Help a newbie? Much appreciated.....

[Shrimpy97]

So I think I jumped into this too fast without reading more..

I bought 10 Super shrimp, 10 brackish snails, macro algae and the pet shrimp salt.. I put aquarium gravel in 1/2 gallon jar with Wal-Mart brand spring water jug.. I put half of petshrimps salt for gallon size.. My big mistake was I bought the shrimp and snails too early..

Do you guys think the shrimp and snails will be okay if they sit for 2 weeks? I put both of them in a small container with the water they came in.. Is there anything I can do to hurry up the process of algae growth? Also I should ask.. Is it okay to use spring water? That's all I had on hand.. Another thing.. I bought calcium carbonate sand for lizard terrariums at Wal-Mart thinking it was just plan ol aquarium sand.. Can I just this instead of buying the calcium carbonate rocks/pebbles? Anything I should know?

[i<3Opae]

I hear you...I wish there is a way to hurry up the process, but you'll have to wait till algae shows up. It's okay to keep them in the water they came in for about 2 weeks. It's probably not pleasant, but better than having your new shrimp be the canaries of an uncycled tank.

[Zlatan2601]

I had the same issue. I set up my tank with 20L more or less RO/sea water mixture, and I added 2 L of water of an opae tank. I also added a rock from an opae tank with already some algae on it.
Opae where added immediately (I knew cycling was important but I had no choice).

Two weeks later they all seem fine, except the larvae didn't make it.

I was told that its nog a big issue that my tank wasn't cycled as there was 10% of opae water in it, plus some macro algae.

I am far from an expert, but i would think that its better to already mix the water and introduce the opae in the big tank. By adding the water, you already introduce the good bacteria in the tank. I would also think this is less stressful.

-> all this to be confirmed by someone with a bit more expeience though.

A question for the experts, maybe adding some spirulina helps for the macroalgae growth?

[shrimpnoobie]

So I think I jumped into this too fast without reading more..

I bought 10 Super shrimp, 10 brackish snails, macro algae and the pet shrimp salt.. I put aquarium gravel in 1/2 gallon jar with Wal-Mart brand spring water jug.. I put half of petshrimps salt for gallon size.. My big mistake was I bought the shrimp and snails too early..

Do you guys think the shrimp and snails will be okay if they sit for 2 weeks? I put both of them in a small container with the water they came in.. Is there anything I can do to hurry up the process of algae growth? Also I should ask.. Is it okay to use spring water? That's all I had on hand.. Another thing.. I bought calcium carbonate sand for lizard terrariums at Wal-Mart thinking it was just plan ol aquarium sand.. Can I just this instead of buying the calcium carbonate rocks/pebbles? Anything I should know?

Hi, I do not know exactly what will happen if you introduce your shrimp too early. There is nothing you can do but wait or add seawater or water from an established tank. Your shrimp do come in water with healthy organisms, but it is tough to stay if that’s enough. Whether or not your shrimp can survive in the bag they came in I also can’t say for sure, but these shrimps need very little, they’re in healthy clean water right now, and produce minimal waste. I do not think there will be a problem there.

I do have some other comments on your tank though. These shrimp do not like gravel because their tiny hands cannot comb through it, so ideally you would swap for sand. Secondly, I think I see a marimo in your tank. Marimo balls are alive, and nothing alive should be in your tank with your shrimp other than brackish snails. The reason for this is this ball will slowly die and release ammonia and cause problems for you and your shrimp. Take it out if it is a ball. This applies to alive wood as well. The water you use can be any distilled or reverse osmosis water, just look in the ingredients and look how it is purified. Should be something like ozination or RO. Your calcium carbonate sand should be fine but again Ive never used it nor read about it. Just put a little bit and the tank will consume the calcium as it needs it.

Finally, these shrimp are living creatures and it’s not fair you subject them to this because you didn’t read enough on their care. Please next time be better prepared before you make any additions. Good luck.

[Varanus]

Secondly, I think I see a marimo in your tank. Marimo balls are alive, and nothing alive should be in your tank with your shrimp other than brackish snails. The reason for this is this ball will slowly die and release ammonia and cause problems for you and your shrimp. Take it out if it is a ball. This applies to alive wood as well.

To clarify, its not about them being alive so much as them not being suited to the supershrimp's environment. Mustafa sells two types of plants that do just fine with them.

[Mustafa]

I'm a bit late to the "party", but I wouldn't put that reptile sand in there. It's not meant for aquatic environments and who knows what additives and artificial colors (they come in all kinds of weird colors, including pink...) they put in there. How are the shrimp and your tank doing?