# Red Cherry Shrimp -I am an Idiot *_*



## I3raven (Jan 30, 2013)

There is two options, you can either return the shrimps or get bottled beneficial bacteria. However, it has NOT been proved it actually cycles tanks. But, there has been some fish keepers who have used beneficial bottled products and claimed they have successfully sped up the process. The best option is to return the shrimps, it saves you money because you have to buy more chemical products to keep the shrimps alive the cycling process. Since shrimps are delicate creatures, you should never use any chemicals except dechlorinizers. In my opinion, keeping fish, shrimps, and snails during the cycling process is just plain cruel due to ammonia spikes which causes ammonia burns. No aquatic animals should suffer this process regardless if they are hardy or not.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

Ah yes, the 10 gallon already has TSS in it. It's just that the ammonia levels read 1ppm.

Would the 10 gallon be safe for the shrimps?

Thanks.


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## I3raven (Jan 30, 2013)

Honestly, I think beneficial bacteria is pointless, and I regret spending money on on it a long time ago. Your shrimps will still go through the stress of cycling. Beneficial bacteria basically just speeds up the process, it never guaranteed the safety of fish, especially shrimps. If you do choose to add the shrimps to the tank, I would add old filter media, gravel, and a lot of plants. The combination of beneficial bacteria and objects from established aquariums should cycle the aquarium in 2-3 weeks, but still I really believe you should return the shrimps. If you have any friends who hold established aquariums, you could try asking them to hold the shrimps until you cycle or seed the tank. Sorry for the ignorance on TSS, I didn't know it was short for Tetra Safe Start.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

Bah, im so mad at myself for my ignorance. I know I should've just stayed patient and go the pure ammonia route.

No point in regret, so anyway there is absolutely no remain of my old cycled tank. I feared there was some sort of disease/problem with the tank and totally "nuked" it. The Java Fern has grown really well, some leaves are 8-10 inches tall. The moss ball is also growing lushly. The anubias, not so much I'll probably take it out and put it in a watervase near the window (ferts too).

hmm.. returning them would be a great hassle. I also don't know if they'll accept them back. I could possibly ask another LFS if I could borrow/purchase some filter media? Maybe that will really instant cycle the aquarium.

BTW it's nighttime, will the shrimps survive overnight with only about 0.2 gallons still of water and Wisteria? I could add an airstone as well as treated tap water (treat with prime) The temp is a stable 65ish degrees.

So I guess it's final, the shrimps won't survive if I acclimate and put them in the 10gallon right now... 

Thanks.


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## Loumeer (Feb 13, 2012)

What do you have to work with? You could easily buy some RO/DI water from the grocery store and remineralize it and put it in a tun with an air stone and the plants in a tub. This isnt ideal but could serve as a short term solution. 

How long has the tank been running? It usually doesnt take all that long to cycle a tank.



sportsfan2 said:


> Bah, im so mad at myself for my ignorance. I know I should've just stayed patient and go the pure ammonia route.
> 
> No point in regret, so anyway there is absolutely no remain of my old cycled tank. I feared there was some sort of disease/problem with the tank and totally "nuked" it. The Java Fern has grown really well, some leaves are 8-10 inches tall. The moss ball is also growing lushly. The anubias, not so much I'll probably take it out and put it in a watervase near the window (ferts too).
> 
> ...


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## creekbottom (Apr 5, 2012)

Firstly, I am no expert. Cherry shrimp are alot tougher than most people realize. But putting them in your tank right now will most likely kill them. 

The good thing is that they have a small bioload and don't have much of a problem with cold water. 

Can you put them in something bigger? Large kitchen bowl, tupperware container, keep the plants in it. Not sure about adding an airstone, that might depend on how large a container you can find otherwise it might be a shrimp vortex. Do daily water changes just in case.

As for the tank - you'll probably have to wait it out. Do water changes, keep monitoring levels. I've never used TSS and know nothing about it but it should help cycle your tank a little faster. Try turning the heat up a little too, that might speed things up.

Good luck!


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## 82nd_Airborne (Mar 28, 2012)

I'd just add treated tap to the 1/2 gallon and add the airstone. The TSS will speed up a cycle, and your shrimp should be fine in the 1/2 gallon until it removes the ammonia you added. Monitor both tanks and as soon as the ammonia is out of the 10g add them. Test the 10g daily for a week or two and do WC as needed. This is of course my opinion, but if returning the shrimp is not an option, this is what I would do.


