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newbreed Shrimp Guru

newbreed

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Welcome to the forum Lukehb21!!

Be sure to post some images of your shrimp setups and tell us a bit about the shrimp your are keeping! Ask lots of questions and we will be happy to share info to help you along the way!!

Always great to have more overseas members joining in!!

Welcome and Enjoy!!

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Lukehb21 Be nice I'm new here

Lukehb21

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hi and thanks for the welcomes!

 Have been browsing this site for a while and seen as im keen to get involved was hoping this would be the perfect place to pick up some tips and progress my interest!

Im a complete newbie (hope that is ok!) in preparation to set up my first ever tank after some extensive research online! due to my lack of space i am going to be getting a 10gal shrimp tank (maybe a little smaller). Before i start i wanted to make sure i have everything ready for starting a new tank!

 

My first tank is going to be red cherry shrimp because i have heard that they are more forgiving when it comes to new owners basically (though i hope i will do just fine for them). I will be doing a fishless cycle on my tank, and have proceeded to order a master test kit and a bottle of ammonia for the job. As i will be using tap water in my tank so i have also purchased a bottle of tetra safe water conditioner. Atm im not sure wether my tank will be the new 10gal im looking at or off a friend that hasnt used his in years so i was wondering is there any difference in how long the cycle should take? or any tips on it?

I have decided to use a sponge filter for my tank but as for the plants i am not sure what to get, would fake plants be ok? or would i need real plants for the shrimp to feed on and if not what would they eat? another thing im not sure on is what substrate to use as everytime i look up a recommended one theres another forum post on it warning to avoid it. any ideas?

In addition, i have already purchased what i think is necessary for setting up my tank  large bucket, a siphon vacuum, airline tubing, an air pump and some airline tubing suction holders, have artificial plants atm but looking at getting real depending on the substrate i eventually get. am i missing anything else or doing anything wrong?

All response is appreciated! smile.gif

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jayc Shrimp Guru

jayc

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I have decided to use a sponge filter for my tank but as for the plants i am not sure what to get, would fake plants be ok? 

 

Fake plants are ok, but real plants will assist in using up excess nutrients. 

 

 or would i need real plants for the shrimp to feed on and if not what would they eat? another thing im not sure on is what substrate to use as everytime i look up a recommended one theres another forum post on it warning to avoid it. any ideas?

 

Shrimp won't eat the plants, at least not plants that are still alive.

As for substrate, since you are getting cherries, plain gravel is ok. But I hate the look of plain gravel.

So gravel can be substituted for river sand, or ADA Malaya.

 

Cal Aqua lab's Black Earth Premium is a great substrate for plants, and cherries alike.

 

Benibachi Fulvic shrimp soil is good if you are keeping Crystals or Taiwan Bees. But since you are not, you can skip benibachi soil.

Since you only have a small tank and are keeping cherries, you can consider UpAqua shrimp sand, or Ista Water plant soil.

Ista make a shrimp soil but that buffers the water to pH 5.5 (or so it claims). That's too low for cherries. 

I've added Ista and Up Aqua to the list for completeness, but note that the quality isn't as good as ADA, Cal Aqua labs or Benibachi.

People have found the Ista and Up Aqua to disintegrate after  6-12 months. They also loose their pH buffering faster.

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Lukehb21 Be nice I'm new here

Lukehb21

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hi, thanks for the reply, i think i'll be going with the black earth premium, is there a website you recommend buying it off as i live over in england and i couldn't see it in my two local aquarium shops, not sure if they were just too small of a shop or if its gonna be a little harder to get hold of.

Frustrating as i have been offered a 40gal tank by a close friend but as im living in a studio flat with my girlfriend until march i havent got the space, it took my a while to convince her to let me have just a small tank at first!

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Squiggle Shrimp Guru

Squiggle

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Welcome to the forum, @jayc has pretty much summed it up, good luck with your new tank & I hope you have as much fun here as we do! :jig:

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jayc Shrimp Guru

jayc

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Luke, didn't realise you were in England. Unfortunately, I don't know of any specific sites in England that stock Cal Aqua Labs BEP.

Shipping from overseas will not be a wise option, since it's heavy and will cost heaps in shipping.

 

Alternatively, you can look for ADA Aquasoils. But just be aware that ADA soils release a lot of ammonia in the cycling stage, and will need to be cycled for longer.

 

Let us know what your local shops stock and we can help you pick the most suitable for cherries.

As I mentioned, plain gravel is sufficient, if you don't mind the look of it. And they can come in a variety of colours.

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