Hippoherder

I picked up a tank today that I think will work very well for dwarf seahorses if i am able to get them. If I can't, it is also usefull for regular seahorses (H. Erectus). It's a 20 gallon extra tall. It has the same footprint as a 10 gallon tank but is 24" tall. I am fairly sure I can fit 2 pairs of H.Erectus in that tank. I am thinking of a cleanup crew of snails and maybe 5 or 6 sexy shrimp. I think that is a safe number of inhabitants for the tank size. Anyone have any stocking suggestions for H. Erectus tankmates?

IMO lfs employees aren't all that knowledgeable, lol.

i would say rinse it in tank water if you are concerned with losing the amount of beneficial bacteria in the sponge. i know a number of freshwater folks that rinse their pre-filter sponges under the tap, and i have done so myself on occasion. not sure if things are any different in sw, but i would suspect the same theories apply, bacteria will live on any surface they have available to them.

I would think it wouldn't make much of a difference if I lost the bacteria in a sponge as it would probably be recolonized in a day or two. I just scratch my head when I am led to beleive that if I rinse out the sponge my whole tank cycle will be ka-put. I would think a proper rinse of the mechanical filtration media would only do great things for the tank health.

Any HOB the right size will work. Instead of using the media that comes with, make the chamber as big as possible (may need some modifying) and fill it w. LRR. If you want mechanical filtration, add a sponge to the intake - just make sure to rinse it often, as trapped crud will create nitrates (not a big problem in FW - up to 40ppm is fine - but, we want as close to 0 as possible in SW).

Here is where I get a little confused. When you say rinse the sponge, do you mean in tap watet or to swish it around in water that has been changed out of the tank? I thought I could just rinse it under tap. A person at my LFS insists I will undo my cycling of the tank if I do. I don't understand how that can be with bacteria in the sand, rock, and water. I am finding a lot of what my LFS tells me to do is not anything close to what experienced hobbyists tell me to do.

Any thoughts on how or if temperature influences color? I am at 23 C right now. My friend has a higher temp and a much redder population than I.

As for a follow up on lighting: My tank was so overgrown, I pulled 90% of the plant life out. It's much brighter and everything in the tank improved in color.

You aren't actually supposed to disturb the substrate or add inhabitants that will. Oddly enough the shrimp that died off were my cherry shrimp and a couple of rainbows. The CRS were fine. Fish in the tank were also fine. The die off happened about 6 weeks in if I recall. Water quality was fine. The tank looked nice but I just think its a poor setup. Also, for less than the price of the nano I got a 29 gallon complete set up. It looks nice and the shrimp and fish are thriving. It was my first nano experience. It works well for some. Its just not the right fit for me.

I had the Ebi running for a couple of months and broke it down. My inverts started dying, fish were fine. One of the main gripes I have is with the "shrimp" substrate that comes with it. It isn't supposed to be disturbed and it makes a bloody mess if you do. This makes cleaning a bit of a challenge imho I would also choose a different filter. It looks nice when done right but I could have gotten much more tank or a comprable size tank with better equiptmen for the money. It works for some but I won't use it again. I am plan to post mine (complete minus the substrate) for sale or trade.

What kind of inverts did you have dying in your Ebi? Did you lightly rinse your substrate before putting it in your tank?

I really like the Shrimp Stratum substrate and when I do my weekly cleanings I do a light vacuuming which doesn't cloud the water much if at all. Since my original layout, I've rearranged the plants a couple times which clouded the water but it was crystal clear by the next day. I think the substrate is a key to shrimp keeping by lowering the pH. They could use more substrate in the kit, the supplied 2 kg bag doesn't create a layer thick enough for easy planting; I have 3 kg of Shrimp Stratum in each of my Ebi's. As for the filter, I think it should come with some kind of pre-filter and different media. In my 2 Ebi filters, I filled the last chamber with Eheim Substrat Pro for more biological filtration.

Ron

I had the Ebi running for a couple of months and broke it down. My inverts started dying, fish were fine. One of the main gripes I have is with the "shrimp" substrate that comes with it. It isn't supposed to be disturbed and it makes a bloody mess if you do. This makes cleaning a bit of a challenge imho I would also choose a different filter. It looks nice when done right but I could have gotten much more tank or a comprable size tank with better equiptmen for the money. It works for some but I won't use it again. I am plan to post mine (complete minus the substrate) for sale or trade.

Just throwing this out there to see if anyone can see any obvious flaws. This is again for my dwarf seahorse project... I am going to take a 20 gallon tank (maybe larger) and guides siliconed that will allow me to drop a glass or acrylic sheet into the guide. I will have a solid sheet to completely block off one side from another and a sheet that is finely drilled to allow water circulation through the partitions for each guide. I will have the partitions spread to allow a 20 gallon tank to be separated into 2x 5-gallon sections and 1x 10-gallon section. This will allow me to have the stability of a larger water volume while being able to confine the herd to the appropriate area for feeding concentration. When the herd is large enough I an remove a partition completely an double the herds space.

