# Jake's 5.5gal Tiger & Cherry Shrimp Tank



## GMYukonon24s (May 3, 2009)

Nice start with the hardscape Jake! Where do you plan on putting the fissidens? on the rock?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Yep - on the rock work.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Looks rough now but give it six weeks:










Should have some decent growth. Then I can glue bits and pieces in a few more spots.

Ideally, I would have done a "dry start" but I need to get this thing shrimp-ready within six weeks.


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## rustbucket (Oct 15, 2011)

that looks really nice, will look good grown in. Although the rocks look really good bare too, almost a shame to cover them.


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## Barbgirl (Feb 24, 2012)

What did you use for a glue?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

The rock work isn't glued together.

Fissidens is attached with Superglue Gel.


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## Barbgirl (Feb 24, 2012)

Meant to put for fissidens. It's late and my brain is not 100% functioning sorry!! 

Definitely going to subscribe to this one


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## A.D.D.i.c.t. (Dec 9, 2012)

Nice start with the rock work. Lots of crevices to satisfy your shrimp friends. 

the addiction continues...


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## chou (Feb 23, 2012)

looks amazing


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Just got a new fixture from eBay that I'm toying with using on my 45-F. If it doesn't work out, I may use it on this tank instead:


















Here's what it looks like:










If not that, then I'll likely suspend a spare 24" Marineland Double Bright four or five inches above the tank.

Decisions, decisions…


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## mubender (Mar 16, 2009)

Bah!!!.....where did you get the black lava rocks?....only ones i can find are grill rocks and much too small.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

You can do some pretty cool things with black lava rock meant for landscaping. See here.

A little reef epoxy putty and you're golden.

You should be able to get larger pieces from landscape suppliers.


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## shmeeg (Oct 23, 2011)

boooooo not seeing pictures at work :/


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## mubender (Mar 16, 2009)

Where did ya get them?...the lava rocks that is?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

See above. They originated from a landscape supplier.


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## Barbgirl (Feb 24, 2012)

Anything new going on with this?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Gonna take three or four more weeks to finish "cycling" and a while for Fissidens to grow in. Will also trim the Fissidens that's already in there and glue it in other areas.

Just a waiting game for bacteria to do their thing.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Things are finally progressing. Had to add more ammonia for the first time. Also chucked in half a bottle of Safe Start for the heck of it. 

Here's hoping I can move Tigers in by early April. 

There are already a couple Pond Snails doing their thing in the tank and I've been spending a lot of time staring at the nooks and crannies. May not be the most beautiful scape I've done but it's one of my favorites. Simple and natural.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

The "cycle" completion is probably about a week away.

An updated cell phone shot:










Fissidens is growing, needs a trim and re-gluing soon.

Ended up trading a bunch of my Tigers for some aluminum c-channel, so I think I'll order some more wild Tigers from Rachel.

Any thoughts on plants I could add that won't totally ruin the aesthetic? I'm at a loss.

Maybe some moss glued to smaller lava rock behind the current scape.


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## SomeCanuck (Mar 25, 2012)

I saw a really nice shrimp scape on another site a while back that had some monosolenium tenerum (subwassertang?) growing over the back of their lava rock. It gives a nice, soft feathery touch to the scape, contrasting nicely with the coarseness of the rocks. And if you trim it right you can get a little height off it easily without it taking over the space like a stem would.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Tank is eating 22 drops of ammonia in roughly 16 hours. Nitrites are dropping super-fast. Excitement!


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## sdaugherty (Feb 13, 2013)

I like it. I'm looking forward to seeing it completed. I'd like to do something similar in my office when time permits.


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## JEden8 (Jan 5, 2011)

I dig that hardscape! The shrimps will love it!


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

It's official. This "cycle" is never going to finish. Never ever ever.


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## nightshadebel (May 3, 2012)

haha patience. it will happen  it looks great tho!!


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## MABJ (Mar 30, 2012)

Another great tank, my friend. 

You're an excellent aquascaper, so I think you'll know exactly what and where I'm thinking when I say I could see roughly 2-3 small crypts in here. 

Two more adult of a smaller species of crypt, one less aged of that species. 

I think it'll look excellent regardless of what you do.


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## Nubster (Aug 9, 2011)

I've tried forever to find chunks of black lava rock like that. No place local and even on the internet it's not easy. Couple places I found it wanted a fortune.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

MABJ: Thanks. Hoping it turns out nice.

Nubster: Took me forever. It's worth calling professional landscapers.


