Planted Shrimp Tank Questions

[bae1994]

so could i have
microsorum pteropus
anubias sp.
elodea densa
moss balls

plants and a filter and ive heard from here you can have cherry shrimp in cold water what would i feed them and would i have to do anything to the filter ie put mesh on it and a light on top also howmany shrimp in a ten litre tank and what do i feed cherry shrimp and the water changes howmany litres and how often and do i use ro water or tap water. there will be nothing but
grave; media shrimp plants filter light no fish as i already have two marine tanks and dont want any fish in the little tank

 

[SuperColey1]

On the plant front all should be OK apart from the moss ballas because they are algae and the shrimp may nibble on them. However it may be an algae that cherry shrimp don't like.

I would however double check and then check again before you put chery shrimp into a coldwater setup. There is a big difference between something being able to survive in the parameters given and be happy in the parameters given. I do know however that they can definately be kept in cooler waters 22/23.

Water changes are up to the user. These are incredibly hardy shrimp to the point that when you empty a cannister filter there are loads in the bottom still perfectly healthy been though they've been living in the mulm of the tank for X amount of time. Most planted tank entusiasts use heavy water changes anyway.


AC

 

[three-fingers]

Cherry shrimp do great in unheated tanks, and wont eat the moss (or rather algae ball as SuperColey points out).

Start off with just a few small shrimp, say 3 or 5. With cherry shrimp you will need to be careful that they don't breed too much and over populate the small tank. If you have too many, you will need to rehome some.

You will need to cycle the tank as you would for a fish tank. If you already have a freshwater fish tank, you can speed up the cycle by adding sponge/media from your existing fish tanks filter into or wedged behind the new filter.

Don't worry about covering the filter, because you don't want them to breed too fast. Baby shrimp will still survive. If you really want to cover the filter, use a pair of old tights.

Don't use any RO water in the tank, it will not help with anything. The plants need nutrients from the tap water and the cherry shrimp use minerals for their shells, although cherry shrimp can live in soft water too.
Only use tap water with dechlorinator added (the best is seachem prime).
I would recommend changing 50% of the water weekly to be safe.
If you need to top up for evaporation, then use RO water.

You can feed the cherry shrimp 2-3 fish flakes every one to two days.