NSinvert Posted February 19, 2020 Report Share Posted February 19, 2020 Ive noticed that some of my crystals are losing color. My ph6 gh5 no ammonia0 nitrates0 nitrites0 I feed 1x a day only because I feel like my snails eat way more then my shrimp.....not because my shrimp don’t try to eat. I do water changes 1x a week with ro water about 15% Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSak Posted February 19, 2020 Report Share Posted February 19, 2020 Hi @NSinvert! Just to clarify, when you say you're changing your water once a week with RO water, are you changing the water with pure RO water or are you remineralizing first before changing? If so, how long have you had the shrimp? Just like with people and other pets like dogs and cats, as animals age they tend to show visible signs of these changes. If you were to look at an older dog vs. a young adult dog the younger dog, if healthy, would have a nicer hair coat, much more vibrant coat colors, and healthier looking skin, compared to an older dog who may have more dull coat colors, more skin problems, etc. They may both be healthy but due to the aging process they look visibly different. Shrimp can be like this as well. The nicest shrimps are usually the ones that have just reached mature size, so they're in their breeding prime and generally show their best colors. Your parameters seem fine and it sounds like you've had this schedule (feeding, water changes, etc.) going on for a while, so if you've been consistent I don't think they'd suddenly start becoming stressed unless you added/changed something recently. It also seems like you have experience keeping shrimps, so my guess is that they're just aging and losing color because of that. But if you can think of anything that changed recently that might be helpful to identify why it may be happening. Hope this helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyzazz Posted February 19, 2020 Report Share Posted February 19, 2020 What are you feeding? You may need to move put a higher mineral content food into rotation, that can sometimes help with coloration like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 Yes I am remineralizing my water with gh. I also add a little kh to try and keep ph stable once a month. I have been using a variety of different foods I plan on breaking some of these up and to make a powder base that way it will go further and more shrimp will be able to feed a little better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 I remineralize with Bee shrimp gh and Shrimp mineral gh/kh and I also use shrimp exo by aqua vitro and seachem stability with every water change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 I’m just trying to figure out if it’s just weak genes or if I’m doing something wrong?? I did have a death the other day and it was one of my cbs that had a more translucent shell. It’s just seems as my crystal shrimp get bigger their color fades on only some of them. Other crystals are fine and have beautiful color. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyzazz Posted February 22, 2020 Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 You're adding kH to a tank with Active Substrate, you shouldn't be doing that. You want kH for inert substrate and neutral to above neutral water, and Active Substrate for 0kH water to keep the pH buffered low. Your shrimp are stressed because of this. I recommend that you stop using the gH/kH+ and ensure your active substrate is still working. If it isn't, you need to replace the substrate and stick to just using the Bee Shrimp gH+. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 My tank is a mix of everything. CBS CRS BB BBS BBM OEBT OERT KK PINTO GB SW. I also have ramshorn snails and I’m not sure if they are eating all the food before some of my shrimp get the chance. I also don’t want to over feed either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 I don’t have an active substrate. I started this tank with crs a year or so ago. I live in pdx where our water is soft our facet water runs at 10 tds. For a few months I used facet water but when I wanted to branch out with my shrimp I bought an ro system and use that. wyzazz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyzazz Posted February 22, 2020 Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 I'm looking more closely at your substrate in the pics, it doesn't look like it's an active substrate. The shrimp you're keeping need a lower pH environment. You will want to swap substrate to something like Landen or Brightwell to keep things stable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 No kh? I thought using a little kh would help regulate ph? My kh is usually 0-1 usually at the end of the month I notice my ph might drop a little so I will add some kh to keep my ph between 6 and 6.4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 I see! I’m so scared to switch it out!! I’ve never switched out substrate with all my shrimp and plants in the tank. Any ideas or recommendations on how to do that?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2020 I’ve just heard horror stories on people pulling plants and releasing gasses and killing their shrimp. I have a heavily planted tank and starting all over and replacing the substrate is so intimidating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyzazz Posted February 23, 2020 Report Share Posted February 23, 2020 Your pH isn't staying stable because you don't have enough kH to keep it stable (otherwise it would be right around 7) and you don't have active substrate. siphon 50-75% of your water into buckets remove all decorations and plants remove all shrimp scoop up substrate and drain the rest of the water add new substrate add old water add new water to level desired in tank add back decorations and plants drip shrimp back in to tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyzazz Posted February 23, 2020 Report Share Posted February 23, 2020 2 minutes ago, NSinvert said: I’ve just heard horror stories on people pulling plants and releasing gasses and killing their shrimp. I have a heavily planted tank and starting all over and replacing the substrate is so intimidating. Gotta do it! I typically reset my tanks every 1-2 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSinvert Posted February 23, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2020 Well you’ve definitely given me a little more courage!! Thank you!! wyzazz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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