Can I Do This With Cherry Shrimp?

[1234-fishy-freind]

Can i put 5 or so cherrys into a tank of about 10litres without a filter,without a heater (house temp is 70F average) and without a light, i would do 2litre water changes every day or everyother day to keep it clean? Just want to know if i could because the tank i want them to go in has guppys in it at the mo and i dont want to mix cherrys with guppys and i cant put the guppys in a tank with my red claw cray because he will eat them,but once the cray or guppys die (cray is an old boy) i will get the cherrys into my guppy tank which is planted.
cherrs

 

[iSnail]

How long are you thinking of putting the shrimps in there for??

Any aeration??

Do you already have the shrimps???

Five cherry shrimps alone in 10 ltrs will probably be fine temporarily if you provide lots of plants and keep up with the water change. If you don't have aeration, then make sure there is a large surface area.

 

[1234-fishy-freind]

I dont have the shrimps yet but this is the only time my lfs will be able to get them in for a while, i had to special order them.
Time wise i was thinking maybe 5 months max, what do you reccomend?
If i put the tank downstairs and put it near my large tank that has aeration i will be able to take out one of the tubes from there and put it into the cherry tank because my big tank has 2, how important is aeration?
And also the tank wouldn't have a light over it uless i use a desk lamp so what plants can live in such situations, i was thinking of something like cabomba that grows fast, dowsn't need planting, but would that lighting be sufficent?
Like i said before i will do regular water changes.
thanks

 

[iSnail]

5 months sounds pretty long term ... If you are able to get air into that tank you might as well get an air operated sponge filter for it or even DIY one (check the DIY section).

The problem with these shrimps is that they will breed pretty easily so you might end up having not just the five you bought but lots more than the tank can cope with without a filter.

Lighting is mainly for the plants so whatever lighting requirement your types of plants need. Cabomba does not grow too well in low light if I remember correctly. Mosses generally require low light and are good for shrimps.

 

[Invader Xan]

This will probably be tricky. Is there no chance you could get a filter for the tank?

I had to keep 5 amano shrimp in a small tank without filtration for a month or so once. I'd buy some mossballs (they cost maybe £2 each for small ones), and make sure the tank gets plenty of light. Mossballs provide a good staple diet for any kind of dwarf shrimp, provide good aeration for the water (they should pearl with enough light) and help to recycle nitrates and other waste. You'll still need to monitor the water quality carefully (watch out for that ammonia spike!) and make sure you change the water regularly. I'm afraid I don't know how tolerant cherries are to water quality, but this should give them a good chance. Like iSnail says, cherries breed freely, so that could be an issue (though most animals will breed less in poor water conditions).

Also, include a good amount of substrate, ideally a porous gravel. Your tank will cycle itself eventually, and a good substrate will provide good space for the bacteria to grow.

Edit -- actually, I just realised, you could add a little mature filter material to the substrate (provided you have a porous substrate, you could probably just bury it) to speed the process along.

If you can get hold of some, it might also be a good idea to add some catappa (indian almond) leaf to the substrate. Break off a couple of pieces of leaf (they're quite large) rinse and soak so the leaf pieces sink, then just leave them half buried in substrate. These provide further shrimp food and have some antiseptic properties. Oh, one last thing also might be advisable to add a few live daphnia to the tank. Shrimp will sometimes eat them to supplement their diet, but more importantly, they're a good indicator for the water. If the daphnia all start to die, check your water quickly!


This is all from my experience anyway. Hope it's some help.

 

[1234-fishy-freind]

To be honist i dont really know how long the shrimp will be in there but as time goes buy and i get some more money i will most likly buy a filter for the tank if no other tanks become free for them and they are in there for a long time.
Right can i do this with the tank then :
Add the water, i think its 10 litres, add some mature gravel from my tank that has been running for nearly 3 years, add some small moss balls, take out one of my filter pads from my mature juwel tank and cut it up and place the bits under the gravel, change 2 litres of water every other day, add a few live daphnia if i can get some to see if they die from bad water quality and if i can get some, some indian almond leaf.
Put an air stone in the tank.
I will see about trying to get some decent lighting.
One last question, what does porous mean ?

 

[iSnail]

Ok... if that is the only option then make sure you add loads of plants. Elodea desa (anacharis/egeria whatever you call it) Java moss, moss balls, etc. If you can put an airstone in there, I don't see why you can't put an air-powered sponge filter. It is quite cheap or you can even DIY one for nothing really. Here's the link for DIY sponge filter.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=85297

Porous means it's got lots of holes/pores that water can go through. In this case, the porous substrate will provide a large surface area for good bacteria to grow on.

Good luck with your shrimps.

 

[1234-fishy-freind]

Thank for all the help guys... im going to have a go at the DIY filter instead so then the shrimp can be in there longer.
All i need now are shrimp.
I will post a new topic when i get them
thanks

 

[Jen_S]

Just curious as to why you don't want the shrimp in with the guppies? Mine are in the same tank with guppies and lots of hornwort for the guppy fry and shrimp to hide in and this is working well for me.

 

[*blacksnapemoor*]

Ok... if that is the only option then make sure you add loads of plants. Elodea desa (anacharis/egeria whatever you call it) Java moss, moss balls, etc. If you can put an airstone in there, I don't see why you can't put an air-powered sponge filter. It is quite cheap or you can even DIY one for nothing really. Here's the link for DIY sponge filter.

[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/Invertebrates-Amphibians-Aquatic-Reptiles-Forum/85297/http-www-fishforums-net-index-php-showtopic-85297/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/Inverteb...howtopic-85297/[/URL]

Porous means it's got lots of holes/pores that water can go through. In this case, the porous substrate will provide a large surface area for good bacteria to grow on.

Good luck with your shrimps.

in your sig has 1 of the fish missin half a body?

 

[iSnail]

You mean my Dwarf puffers?? All of them are perfectly form and healthy. Which one do you mean??

 

[poopsydrew]

You mean my Dwarf puffers?? All of them are perfectly form and healthy. Which one do you mean??

lol, I think he is talking about the 4th one from the left, its tail is turned a little and I guess he just saw something else

I love looking over your dwarf puff pics BTW.

Drew

 

[iSnail]

I see...

Seriously, that's a pic I took when two of my 4-month-old babies doing a synchronised dance

Thanks for the compliment Drew