Empting Tank - Chasing the Tiny Babies?

[JohnH]

I bit the bullet and decided to empty my 3' divided tank today so I can repair the dividers.

I've caught all big shrimp, but every time I have a close look at the tank I see tiny babies 2-3mm big. Is it worth trying to catch these ones as I've read the small ones don't cope too well with being caught and moved?

I'm catching as many as I can, but there seems to be big mobs of them and there's plenty of room for them to run.

[torface]

I caught and moved loads of tiny CBS when I got my rack and the were largely fine. Are you completely emptying the tank to repair the dividers? If not, the rest will probably be fine...

[Wraithie]

If you are keeping most of the water I would think they should be okay, if its going to be a big change they may not cope.

[Squiggle]

When Tor bought her rack we drove it about 100kms to her house & there were survivors still in the tanks a couple of days later when she filled it & got it running, they will be fine dude :victorious:

[torface]

Yeah there were actually loads of survivors... they survived the journey, then a couple of days in an inch of water, then filling up with pure RO

Shrimp are always tougher than you think :encouragement:

[ineke]

If it makes you feel any better I've been doing the same today only with my TBM's and they were tiny well 1/2 of them really tiny. I'm aclimatising them now and I'm taking everyones advice that they will be fine. Cherries are much tougher i found babies in a tiny pool of water in a tank I had emptied no food ,no O2, no heat hardly any water and they had been like that for a few days- they all survived:D

[JohnH]

Unfortunately I am stripping the tank right down to re-do the lot, substrate included. It will be empty for about a week to allow the silicone to cure.

I've spent the last two hours chasing the little buggers around. I might leave the tank running for now and have another go tomorrow after work. My back is killing me so that will be it for tonight.

[ineke]

I know that feeling well, when I gave away all my Reds there were heaps of babies and it took me hours to catch them - about 20 still didn't get caught- they are the ones I was talking about earlier I thought I'd caught them all but the Reds weren't finished with me- I've still got them!!!

[JohnH]

Well I managed to get another 57 babies out after work. The back is sore again so I'll have one more go tomorrow and then empty the tank.

[ineke]

Oh well done. You have got a lot of babies. I thought I had caught all mine but I left the tank running overnight which turned out good because I found 4 very tiny TBM'S when I started to empty the water. They were very nicely marked so very happy. Please don't tell me these were all yellows:dejection:

[JohnH]

hmmm ok I won't tell you these were all yellows :anonymous:

[ineke]

I'm going to redo a tank for my yellows and go back to cherry WP's because the crystal tank they are in sure isn't doing anything for them. I put them in there a few months ago at someone's suggestion as they weren't breeding but I'm going back to the beginning with them:dejection: then I'm giving up on them:(

[JohnH]

Noooo you can't give up on them. :(

[ineke]

Well if the yellows don't want to breed for me they will just have to live out their lives eating and shrimping around dont know what else to do. I will just have to concentrate on other types. But hopefully a new tank setup just for them might kick start them into breeding. I hope so because yellows were my favourites.

[wayne6442]

I have just finished chasing day old black cherries around after siphoning a tank dry to redo! what I did was to siphon all the water ( and shrimp)into plastic buckets, let them settle, then siphoned the old water back into the newly set up tank, leaving about two inches of water on the bottom. Take the bucket under the light and do the shrimp stare!, catching everything that moves in a fine net. when satisfied throw the dregs out

The shrimp survived in he buckets for around a week with air stones and some plants.

[ineke]

So John I filled a nice little 20" tank with all cycled tank material apart from a few litres fresh RO water tested it 24 hours later with just 5 nitrate caught out my yellows from the crystal tank, acclimatised them for several hours and popped them in. They love it swarming over every inch checking out the plants and moss. So everything is cherry orientated all WP 's , fluval stratum instead of benibachi . Several saddled females , definite males candles music you get the picture. This is my final effort for my yellows so wish me luck :)

[JohnH]

LOL, Hopefully some of them have sexytime and you get some berried girls out of it. Is the music Barry White?

[ineke]

No Elvis, love me tender lol

[JohnH]

That'll do it

[ineke]

Well fingers crossed it does something:encouragement: