are they going to die?

[sasa]

Hi all.

I set up a new planted aquarium 5 days ago. A friend of mine brough me today 6 red cherry shrimp as a gift.

I'm worried that the shrimp will die cause the tank is so new!!!!

This is my set up:
* 77 gallon tank
* flourite + eco-complete + gravel substrate
* 160 watts florescent light (2wats/gal)
* Eheim canister filter
* CO2 pressurized system with power reactor

These are the parameters
* ph: 6.8
* KH: 5 dKH
* GH: 9 dGH
* Amonia: 0
* No3: 0 (I'm not sure the kit is giving me the real values)
* PO4: 1.5 ppm
* CO2: 24 ppm

I started the fertilization yesterday with the micronutrients (Flourish Trace) 10 mls
Today I was supposed to add the macronutrients (phosphorus and Nitrogen from Seachem) but I don't know if this wil be bad for the shrimps.

Can I do anything to help them get used to the aquarium? Will they survive?

Please help, They are so cute..

sasa

[Janis]

Hi Sasa,

Your shrimp will probably be quite happy in their new home, but there are a few things to worry about:

1. Your tank should be cycled before you add the shrimp. New tanks don't have the bacteria to break down the harmful waste products so they have ammonia and nitrite spikes which are very harmful (and deadly) to shrimp. If you've got another tank you can add a filter sponge from that tank to your new filter and that should help with the cycling. If you don't have another tank to take a sponge from then you should try and get some gravel from a healthy tank and put that in your tank for a month or so. I've heard that might help a little.

2. Is there any algae for the shrimp to eat? You need to make sure you feed them some fish flakes or algae wafers until your tank gets some algae.

3. Make sure the shrimp won't get sucked into the filter intake. Even if they look like they're a little too big there is still a chance that they will be sucked in so you should cover the intake with a sponge or nylons (especially if you want to have baby shrimp in there).

Your fertilizers should be fine provided they don't have copper in them. Shrimp are very sensitive to copper.

Good luck!

Janis

[sasa]

So far, they look very active and red in color.

I don't have any other aquarium, so I cannot add the gravel to my tank.

I don't see a lot of algae, jut a little bit of brown algae on one of the plant but the shrimps don't pay attention to that plant. They're eating something from the other plants but I cannot see what.

Today I'm going to continue with the ferts schedule (Seachem line).

Let's hope they'll be fine.

[Janis]

Hi Sasa,

Provided you don't have any fish or anything in the tank with them they should be fine. Six shrimp in 77 gallons is not a very heavy bioload so they won't produce very much ammonia. Make sure you don't feed them too much. Any food lying around the bottom of the tank will significantly increase the ammonia levels so be careful!

The problem with new tank syndrome is that your fish (or shrimp) will look fine one day because the ammonia is at an okay level and then the next day they will all die because you have had a nitrite spike. You should look for an internet site that explains the cycling process. I think it usually takes about 20 days after your tank has been set up before you see a nitrite spike and that is the most dangerous time for shrimp. Your spike may not be as high because the plants will help remove some of the harmful chemicals from the water and the plants probably have some good bacteria on them too, but I'd still be a little concerned.

If you're careful with your feedings and you don't add any animals to the tank for about a month your shrimp should be okay. Personally, I'd go to a fish store and see if they would sell me some gravel from an established tank. You don't need much, only a few handfuls and you don't need to keep it in your tank permanently, just for a month or so until the bacteria get established. Good luck!

Janis

[sasa]

I'm having a huge problem with snails now!

It looks like they came with the plants. Will this affect the fish load? (I don't have any fish yet, only the shrimps and those snails (every day they multiply like rabbits!)

Today I found a dead shrimp . He looked pretty normal and red, I checked the water parameters and there is no ammonia yet. The only thing was that I started the iron fertilization. Was that the problem? Today I have to add the nitrate and phosphorus. Will that kill the rest of the shrimps???

There are some hair algae in the plants and I added some fish flakes, but I don't know if it will be enough with all those snails.

sasa

[Janis]

Hi Sasa,

I'm sorry to hear about your dead shrimp.

Don't stress too much about the snails, you can just pick them out of the tank and if you keep at it you'll get rid of them eventually. I actually squish mine on the glass and the shrimp love to eat the dead snails. You can do that once your tank is more established, but I wouldn't do it now, just in case it increases the ammonia levels. Yes, if you don't take them out it will affect your bioload.

The fertilizers shouldn't be the problem, but make sure you have an iron test kit so you can make sure your iron levels aren't at toxic levels. New aquariums don't need as much fertilization because the plants are new and just getting established. You may have put in too much iron, or too much of some of the other fertilizers. Nitrate is toxic at really high levels too.

You could take a sample of your water to your LFS and get it tested for nitrites and other substances. They might be able to help you figure out what is wrong.

Good luck!

Janis