Search the Community

Hi Everyone, I am very new to the shrimp community, shrimp keeping in general(this is my first post). I stumbled upon shrimp keeping/breeding from aquaponics. I began this little adventure when I began fascinated with growing my own herbs and vegetables indoors using hydroponics. This lead me to countless of hours of research on youtube, google, forums, etc. Which eventually lead me to aquaponics, because the goal of my hydroponics was to become as self-sustaining as possible. This lead me to do a lot of research on nature, plant growth, nutrient cycle, ecosystems, eventually to Takashi Amano, "Learn from Nature, Create Nature". Thus I was on my way to creating a desktop aquaponics system that was aesthetically pleasing, functional, and cost effective. I started based on a design by a commercially available nano aquaponics system that I thought didn't look very nice, plus whats the fun in that? Simple concepts, fish/inverts in the tank produce waste, waste gets broken down by nitrifying bacteria, nitrates feed plants, clean water goes back into the tank. So upon doing more research I found out that dwarf shrimp produce little to no bioload, which means that I would need a **** ton of dwarf shrimp to produce enough nitrates to feed my little herb garden. Thus I decided I needed at least 1 fish, and I wanted a male Betta because they're pretty. However, knowing the nature of bettas I knew that I couldn't house my precious little dwarf shrimp and my betta together. Which lead me to do more research and i discovered a video showing you how to make a water bridge to filter 2 tanks with 1 filter using an overhead sump. "my aquaponics grow bed is basically an overhead sump" is what I thought and i figured it could work. 1 month of planning, sourcing, building, painting, daydreaming, and I was done building it and setting it up. I filled it with remineralized RO/DI water, planted my plants, added fluval cycle, and let the tank cycle until I only had <20 ppm nitrates. Most things were bought on Amazon, Home Depot, or Local Hydroponics store The setup consists of: 2 x 2.5 gallon aqueon tanks 1 x Black 1/3 size 6 inch food service pan (Growbed) 1 x Hydroton hydroponic grow media 1 x 20 inch finnex stingray light 1 x hikari mini sponge filter 1 x mini aquarium air pump 1 x 3w submersible water pump w/custom tubing&protective sponge housing 1 x DIY water bridge 1 x DIY wood housing 1 x outlet timer (Optional) Now it was time to locate my little shrimps. Most plants naturally prefer an acidic growth environment, thus I decided to go with Caridina shrimp mainly as I know they prefer softer more acidic environments. PERFECT! I ended up picking up 10 neat S-SSS looking CRS from a LFS near me and 5 PRL SSS CRS from another LFS, while I was there I saw some blue dream neos and couldn't resist and ended up with 5 of them and 6 ghost shrimp. I also picked up 1 golden horned nerite and a zebra nerite (1 for each tank). Its been 2 weeks since I introduced all my new roommates into their new home and so far everyone is happy! The 6 ghost shrimp surprisingly live peacefully with my Betta. My betta(has no name yet:(..) doesn't bother them too much. I did however lose 3 of my blue neos right after they molted..which i guess is attributed to the huge pH difference or something else. All my CRS have been doing great! The herb seeds I planted in the growbed have also sprouted I have some cilantro, sweet basil, thyme, oregano, parsley and arugula in there. I am hoping that over time as the herbs grow, along with the plants in the tank itself that my water conditions can remain relatively stable.

Hi Everyone, So 3 weeks ago I started my first shrimp tank project, it was a dual tank aquaponics setup with one tank housing a betta and one tank housing some CRS and RCS. Just wanted to share some good news! I figured that the plants in the tank, and the extra plants i'm growing the the grow bed, will keep nitrates down and hopefully maintain stable water parameters. So far for the 3 weeks I've tested my water every other day and parameters have remained stable at: pH: 6.4 gH:7 kH:0 TDS:234 ppm Ammonia: 0 ppm Nitrites: 0 ppm Nitrates <5 ppm In the past 3 weeks so many wonderful things have happened, I had an RCS that i brought home who was already berried, she gave birth just 3 days after I got her so now I have a lot, and I mean A LOT of babies and so far I think I have a pretty good survival rate, I can count at least 12-14 babies at any given time. One of my PRL CRS had "the clear band of death" right under the head. I was super worried for the whole week it had it, but this morning when I checked in on her, the band was gone and she is now berried!

Hi, can someone help me, how to make powder food become wafer? i already tried to add water and bake it but failed

Hi Everyone! Happy New Years to all! I just moved into my new place just after Christmas, and with that comes a Mini Fish room and Shrimp Rack Build. This is going to be a very simple setup and will be running one pump for multiple tanks, and a few hang on filters. There should be 12 tanks total in this mini fishroom! I used to have the metal racks but I am converting so that this fish room will have two custom made wood racks to replace the old metal ones. My father made this first built in unit using lumber and reinforced it using the beams within the wall. We have tested it for strength and its stronger then any shelf I've had so far (and I've had many strong shelves). We are going to also reinforce it abit more on the bottom shelf and sides for just a little more peace of mind! I stained the rack for a "rustic" look. Then I sealed it with waterproof varnish... I wanted this to look a little more warm then the industrial look of the metal shelving, because this fish room is located in a small room in the back of my house. It was likely an office or den before I moved in! So it suits the house perfectly and will have a serene look. For this shelf, I have 2 x 20 gallon tanks on the bottom, and 2 x 15 gallons on the middle, and 2x 15 gallons on top. The 15 gallons will all be shrimp tanks. The 2 x 20 gallons will likely house guppies or plecos. My next shelving unit (still to be built) will be free standing *not a built in* and will be the same style as the other. It will be smaller as it is intended to hold 30" wide tanks I am using sponge filters on the shrimp tanks and hang ons for the guppies and plecos. I will update as I add my tanks and transfer the tanks to the shelves (they are being stored at my moms for now) As most of you know moving tanks is extremely complicated and time consumning.... I will update my progress as I go,,,, thanks for following along