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## OrangeSoda (Jan 15, 2011)

Holy much ado about nothing.

Just fill the temp tank with dechlorinated water. Shrimp have almost no bioload and you only have five of them. They would be fine in the half gallon even if the wisteria wasn't there. With the wisteria you are fine. Since it's a temp tank and you probably don't have any biofilm in there, remember to feed them.
Cycle the ten with the ammonia, give it time and do it right.


Edit: Is the five shrimp all that you are going to add to the ten?


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## OrangeSoda (Jan 15, 2011)

82nd_Airborne said:


> Monitor both tanks and as soon as the ammonia is out of the 10g add them.



This was good right up until here. Please remember that once the ammonia is processed by the bacteria. Nitr*I*te is produced. Keep feeding the tank ammonia until both the ammonia and nitr*I*te is gone. Once all you read is nitr*A*tes, Do a water change. After that your tank is cycled and you can safely add livestock.


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## I3raven (Jan 30, 2013)

Like I said, maintaining shrimp in an uncycled aquarium is tedious and it would lead to buying more products. So if I had to keep the shrimps in a uncycled aquarium, I would check the water about twice a week and I would do a 20% water change weekly. But, if there was a dangerous amount of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, I would do a 30% water change slowly. I would not use any chemical products, except for beneficial bacteria. Adding anything from a pre-established aquarium to a uncycled tank would probably cut about 1-2 weeks. Cycling a tank could take from 3 weeks to even 6 weeks, so attempting to keep shrimps alive during the cycling process could be back breaking. 

I have to disagree, Cherry Shrimps are easy to care for, but can be also hard. I've heard countless stories on deaths from instantly adding shrimps to the tank without drip acclimation method, deaths from adding a decoration with harmful chemicals leaching into the water, deaths from metals such as copper. I understand some people have successfully kept and bred shrimps for many years, but so many factors can cause RCS to die. Don't feel discouraged in buying RCS, they are undeniably fun to care for and maintain if you are aware of what you add or do to the tank.


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## OrangeSoda (Jan 15, 2011)

I3raven said:


> Like I said, maintaining shrimp in an uncycled aquarium is tedious and it would lead to buying more products.



Everything raven is saying is true.

Except the idea that 5 shrimp will generate a bioload that will produce an ammonia spike. This might be true if you are trying to keep them in 5 ounces of water for an extended period of time with no plants. They will be fine in a half gallon alone until the ten has cycled.

Once again, I have to ask if it will be a shrimp only tank. If it's just going to be the shrimp with plants, do a 100% water change on the ten and test to see that the ammonia is gone. Once you're sure that there is no ammonia, drip acclimate the shrimp into the ten. As long as there are plants in there the shrimp will be fine. 

Essentially with the plants being able to handle more bioload than the shrimp can produce, the ammonia will never have a chance to build up.

The overriding factor here is going to be the length of time that the ten has been set up. If there is no biofilm, you will have to feed regularly.

I've been keeping RCS and CRS for the past five years and I can assure you that they are not as fragile as they are being made out to be.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

Hey guys sorry just woke up now. Thanks for all the replies.

Yes it will be just a cherry shrimp colony. All I have right now are the 5. Only shrimp for now, maybe snails but not for months.

Anyway my options are: 
1) to keep the 5 in the filled half gallon, airstone, Wisteria and maybe add the marimo moss ball? Then cycle the tank with Ammonia and forget the TSS?

2) 100% water change, add shrimp. Do the water changes

I think i'll go with option 1. Thanks for all the input guys!


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

More Info:

The tank had been running for a month prior. However it was just plants and light, and prime treated water. No ferts, nada havent even done a water change since the rescape.

Also the tank has a heater, and currently at 80F

Thanks.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

One last question...

On the matter of cycling the 10gallon and the fact there is TSS in it, should I do a 100% WC first before adding the pure ammonia?

Thanks!


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## I3raven (Jan 30, 2013)

OrangeSoda said:


> Everything raven is saying is true.
> 
> Except the idea that 5 shrimp will generate a bioload that will produce an ammonia spike. This might be true if you are trying to keep them in 5 ounces of water for an extended period of time with no plants. They will be fine in a half gallon alone until the ten has cycled.
> 
> ...


Ah, yes I was referring to a small amount of water. I would take note of what OrangeSoda has said. I remembered that RCS can live off of bio film and feeding them isn't really required. 

