BUGGA

[ineke]

I have spent all day catching shrimp , dividing my 30" , making RO water and have just finished filling it up. Turned around and saw the extra bag of Benibachi soil I urgently got Dean to change my order for because I thought I would need three bags not the two I ordered!!,! So I've only got six centimetres of soil in there BUGGA!!!, Upside is I have a spare bag I suppose- don't know what I will do with it all my tanks have shrimp soil. I know I could get one more tank :triumphant:

[Squiggle]

Doh!! A whole days work & you forgot the third bag :dejection:

[ineke]

I thought about adding it with the water in there but then thought it would turn to mud so it will just have to wait for another day. Silly woman:stupid:

[Heavyd]

Just add it anyway. Better get it right first time around, rather than being unhappy with the water parameters later. It only takes a day to clear anyway, and then months of successful breeding.

[MrShrimp]

I would add it and get around 8 cm of soil. Better to do it right from the very start just for peace of mind if you ever want to invest in expensive shrimps. Just my opinion.

[CNgo2006]

Don't be skimping if you can avoid it! Regret is never pretty! Add in slowly....

[ineke]

So I can just add it without any problems? Great I will do that tomorrow . Thanks mrShrimp and HeavyD I didn't want to empty the water out again so if I can just put it in that's great.:cheerful:

[ineke]

Don't be skimping if you can avoid it! Regret is never pretty! Add in slowly....

Thanks Chi I will be doing it first thing tomorrow :)

[MrShrimp]

Add it in slowly but you should still cycle the soil before you add any shrimps.dont worry about the water being cloudy, it will clear up

[ineke]

Yes I will cycle the tank plus I'm waiting for a canister filter so that will need to be cycled anyway so a few weeks before I can put shrimp in there.:encouragement:

[BlueBolts]

+10, 60cm isn't much, I'd definitely add another bag ! Use a cup, 3/4 filled with the soils, and slowly submerged the cup and pour it onto the existing substrate to avoid much of the cloudiness.....you won't regret it in weeks, months a years to come !

[ineke]

Thanks BB. Can you do that with shrimp in a tank? My other tank is a little light on I would like to top it up too but not if I have to catch the shrimp:)

[Heavyd]

I have added it to an existing tank. Just beware that it can leach some ammonia, so make sure the system can handle the extra load.

[ineke]

Thanks Heavyd my existing tank has about 7 cm of soil so if there is any left tomorrow I can use it up in that tank.:encouragement:

[BlueBolts]

IMO it'll be ok, as long as you do it gradually.....with a seeded filter, I had shrimps in my breeding tanks within 24 hours. So using the cup method, say one cup per hour ? It shouldn't be an issue, just need to ensure minimal WP fluctuation.

[blindfisherman]

Just out of curiosity, did you add any minerals to the RO before adding it?

[ineke]

Yes i used Salty Shrimp. This tank will be mainly for Crystals and I divided it with a sponge. :encouragement:

[shrimpstan]

Yes i used Salty Shrimp. This tank will be mainly for Crystals and I divided it with a sponge. :encouragement:

Hi Ineke, good luck with this new set up. bummer about the soil but ive done it the wrong way around before through excitement too and had to add a bag after the water was in.. with good filter give it 2-3 days max n it should be crystal clean waiting for some nice crystal shrimp in time to come:)

btw, where did u end up finding the sponge for the divider?

[ineke]

Hi Shrimpstan

I was so annoyed with myself but it's been put in now and although very murky I have an internal power filter that will get it clear by tonight no doubt. I'm still waiting for my canister filter to come so it will be a while before I can put any good shrimp in there but may put the last of my Red Cherries in until I can find a home for them

I bought the sponge from a LFS for $16.50 its blue and medium coarse so don't think the baby shrimp can get through but it's only 2.5 cm thick it seems to be standing up with out any problems. I have another on coming from china thats 45*45*4.5 . My tank is 47cm in height so couldn't get it from the usual sources mentioned on here unless I wanted to buy a big sheet for $200. I phoned heaps of interstate places but it was the odd size that made it hard to get what I really wanted:encouragement:

[ineke]

Well finally got the extra soil into the tank and re scaped it. Still a bit cloudy but nearly there. I will look for a before shot tomorrow and then take one of the change to show you.Quite happy with it all and the water temperature is almost the same on both sides. Biggest downer now is that I used the power filter and as I could only use it on one side at a time a lot of dirt has been pulled through the new sponge divider which is now a dirty blue! I don't think the shrimp will mind probably nice munchies for them.

[Squiggle]

Well done Ineke, can't wait to see the pics :victorious:

[ineke]

If I leave it alone then it looks pretty good! I still need to make a hanging moss basket for each side instead of a mezzanine . the mezzanine will cut out too much light now the tank is halved:encouragement:

[ninja]

Like a roof hanging garden?

[ineke]

Yes exactly I have made one and its just starting to bush out so I thought I have heaps of tiles with moss so why not make some more hanging gardens the shrimp love the one i've made so will make a few more.:encouragement:

[ninja]

How do you attach to the tank?