Sorry to sound so new but what is LRR? Live Rock? I am definately going to use a sponge on the intake.

Thanks

I'm looking for filter that will do the best job of maintaining water quality while causing as little current disturbance as possible for a dwarf seahorse tank of 10 gallons (maybe 20 partitioned into 2 10- gallon sections) but most likely 10. I was going to go with a a whisper 10 HOB model from tetra as I've read one or two other dwarf setups that had that. I was told today that the whisper 10 from tetra is useless in salt as was the carbon media. Can someone suggest something that might suit my needs? A sponge filter might work according to some but I was hoping for something with a bit more ability. It doesn't have to be a HOB type, just something that gets the job done. Thanks in advance.

I thought I would put my 2 cents worth ... actually it was a lesson that cost me a lot more! I had a healthy tank of a ton of Endlers and approx. 50 Cherry shrimp. I did a water change and watched the Endlers die off one by one, next was the Cherry shrimp. All died in about half an hour. Hubby, who has no idea about fish stuff discovered the cause, the water conditioner had gone rancid. I learned to always smell the conditioner before I use it. Not sure if this was the problem with your Cherry shrimp?

The water conditioner I used was new with the habitat. The shrimp I put in were larger and older, so maybe that had something to do with it. But they were fine until I added a dozen more shrimp to the tank. Maybe it was the cycling. It definately wasn't ammonia or nitrates. The more I think of the Shrimp habitat, the more it seems like an intermediate to advanced tank set up as it is so small and things can go wrong quickly. Beside that, I wouldn't buy it again or reccomend it.

I never thought of rancid conditioner though. I will definately keep an eye out for it -thanks

I'm trying to get my tank changed from overgrown bog to something a bit more appealing. It's a 29 gallon tank that is overgrown by a plant that grows so fast and so much, I had to start pushing it to one side of the tank when I feed the fish. It's some viney thing (sorry, still learning names) that I've seen potted in a store but mine only floats. I routinely pull big clumps out but it still keeps growing like a weed (no, it's not duckweed). So yesterday I bought some Childrens Tears on a rock and another potted plant (corkscrew somethingor other) and it was only a matter of moments before the plants were swarmed by the shrimp and snails in the tank. Is there something the quality of the pants that attracted everything like a cat to Catnip? Did I just get lucky and get everyones favorite plant? COuld it be the fertilizer they used (if any)? I'm just trying to figure what is making the inverts think these plants are magnetic north and if my overgrown plants are lacking something.

I dismantled the nano shrimp habitat today. I am chalking it up to a live-and-learn experience. Anyways, I found 2 rainbow shrimp that managed to survive that were hiding themselves pretty well. After getting a better understanding about cycling a tank I don't think there was any chance it was fully cycled. Aside from that it looks like it was mostly my ignorance of the setup, which was greatly influenced by the salesperson I was getting information from. I'm sure someone must have good luck with it but in hindsight -(a little wiser and a little poorer.) the nano just seems like a bad idea, especially at the price point.

Thanks, I already did that. Kevin was really helpful. He took the time to explain the logistics of ordering internationally and is definately goin ght e extra mile. I will probably be doing my salt water stuff through him.

I found a way to cu through some red tape for the seahorses, it will be pricey but I'm ok witht hat for the type I am looking for. I'd still like to hear any experience people have purchasing from the US if any,

There is some livestock that I would like to order from the US - specifically, seahorses and invertabrates. Does anyone have any experience with this? I have no idea if anything could be sent with any kind of live arrival gaurantee, if it is something that requires specia permits, or if the livestockl would croak in a lengthy customs stay. Can anyone give me a some input or a quick 101?

Thanks

From everything i have read even the smallest amounts of copper can be enough to kill the shrimp so unless you know for 100% that nothing in your tank or in your water supply is being contaminated or ever has been contaminated with copper then your best bet is to buy a test kit. It may be a bit pricy to get a really really good one but if you spend the money and find copper then you might be able to pin down the source and stop further contamination rather than spend allot of money on new expensive shrimp that keep on dieing.

One thing you mentioned is the shrimp were at the top of the tank from the start and that the filter you have has very little surface agitation. The only thing that comes to mind is there isn't enough air in the water to suppor the extra bio load and the less hardy shirimp needed more and so they suffocated. It's a possibility. Check to see how energetic the shrimp in the tank are currently. Reading about shrimp one person states that most shrimp breeders use sponge filters which cause allot of surface aggitation but just a small amount of in tank flow so that the shrimp can actually move around without struggle.

In one of my tanks to increase ovygen without increaseing flow i tilted the spray bar at the top of the tank up and had it hit the glass lid and drip down.

