Petshrimp.com Discussion Forum

I ordered 10 red cherry shrimp from Mustafa. My tank is a 36 gallon corner tank with a Fluval 304 canister filter. I never gave it much thought (I should have) but all of a sudden I don't see any shrimp anymore. I got suspicious and opened up the canister, and there they all were. They seemed to be doing just fine in there and they never got further than the compartment in front of the filter foam blocks, but I kinda want them in my tank, not in my filter. Obviously the strainer isn't fine enough.

My question: did anyone solve this problem, and if you did, can you describe or post pictures of how you solved it? That would be greatly appreciated.

My (temporary) solution: I took one of my wife's old nylons and cut out a section that I tied around the entire strainer. After I soaked it for a while in some water (just to make sure there was nothing dangerous in the panty hose that might kill my fish and shrimp) I put it back on the intake stem of the filter. I am looking if there is something better out there, as I have read some posts talking about pre-filter sponges (just have no idea how they work or where to get them for the Fluval 304)

Thanx in advance,
Robert

if the intake is round then adapting any sponge filter to fit over the intake shouldn't be hard

the biggest problem with a fine intake filter sponge is that it blocks easily and will reduce flow through the whole system(you'll soon find that with the pntyhose you have used too)

in my opinion the coarsest material to stop the shrimp etering is the best
can you just find a finer strainer attachment

This is a picture of the strainer:
Fluval 304 strainer

If you take an undergravel filter and put the pump suction in the bubble tube you can solve this issue. The gravel gives you loads of surface area and never clogs up. Your power filter rarely needs much either. All my shrimp tanks are set up like this.

I like the undergravel filter option. Unfortunately, I do not have an undergravel filter set up and it would require me to break down the current tank, which I don't much feel like doing at all. I am really thinking a pre-filter sponge would do the trick, but I do not know how to make one or where to get one that works with this intake. Of course I can do the trial and error thing, but I was kinda hoping someone already did that...

Ok, I'm going to violate my own rules and post a commercial link here just because I think that it will be of huge benefit to everyone involve and deserves an exception:

http://www.kensfish.com/ati.html

Look at both the "FILTER-MAX #3" pre-filter and "HYDRO POND #3" and pick the one that suits your needs better. Pictures and measurements are included on that site. They come with a bunch of attachments so you should be able to somehow connect it to the inflow of your fluval. If the attachments don't work, then try using a small piece of the type of plastic tubing that your fluval uses. 1/2 inch to 5/8 inch diameter tubing should do the job. I own both filters mentioned above and they work perfectly.

Thank you, Mustafa, that is a great resource. I will surely buy one of these two (not sure which one, though). I assume that these just replace the strainer part that is there right now, right?

RobertDD wrote: I assume that these just replace the strainer part that is there right now, right?

Right. It may need some tweaking to attach it it works wonderfully in the end.

Ahem... and the cheaper option...
(Read my post in the thread)

viewtopic.php?t=260&highlight=

TKD

You should really try what I use. I'm telling you it works great!
Take an undergravel filter sized to your tank. Set it up for a single uptake tube at the center back of the tank. Cover it with gravel about 1.5" deep. Instead of using a bubbler, use a whisper type filter. Just stick the suction down the tube. If you need to you can put a rubber o-ring around the intake to make a tight seal. This is only needed if your filter is oversized.

You now have all the gravel in the tank acting as a filter & bio action area. The filter itself does little work except if you want to put in activated charcoal, or a phosphate remover. I'm now using a phosphate removing bacteria that seems to be working excellent.

Baby shrimp have no place to get sucked into. If you have filter feeders this gives them lots of flow and the food stays in the water a long time. When it comes out it is on the bottom when the shrimp & snails get it. If you have MT snails, you won't ever need to do anything with the gravel.

TKD, I read your solution before, but I can't quite envision what it is you are doing.

Badflash, there is two reasons why your method wouldn't work as well for me. First off, it would require me to break down my tank which I do not want to do. Second, I have a corner tank with a bow front. Undergravel filters are rectangular (right?), which makes an undergravel filter in this tank a poor solution. However, I really like the thoughts behind it and will seriously consider it for any new tanks I might set up.

Everybody, thanx for the contributions (very helpful!) I will post in this thread again as soon as I have a solution that works for me. (And I am partial to trying one of Mustafa's solutions first)

I have Eheim 2224 and it has nearly same intake. Simply remove strainer from tube and put on sponge. Works fine.

The under gravel portion does not need to cover the entire bottom, so if you ever do break it down, just find one that fits. They come in all sorts of sizes. If you want to use fine sand you can cover it with plastic screening first.

I tried the sponge filters and liked them for a while, but not long term. When you go to clean them, they dump a lot of stuff back in the tank. I also don't like how they look and the darn shrimp hide behind them just when you really need to catch them.

Badflash;

You can find plastic screening with small enough pores to block the micron-measured sand?

Also, do you ever have problems with any rooted plants? I've read elsewhere that UGF's can make it difficult for plants to grow, although that may be due to the increased water current removing CO2 from the water column faster.

RobertDD;

The sponge covered intake is simple. Buy a filter sponge (I use those meant for Fluval internal canister filters) and cut a section out of the center. This allows you to slide it over the filter intake screen/tubing and prevents the shrimp from being sucked in. It will get blocked over time, however, and need to be replaced.

Again, thanx so much to everyone for offering assistance in this thread. I really appreciate it.

After doing more research on other forums using search terms like Fluval and pre-filter I found that people with Fluval's seem to use those Filter-Max #3 filters straight out of the box with great success so that's what I will try. I ordered that filter + 3 extra sponges from Mustafa's link.

When I say "seem to use" it is because for some reason noone ever seems to post clear success results. Most posters just disappear.... (which I take as that it must mean: "problem solved", right?) I won't do that, I promise to post back here and let you know if it fit without a hitch or not and how it works.