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## Nubster (Aug 9, 2011)

Only place I could find willing to send a small amount was out of FL I think but it was going to cost me around $50. No place local has anything other than the small stuff people use in plant beds or gas grills. I can't even remember where in FL it was, this was about 6-8 months ago. Maybe I'll try again, I'd love to have some for this new tank I'm doing, but not sure I have the patience to track it down and wait for it to be shipped...lol...I might head out tomorrow on a rock collecting trip and just use local stuff. May lava rock for the next tank.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Nitrite spike still hasn't started to fall, so I did a 50% water change. May have to do do another one later today. Hopefully I can get them down to 2-3PPM. Once that's done, then I'll see what happens.


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## Warlock (Feb 28, 2012)

how do you like the pool filter sand?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Really enjoy this particular pool filter sand. Using it in several other tanks.


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## beedee (Jul 1, 2010)

Nice hardscape and start. I am gathering the goods for my own 5g shrimp moss'o'topia myself. Can't wait to see yours fill in!


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Nitrite finally dropped from 893850238508 PPM to 0.5PPM. FINALLY!


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

No Nitrite. Finally.

Guess it's time to do a full water change to see how things look after a few hours. If all is well, I'll start moving critters in.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Changed 100% of the water and am seeing what appears to be a tiny ammonia spike, though it could be related to the Prime used to treat my tap water. Will test again in a few hours. If all is well, then I'll start moving Tigers and Cherries into the tank.

A couple rough shots:


















Tossed in several Narrow Leaf Java Ferns that are in rough shape. We'll see how they fair. If they end up growing, I'm thinking the look could be pretty neat.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Of course the Ammonia spike led a Nitrite spike. 0.5 PPM of each. Terrific.

Strongly disliking this tank at the moment.


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## pastert33 (Jan 17, 2013)

Looks really great! I loved pool filter sand in my 29G high, until I got a 20L to replace the 29high and all the babies blend into the sand!! I look from the top and think I got them all only to look from the front and see A TON!


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

pastert33: Thanks.

To update: finally dripping in some Cherry Shrimp. I'll see how they do for a day or two and will then move a bunch of them on over along with some Tigers.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

The seven or eight shrimp added to the tank earlier today are alive and well:










Some nice algae is finally growing on the upper rock work:










Plan to add a bunch more shrimp tomorrow.


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## Dien16 (Feb 22, 2013)

Your tank looks amazing. The wait will be worth it! I'm starting a 5.5 for some painted fire reds and I'm liking your ideas. Maybe ill get some tigers in the future as well


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## Scottyhorse (Mar 13, 2013)

Cool! Thinking of getting a new 5.5 or redoing my current one. Has cherry shrimp in there now. It was set up for fish so it's really hard to see them. 

Tank looks great!! Thinking of doing all moss for mine, then I can see them 

I forgot to add, I've gotten really awesome large black pieces of lava rock at petco! Didn't look great in the package, so when I got it home I took a hammer to it and got two large pieces and one smaller one. Looks really cool  My LFS has some 'lacerock' that looks pretty much like lava rock, I like it a little better. If anyone is interested in it, let me know. I can get some for you.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Thanks for the kind words, folks.

I think it'll look a lot better in a few months. Gotta give the ferns time to recover and the moss a few more months to look decent.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Figure it's time for an update.

Moved a bunch of shrimp into the tank ranging from Blue Neos to a PFR I discovered in my 210gal Cory tank.

Can't wait for the Fissidens and Ferns to grow in:










Some of the Neos:










One of the PFRs I didn't know i had:










A couple tigers I thought had died of old age:


















Relieved to have everything going well. Though, all the cool-looking algae is starting to disappear because these little bugs are eating it.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

A few shots of some of the Neos in this tank:










































They range from PFR to Rili-like to blue and even some hints of green.

Lost one of the Tigers, only two remain. One of them is visible on the sponge in the pics above. Need to add some more to the tank.


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

Did you add a mix of cherries and rilis?

That moss is going to look quite unique once it grows in!


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## CPDzeke (Jan 4, 2013)

What kind of neo is that? It looks fabulous!


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

jkan0228: They're just random Neos from one of my tanks. No specific variety. I just let them do their thing.

CPDzeke: Which one? They're all just offshoots of standard Cherry Shrimp.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Some random photos:


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## Dien16 (Feb 22, 2013)

Awesome tank! looks like that snail is getting mobbed


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

One of the Tigers appears to be developing reddish brown stripes, which is fine by me. 

Guess I need to get on the ball and add more as time permits.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Time for an update! Things are growing slowly. Just how I like them in shrimp tanks.

Unfortunately, some Stringy/Java moss found its way into the Fissidens as I was gluing. Now I'll be spending the next year yanking it out as I see it.










If you look closely, you'll see my plaid pajama pants. Stylish, for sure. 

Detail of some of the Fissidens - along with Frogbit roots, a rough-looking Java Fern and a hunk of Indian Almond Leaf:










All the rock along the top of the scape all had some really green algae for a couple weeks but I guess these little bugs have cleaned it all off. Which is a shame, as it looked terrific. Shrimp apparently don't have the same aesthetic as me.