I know I need photos of this and I will post them as soon as I go back upstairs but I had to tell you guys about this rack. Lowe's had these black heavy duty pvc or some type of non metal module sets that you build shelves with using 2x4s. You can set it up as long as you want with shelves at whatever height. They are super sturdy and the only thing you are limited with is width of the shelf. I use 10g tanks and have loads of room behind them for the enormo AquaClear HOBs as well as a surge protecter with timer on it for lights. We put a layer of very thin plywood covering each shelf to distribute weight evenly but anything (like foam) would work. I have this in an extra bedroom and I have to say they look good in there. I left the wood raw and it's kind of a cool look. The modules are made so that you fit the ends of the 2x4s in them...no need for making extra cuts for bracing. They were up in no time! My husband builds custom furniture and redoes old wooden boats so he believes in overkill on everything and he couldn't believe how great these were. Photos to come!

Ok guys, how do I make this better... I spend like 10 minutes every time I hook up my RO/DI unit trying to hit the "sweet spot" where there is as little spray and leakage around the faucet connector as possible. Some days I'm more successful than others; sometimes I really fail and the thing pops out, spraying water all over me and the kitchen. Even on the best days, I've got a pot under the whole thing catching the perfectly good tap water that's otherwise going down the drain. I have two different black rubber gaskets, the one that comes with the unit and the one that goes to the aerator, and neither work very well. It seems like the threading on one/both sides is "stripped", yet I can't get teflon tape to really help - it just bunches up and/or makes the spray come out the top rather than the sides. I live in an apartment, so replacing the faucet isn't really an option... unless it were to "accidentally" break another way, I suppose... ... nah. But I can replace the connector for the filter, I just don't want the next one to do the same thing a couple months from now. DIY solutions? Recommendations?

I was asked to place this filter in here as a DIY project for a nice filter that can scale up or down according to your tank size and needs.This is my first post like this so bear with me. lol This is the finished project that I use. I found a Youtube post that i made some mods to for what I wanted to use mine for, which was shrimp and small fish. The first is only about 3.5 inches tall and used in a 1 gal. The second is what I use in my 10's with my BV Shrimp. These are some of the materials I use. You can use whatever you want for the load you need to handle. The floss is mech and the sponges are for bacteria to stay in. First I take a 20oz bottle and cut the top off right at the top of the label. I place it cap first into the large tube and mark where the tube ends so that the cap/neck will go inside the tube. Then I drill holes in the cap (several small), then I drill a hole in the neck just below the cap rim that is the same size as your airline tubing. Now I can place this inside the larger tube (cap first) about 2" deep. Now I take a matching cap for the pvc of choice and drill some holes all around the SIDE. I drill all mine the same and then either modify the cap for smaller fish or whatever, but you can drill smaller or larger according to your fish. In the other cap, you drill holes in the TOP. You use the one with side holes as the bottom of your filter, this allows it to sit on the bottom and still pull water in. The cap with top holes goes on top and allows the bubbles and water to escape and make your filter work. I use the blue mesh you buy at scrap-booking places inside a cap to make sure my shrimp don't go through the holes. (Plz excuse the holes in the top on this one, I only had one odd cap left to do this with. Sorry) Now take your large tube and try to estimate where your bottle cap is and drill a hole in the side of the tube. When you push the airline thru this hole it will need to also go inside the neck hole on the bottle and be centered so the bubbles are in the middle of the pvc tube. This is the same shot I gave earlier on the bottle part. OK, now you can choose to have just the tubing going up the side, or support it with smaller pvc, like I did. This also gave it more weight and helped it stand straighter. Above you see the tubing is trapped between the small pvc and I use zip ties to hold them in place. Just make sure you don't crimp your airline. Now you can place floss in the bottom up to the cap of the bottle and put on your cap with SIDE holes. Do not attach these too tight as you will struggle with them when it comes time for maintenance. Try not to move your bottle and keep it centered and straight inside the tube. Some people use sealant to hold it there, but I like to have the choice to move the bottle if need be. Then you place your scrubbies in the top part above the bottle. You can cram 2-3 in there, your choice. I got these at the Family Dollar store, 6 for a $1. Now you put your cap on the top that has the TOP holes...again, be gentle. And you have a nice canister filter that is cheap but effective. I personally leave off the cap to make more bubbles and more water movement, but the choice is yours. I bought the 2" PVC in a 3' section and made 3 of these for approx $12 total. Much better than $200 for 3 store bought canisters. You can pull scrubbies out and use them to help cycle another tank easily and the floss is easy to see when it needs changing. You can also do these in the black PVC if you choose also. Please make sure to clean all parts well before you place it in the tank and good luck! I hope you enjoyed tonight's programming. Ya'll come back now. OH! And just so you are prepared.....when you go to Lowe's to buy this stuff...beware ..... They asked me if I was building pipe bombs for a living.