gallon tank I have a big coral that is on a shaded area (has a lot of "branches" providing hiding areas, and a small lava rock cave.
I bought my lava rock from Amazon as at my local petco they only had it made of plastic.

[Mech]

Stirring up some organic matter seems possible. It should be noted though that if you are using those test strips then they aren't always the most accurate things (you want the liquid test kits for that, they don't cost much more if you're just getting ones for ammonia, and are more accurate). I'd test again in a day or two and see if anything has changed.

I've been testing and the water is still holding steady at 1.0 for ammonia.
I'm wondering if I should stick in the filter cartridge from my 15 gallon established freshwater shrimp tank to kick start it. What's holding me back is that tank uses tap water, not distilled water. The threads here say switching filter media from fresh to salt can be OK, but I'm worried that tap water might contaminate the tank.
The only pet store in my area is Petco, and I've checked a few times and they don't have any lava or holey rocks. They have spaces for them but have been out of stock. I will just keep checking. I'm in a rural area and already drove about 90 miles round trip to find a nice tank, coral, and aragonite substrate.

Just leave the tank alone.

[KenCotigirl]

I cannot agree more with Mech. Leave the tank alone. I lose track in these long posts and get lazy by not rereading them. You currently have no shrimp? When has there been a post in any topic that making change after change ended positively? Most recently one shrimper finally let things be and got positive results. I have stated that i was always changing something. Was not their natural habitat in constant flux. Wouldnt matching this stimulate breeding? The result, No breeding. Has not one of the more successful shrimpers not even feed his shrimp but they are breeding. Moving a filter from one tank to another may work, ie. Freshwater to freshwater, salt to salt and brackish to brackish. I am not a biologist but wouldnt there be a die off of some or all of the beneficial bacteria going from fresh to brackish thus causing a ammonia spike. If you are trying to get your tank to mature, have patience. Wait a couple months. Have trouble waiting then buy a few snails and some macro-algae. This may help things along. Take advantage of others positive and negative experiences.

Rant completed. Follow Mech's advice. Leave the tank alone.

[JennyPenny]

Thanks for the advice Mech and KenCotiGirl. I will leave it alone and let it do it's thing.

[Varanus]

Let me echo that adding snails and macroalgae makes the waiting easier. It also gives you more visual evidence of your maturing tank (i.e. if the snails start breeding, the algae starts growing, and so on).

[Mech]

Test the tank water every few days, when your ammonia drops, nitrites shoot up and then drop to zero on their own and you have algae growing put some shrimp in.

[JennyPenny]

Thank you for the advice everyone. I got some advice from Mustafa as well, who recommended I leave the lid off so spores can more easily enter the tank. I noticed the surface film is starting to have a greenish tint to it, and I can see the tiniest bit of algae beginning to grow on the larger mushroom coral.
I took a few pictures because I thought it was exciting.