New member Intro :-)

[stephwheels]

Hi all - I was keeping fish quite avidly until about 15 years ago - larger tanks with cyclids, some cool catfish and few other bits and bobs. Then I moved and didn't have anywhere for the large tanks. I've recently got back into it with 2 nano aquariums, a 39L cube and 30L rectangle. The 30L was first and set up for Cherry reds which I had in a large vase with rocks and plants. They were doing ok but I decided an aquarium would be better. When I set this up(Dec 22 - Jan 23) and transferred the 8 shrimp over, one was pregnant - or berried, as I have since learnt. They were from 2 different sources fortunately, as I now have MANY shrimp - they have gone mental lol. There are 2 ottos' in there as well, and the whole community is thriving. I have been trying to cull any discoloured shrimp but do have some sample photos I would like some advice on, which I will put in another post.

From there I set up the cube, getting right into the aquascaping with boulders and spider wood. There are no shrimp in there yet, rather some tiny cloud fish I used for cycling, and a great mystery snail that provides hours of entertainment with his/her gymnastics and very rigid work routines!

I'm loving that I am back into this great hobby and look forward to diversifying with shrimp, and to creating some great mini planted ecosystems. A YouTuber I have been getting a lot of inspiration from is MJ Aquascaping, and I look forward to hearing any other recommendations you guys might have. 

Cheers, and thanks for reading -)

 

[jayc]

Welcome to SKFA.

What a great intro. Nice to meet you @stephwheels

[sdlTBfanUK]

Welcome and I hope you enjoy your time on here!

I like your first attempt at aquascaping, it is a visual feast in such a small tank as you have everything in there, very interesting to look at even before stocked with inhabitants. The red cherry shrimp will be happier now they are in there new home and it's great to hear that is going well. It is frustrating that you have to cull some constantly to keep the good colour but in the long run it is best keeping on top of it.

Look forward to hearing/seeing how it goes. I moved recently and only the red cherry shrimp survived that ordeal so I am down to just one tank at the moment  with those in.

[stephwheels]

1 hour ago, jayc said:

Welcome to SKFA.

What a great intro. Nice to meet you @stephwheels

Thanks -) And appreciate being added too!

[stephwheels]

30 minutes ago, sdlTBfanUK said:

Welcome and I hope you enjoy your time on here!

I like your first attempt at aquascaping, it is a visual feast in such a small tank as you have everything in there, very interesting to look at even before stocked with inhabitants. The red cherry shrimp will be happier now they are in there new home and it's great to hear that is going well. It is frustrating that you have to cull some constantly to keep the good colour but in the long run it is best keeping on top of it.

Look forward to hearing/seeing how it goes. I moved recently and only the red cherry shrimp survived that ordeal so I am down to just one tank at the moment  with those in.

Thanks! Now to get on top of the algae as well. How many shrimp will be too many? Or will they self regulate their population?

[jayc]

21 minutes ago, stephwheels said:

How many shrimp will be too many?

When the tank cant sustain healthy shrimp any more.

[sdlTBfanUK]

I don't think yo need to worry too much about over population yet, you can keep 50-100 or so in a 30L. With culling some unwanted ones that will slow the population growth. You will need to keep adjusting the food you add as the number of shrimp increase. With the number you have now very little, if any added food should be needed as the biofilm should be sufficient. There will be a point at which the population will reach maximum as the environment can only support so many shrimps,