Have a few berried mama Cherry Shrimp, so I guess I'll soon have a bunch of babies.


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## bacon5 (Jul 25, 2011)

somewhatshocked said:


> Shrimp apparently don't have the same aesthetic as me.


Chuckled when I read that:icon_lol:!

Awesome tank with awesome rockwork. Also wanted to ask, do you think that the tigers will have a problem breeding in a tank that small?


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

I will be honored to send you a dump truck of my most exquisite algae, but then it might eat your shrimp .

via Droid DNA Tapatalk 2


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

The one time you want algae to grow and don't want shrimp to eat it? Of course they chow down.

Gonna try to get some updated photos of the tank this weekend because the fissidens has grown in really nicely.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Not at all.

Shrimp will breed in just about any tank as long as parameters are suitable.



bacon5 said:


> Also wanted to ask, do you think that the tigers will have a problem breeding in a tank that small?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Update time:










Lots of growth. Still removing stray moss on an almost daily basis.

Some other Fissidens cell phone shots:


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

It's fun watching these little critters. When they're on the black lava rock, they're deep reds and blues. 










But when on the pool filter sand, they fade and look much more pale.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

All the Neos brighten up into reds and blues when it's Om Nom Nom time in the tank for some reason:










One of the elusive Tigers:










It grabbed a chunk of food and decided to stake out a territory.


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## meppitech (Apr 29, 2011)

I didnt catch what lighting fixture you are using. I read you were thinking of changing it, but not sure what you ended up going with. Im guessing you don't dose any fert right?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

16" Finnex Fugeray. Pretty unhappy with it but it does the job decently. (Details about it here in my 45-F journal.) I built a DIY LED fixture but just haven't gotten around to putting it on the tank.

Nope, no ferts. I've tried ferts in the past with mosses and Fissidens with no real noticeable improvement over time. The only time I see a benefit is when using pressurized CO2. Other than that, it all grows really well with just some lighting and clean water with lots of shrimp to keep it picked clean.



meppitech said:


> I didnt catch what lighting fixture you are using. I read you were thinking of changing it, but not sure what you ended up going with. Im guessing you don't dose any fert right?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

It's official: I'm tired of the water company's disgusting water. It's never consistent. This week, it's been non-stop 3PPM ammonia and even nitrite. GROSS!

Finally switching this tank over to RO/DI water remineralized with Shrimp Mineral GH/KH+.


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## plecostomouse (Jun 9, 2011)

nice shrimp tank and those rocks are awesome!
id like to see this tank when the moss is fully grown in!


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Thanks!

Ha, "fully grown in" = about a year. But I'm excited to watch as things progress.

In the process of removing all the Cherries from the tank, adding more Tigers and potentially some darker form of Neos.


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## johnson18 (Apr 29, 2011)

Nice tank! I've been thinking about adding some sort of tiger shrimp to my 20L.


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## plecostomouse (Jun 9, 2011)

im thinking of replacing my red ifres with tiger shrimp, any advice on keeping them?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Just try to mimic the parameters of your source.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Young Ramshorn & Pond Snails:










If you look closely, you'll see super-young Cherries:










Earlier in the thread (and directly above), you saw how light the Cherries look when on the pool filter sand.

Here's how they look the moment they hit the lava rock:


















The tank from slightly above:










Dim front:


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

somewhatshocked said:


> It's official: I'm tired of the water company's disgusting water. It's never consistent. This week, it's been non-stop 3PPM ammonia and even nitrite. GROSS!
> 
> Finally switching this tank over to RO/DI water remineralized with Shrimp Mineral GH/KH+.


Probably water from the river if I'd have to guess. Yuck. 

Also I was somewhat considering getting a 12 inch fugeray and getting more back into the game but I guess I should probably look into other options. :thumbsup:


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

The 10 & 12 inch units are fine. It's the 16" unit that's basically a rip-off - even if it's just a few more bucks - because there's all that dead space. The 20" is also pretty nice, even if colors are a bit washed out.

Yep - definitely from the river. And from the awful water company that pretends to have amazing water. (While folks all over the city regularly detect 80PPM nitrate and 3-5PPM ammonia)


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

somewhatshocked said:


> Yep - definitely from the river. And from the awful water company that pretends to have amazing water. (While folks all over the city regularly detect 80PPM nitrate and 3-5PPM ammonia)


I wouldn't be surprised if our water in lex has really high nitrates too. It's been years since I tried but I never could get red plants. It was very frustrating. 

Also made it hard to breed shrimp.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Interesting observation: during water change yesterday (with RO), the Cherries and Tigers all shifted colors a bit... for the better.

