Tank setup

[Dch48]

I am thinking about getting some of these shrimp and I have one question. Can I use old tank water from my freshwater tank to mix with the salt or does it have to be distilled water? Also, you don't need a filter for these guys?

Another thing. Would a Nerite snail be good?

[sliphorn]

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Click on SUPERSHRIMP! above and then click on How to set up their new home-Step by step instructions. Follow those instructions to the letter and you will have success. Do not re-use your freshwater from an old tank. Start with either distilled or reverse osmosis. You can find steam distilled water at the big box stores for 88 cents a gallon. Cheap. How many gallons is your tank? Nerites eat a lot, so unless you have a big algae problem I would purchase snails from this site.

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[Varanus]

Actually you can use old freshwater tank water. Just make sure its only half of the water, and that the rest is distilled water that is at full sea water strength (thus you get half sea water strength for the tank as a whole). Mustafa explained it in this topic: https://www.petshrimp.com/discussions/v ... =16&t=6316

Yup, no filter needed. These guys love still water, and their oxygen requirements are low.

A nerite is generally going to eat too much for a tank like this. Some people do use them, but only if they have substantial algae cover first (and they'll remove the snail if it runs out of food).

[sliphorn]

Actually you can use old freshwater tank water. Just make sure its only half of the water, and that the rest is distilled water that is at full sea water strength (thus you get half sea water strength for the tank as a whole). Mustafa explained it in this topic: https://www.petshrimp.com/discussions/v ... =16&t=6316

Yup, no filter needed. These guys love still water, and their oxygen requirements are low.

A nerite is generally going to eat too much for a tank like this. Some people do use them, but only if they have substantial algae cover first (and they'll remove the snail if it runs out of food).

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Yes, I am sure using half of the old tank water will work just fine, but I tend to be the sort that errs on the side of caution when it comes to this sort of thing. Is my reason scientific in any way? Not really. Just my general way of doing things, and the fact that distilled water is inexpensive to buy.

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[mike.d]

In my opinion, a nerite is a good idea but only if/when you have a lot of algae. Depending on your lighting, you may never get that much. If you put a nerite in too soon it may starve.

Edit: Oops, I didn't see that Varanus already answered the question.

[Dch48]

Just FYI, when I set up my Betta tank a year ago I put a Nerite snail in almost immediately. It was well before the cycle had even completed. The snail survived excellently. There was no form of algae present, green nor brown, and the snail never ate any kind of food that was added. I wondered how it was surviving but I saw it defecate at times so it was finding something. Even now, a year later, there has never been any kind of green algae in the tank. There have only been outbreaks of the brown slime stuff which eventually does get consumed. I don't think you can starve a Nerite. They survive somehow even with no algae present. I'm sure they eat biofilm in the absence of algae.

[sliphorn]

Just FYI, when I set up my Betta tank a year ago I put a Nerite snail in almost immediately. It was well before the cycle had even completed. The snail survived excellently. There was no form of algae present, green nor brown, and the snail never ate any kind of food that was added. I wondered how it was surviving but I saw it defecate at times so it was finding something. Even now, a year later, there has never been any kind of green algae in the tank. There have only been outbreaks of the brown slime stuff which eventually does get consumed. I don't think you can starve a Nerite. They survive somehow even with no algae present. I'm sure they eat biofilm in the absence of algae.

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Good to hear!

Chances are the nerite ate any small food particles that made it to the bottom. A spec here a crumb there, a bit of biofilm, etcetera. A small sinking food pellet once in a while might be a good idea for its longevity. Survival or flourish. I feed all of my snails, especially my Nerites and Faunus Ater because they like to eat. They like dried kelp, the same stuff I cook with and buy at my local Asian grocery store.

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[Dylan]

For non distilled water - If your house has copper pipes, copper can get into the water and be problematic.

[Dch48]

I'm using distilled water but the tap water here is very good. There is no ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate present. It is treated with chlorine and not chloramines so a simple dechlorinator does the trick. Ph is 7.6 and the hardness is moderate and perfect for snails and shrimp. GH, KH, and TDS readings are all good. I could have probably used tap or old Betta tank water but they said to use distilled so I'm going that way. I have Neo shrimp, Nerite snails, and Dwarf Cajun Crayfish doing well in just my dechlorinated tap water with no other chemicals of any kind added. My plants are also growing well in my 2 other tanks.

[Mustafa]

The problem with old tank water is that people tend to have high nitrate levels (and possibly other stuff) in their freshwater tanks. Most people don't test for nitrates so they are unaware of this. When you use that water for your Supershrimp, you risk an algae bloom...a really bad one. The shrimp don't like high nitrates either, so you may not get any reproduction for a while...or worse. So, if you're sure that your tank water is ok, it's fine....if not, then not.