Good luck

L

I am pretty sure copper isn't the issue but it does make good sense to get the kit and check. I thought it might be the O2 levels but I thought the requirements for shrimp were ridiculously low (people have 100's of them in a plain 10 gallon tank). The guy at the pet store told me 150 could easily be in this tank, but that doesn't make sense to me without better airation. At the moment I have 6 gupies in there and they are doing fine. In my 29 gallon tank, which is over planted and has a biowheel filter the shrimp swim around the tank like fish. They are very active.Oh well, live and learn.

Thanks for all the input everyone

Is it possible the shrimp could have been exposed to some copper? Shrimp are very sensitive to copper and it will kill them. Did you by chance medicate the tank with something containing copper? Perhaps an ich med?

No medication, only the introduction of the new shrimp. Everything that wasn't a CRS took a beating in less than 24 hours after that.

One odd thing that happened after I introduced the CRS and Rainbows...the Cherry shrimp all went as high up on the tank as they could go - right at the waterline. None of the other shrimp did. I don't know what to think of the shrimp habitat as it doesn't have any mechanical agitation to the water. it has an internal filter that gently moves the water but the water generally looks static. I've never had a tank that didn't have some surface agitation of the water.

The 29 gallon tank that now have the shrimp along with a bunch of guppies, snails and one yoyou loach (and overgrown with plants) was started uncycled with unconditioned tap water and 4 cherry shrimp. They seemed to do ok in that, although the temp was a bit lower 70F.

Since I have gotten back into the hobby I have met a lot of resistance to using carbon in my filtration. I'm not sure why. I thought it kept the water quite clean. My water quality was good this go around but do you think the shrimp will be ok with carbon in the filtration?

I had 6 cherry shrimp in a new 8 gallon shrimp habitat by themselves for about a week. The tank had been previously cycled for a couple of weeks by guppies. I introduced 9 Crystal Red Shrimp and 6 Rianbow shrimp. This evening I watched all the cherries and all but 2 of the Rainbows drop dead. I removed all the Crystals and surviving Rainbow shrimp to another tank. Tested the wated 0ppm nitrate and 0 ammonia. Temp has been a consistent 23.

What the what??? Any insights?

Thanks

I have a "Cherry Shrimp" tank, that I'm sure started with all CS - but they were all from a tank that was originally a mix of Green and Cherry. In the mix tank, I started to see some zebras; and, the GS were populating way faster than the CS, so I started the CS tank. Now, it's mostly a CS tank with a few GS - haven't really noticed any zebras - but, I haven't paid much attention to the tank in the last while.

That mix tank, however, now has CS, GS, Zebra, Yellow and Brown - maybe one or two blue (out of a few hundred).

Once you have a hybridized (crossbreeding) tank, what do you do with the excess babies? If I were to get a yellow, could I give it to a friend saying it is a yellow morph of a cherry shrimp or should I mention it is an offspring from a hybridized tank?

I have the chance to get some wild and hybridized cherry shrimp. I don't know what color morphs will breed true or are dominant. Does anyone have an idea? For ex/ If I get a yellow or blue from a wild pairing and pair it with a like color morph shrimp, will I get a uniform color group of baby shrimp or will I have to keep breeding a few generations of the same color to get a uniform color from a pair? Not sure if I should keep the offspring in their own fun "anything can happen tank" or start isolating the colors out from the hatchings....or just not attempt it.

thanks,

Bill

Thanks for clearing things up for me. I had thought that is was tank conditions or genetics.

I've got a 30 gallon with a bunch of snails, guppies, 1 yoyo loach, and about 10 cherry shrimp (maybe more that I cant see). Out of all the shrimp there are only 3 that look red. Most are completely see through. Half of them have been in the tank for a couple months so it isn't stress related to a new habitat. Is it just odd genetics, environmental conditions, or both that are keeping them clear? Any ideas?

I have a biowheel filter . The substrate is red and white gravel. The temp, which I thought was higher, ended up being about 70 F. I am slowly trying to get it into the mid 70's and it is currently sitting at 72 F.

Thanks,

Bill

Welcome! and you know, you can beat that 'fit through the door' thing by building a tank right in your house....... heheheheeee...... lol.

LOL , beleive it or not, my wife already anticipated that.

New to AA. Just getting back into the hobby after a few years hiatus when I moved to Alberta (living in Airdrie). I've restarted with a small 8 gallon shrimp habitat and a 30 gallon tank. Just Dwarf shrimp and guppies so far. My long term goal is to have 2 large tanks- One running sea horses and the other running either dwarf shrimp or more likely a hybrid dart frog fresh water fish tank. I have lots of experience with hybrid tanks and fresh water tanks but I haven't run a salt water set up for a while. I'm taking some time to make sure I have all my ducks in a row before I get a big salt water set up going. I'm limited to 2 tanks (of whatever size I can fit through the door) as my wife has seen my tank set ups take over my living space before we were married and has set a 2 tank ground rule (but they can be as large as I want ).

Looking forward to meeting everyone and chatting/learning.

Bill