And for the beneficial bacteria, I would use it even though you can't really tell if they actually have an effect on non cycled tanks. The reason why I don't believe in bottled beneficial products is because the bacteria themselves are living in a confined space with limited food and oxygen in the bottle. Many stores leave the bottles on the shelves for months, so the bacteria inside are practically dead due to the lack of oxygen and food. So there is a possibility that you might have bought a bottle of dead bacteria. From what I've seen, date labels are never labeled on beneficial bacteria bottles, which is crucial to know because beneficial bacteria has a shelf life of about 1-2 months in room temperature. If you were going to buy beneficial bacteria, a quality store would leave it inside a refrigerator and labeled with a date. That is the only way to know if you are actually buying live bacteria. But for shelf products, it is a hit or miss.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

Okay, the bottle did have a "Sell By Apr/2013" label. But I know what you mean by how the bacteria could've been wiped out (heat or freezing temps here in Canada)

I'm about to fill the half gallon, with Prime treated water of same temp (used cold water from tap, heated it with heater). Also added the mossball to the container, and put the container by a window with sunlight.

Thanks

EDIT: Would a 25% WC (0.1 gallons) every 2 days suffice? Also 2 are munching on the mossball, one on the wisteria, and the others are eating 2 small betta bellets I dropped in (Omega One Betta Buffet Pellets) Is this okay?


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## I3raven (Jan 30, 2013)

Seems like your set, just keep an eye on your shrimps and do frequent water changes.


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## Bandit1200 (Dec 11, 2010)

What Orangesoda is trying to tell you is that cycling your 10 gallon tank using the amount of ammonia you are adding is mostly a waste of time. You will eventually build up a colony of bacteria that will mostly die off as soon as you put the shrimp in and stop adding the ammonia. The bioload of that many shrimp in a 10 gallon tank will not sustain the amount of bacteria you are going through so much trouble to build up. The plants present in the tank will more than likely use up what little ammonia the shrimp produce before it ever gets used by any bacteria you might have, meaning the bacteria will die back to an almost non-existent amount. You probably already have plenty of bacteria in there already.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

Bandit1200 said:


> What Orangesoda is trying to tell you is that cycling your 10 gallon tank using the amount of ammonia you are adding is mostly a waste of time. You will eventually build up a colony of bacteria that will mostly die off as soon as you put the shrimp in and stop adding the ammonia. The bioload of that many shrimp in a 10 gallon tank will not sustain the amount of bacteria you are going through so much trouble to build up. The plants present in the tank will more than likely use up what little ammonia the shrimp produce before it ever gets used by any bacteria you might have, meaning the bacteria will die back to an almost non-existent amount. You probably already have plenty of bacteria in there already.


Ahh now I see. So should I wait until the ammonia and nitrite goes back down to 0, and then add the 5 shrimp. Or do a 100% water change, test ammonia , nitrite, and nitrates and then if they're 0,0,<40 then just add the shrimp? Also should I clean out the filter media (in untreated or treated tap water?)

Also what if they have babies? Wouldn't the bioload then increase and there wont be enough plants to handle the bioload (and not enough cycling bacteria? Finally I'm not sure if there are enough plants (moss ball intbetween size of golf and tennis, java fern is about 10 inches tall, anubias is in pretty bad shape, and wisteria is small (less than 7 inches in length), I'll post a pic soon.






Thanks.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

Here are some pictures.

10Gallon


Sideview - The heater is just like that since I had heated the water for the half gallon WC. 


The giant reddish plant in the back is fake. And that's a 12inch ruler.


The ruler is 12*cm* high


RCS munching on Marimo Moss Ball


All 5 RCS



Thanks!


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## Bandit1200 (Dec 11, 2010)

In my opinion as others have posted, I'd do a water change and put the shrimp in. Keep monitoring the water, but I seriously doubt with so few shrimp in there you'll ever get a detectable amount of ammonia unless they and all the plants suddenly die all at once.

As far as the shrimp populating and adding more ammonia, the bacteria will multiply to consume the added ammonia as long as it's a gradual increase in the biomass. The shrimp breeding will be a gradual increase. If you decide you REALLY like shrimp and add 100 all at once then you'll have problems.

This is from my own experience with aquariums, you might want to take a few more posts to see who agrees or disagrees.

Your plant:shrimp ratio is already huge, The plants you have in there now would suck up all the output of 10 times the shrimp you have now.


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## sportsfan2 (Jan 31, 2013)

Okay will do a 100% WC, and rinse out the filter. Everything else will be left in it's place.

You think that will work? 

Thanks!


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