There's gotta be something disgusting in this tap that I can't detect with my geekery. Gonna have to turn to my neighbor with a lab for details because it's irking me to no end.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Complete Veggie feeding time:










































Even the Malaysian Trumpet Snails came out for dinner.

Time to do a trim this week.


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## Sakuras (Dec 10, 2012)

I like how the moss is mixed into the fissidens. But I suggest you cut the longer strands.


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## Samsonitius (Feb 11, 2012)

Hey Jake,

How did you place the moss on the lava rock in the beginning?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Sakuras and Samsonitus: If both of you take a look at the journal (post 53), you'll see:



> Unfortunately, some Stringy/Java moss found its way into the Fissidens as I was gluing. Now I'll be spending the next year yanking it out as I see it.


Moss was accidentally mixed in with Fissidens. 

Superglue Gel was used.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

It's been a hot minute since I've updated this journal but goodness, I love this tank. Maybe the easiest one I've got going!

Will try to take some updated shots this weekend, as the Fissidens has really grown in thick.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Time for a Fissidens trim, I believe:


























Currently dripping in some PRLs from my 12gal. Here's hoping they adjust to the new parameters well.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Have so far added 15 PFR/PFR culls to the tank to improve genetics:


















They seem to be doing quite well.

Will be giving away a bunch of the regular Cherries to a local forum member in a couple weeks to welcome her to the shrimp world.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Should have done this in the beginning but I didn't want to stain the rocks in any way.

Now I think I'm going to use some reef epoxy putty to adhere this mound together so the tank may be moved around without too much worry. Plan to do it this week. Here's hoping everything will go back together nicely.


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## Gavin288 (May 10, 2013)

Really love this tank, i've read the whole thread about 3 times, since my DBP 5.5 is coming this week thinking ether PFRs or red rili shrimp


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Thanks! The tank couldn't be more simple. Some sand (would look better with Black Diamond blasting grit), lava rock, fissidens and water.

It's always the simple ones that end up looking the best when it comes to shrimp, I think.


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## tattooedfool83 (Mar 15, 2013)

How do you glue more moss when u trim it and the rock is submerged? Drain water, glue let dry and refill?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Super glue cures under water.

Just dab it on, press the Fissidens or moss down and you're done.


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## Gavin288 (May 10, 2013)

somewhatshocked said:


> Thanks! The tank couldn't be more simple. Some sand (would look better with Black Diamond blasting grit), lava rock, fissidens and water.
> 
> It's always the simple ones that end up looking the best when it comes to shrimp, I think.


Less is more when it comes to shrimp im not a huge fan of shrimp tanks with 20 different plants i think it takes away from the shrimp,

im only going to use S.repens , anubias petite and of course some kind of moss


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## tattooedfool83 (Mar 15, 2013)

somewhatshocked said:


> Super glue cures under water.
> 
> Just dab it on, press the Fissidens or moss down and you're done.


Simple enough. U did not know that. Thanks man


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## Gavin288 (May 10, 2013)

somewhatshocked said:


> Super glue cures under water.
> 
> Just dab it on, press the Fissidens or moss down and you're done.


i've always wondered how people did this when filled, very helpful :bounce:


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Well, _that_ was tons of fun.

Just performed filter maintenance after not doing so for a few months and discovered a colony of Tiger Shrimp living in the bottom of the AC30!

Was a nice surprise because I thought I'd lost more of them than I actually had.


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## Gavin288 (May 10, 2013)

somewhatshocked said:


> Well, _that_ was tons of fun.
> 
> Just performed filter maintenance after not doing so for a few months and discovered a colony of Tiger Shrimp living in the bottom of the AC30!
> 
> Was a nice surprise because I thought I'd lost more of them than I actually had.


how did the shrimp make it into the filter? don't you have a prefilter?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

They likely climbed up the outflow to eat all the yummy stuff.


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## Gavin288 (May 10, 2013)

those are some determined shrimp haha


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Time for another Fissidens trim!










Planning to use some reef epoxy putty to secure the lava rock this weekend, as I'll be moving several hundred miles away with all my tanks soon.

Also - and I am absolutely unsure how this occurred - there's a Crystal Red Shrimp or two hiding out in the tank. Guessing they came in with Fissidens when really tiny? I am always super-careful, so I'm absolutely floored.

You can see the really white shrimp just off center (right) in the photo above. Those other white spots are young Malaysian Trumpet Snails.


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## TankYouVeryMuch (Jul 5, 2013)

Huh, never seen this thread. Really like the lava rock, and the fissidens too! I will have to look out for some of that and maybe add it to my 20L down the road


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## bassistjon112 (Oct 30, 2012)

This would have been the perfect Hawaiian red shrimp tank ever, you have the best hard-scape, looks great roud:


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