Shrimp Recommendation for Water

[love]

Hi Everyone,

 

I have recently moved and the water parameters for my tank have changed with my tap water source as a result. I have kept blue bolt shrimp pre-move and the shrimp were doing quite well, multiplying. I think I started with 20 shrimp, but I ended up with closer to 80 adults in a community tank by the time I moved. Unfortunately, the new water doesn't seem to agree with the bolts. Some of the shrimp are dying off at a slow but consistent pace. I have noticed new berried females, which is encouraging, but there are definitely mounting deaths. I am pretty sure this is a result of the new water as the tank is otherwise the same as pre-move. 

 

I am now considering a different shrimp variety that may be better suited to the new tap water. I live in an apartment, and I don't want to go down the route of ro/di units or buying water for the tank, which is 50 gallon with sump. Current water parameters after a few weeks of settling are as follows.

 

Using API Test Kits

3dkh

5dgh

TDS of 210 (right out of the tap, rising to 250 through the week in tank before water change)

74-76 degrees Fahrenheit 

 

The tank is cycled, my first suspicion with the shrimp die off was cycling from moving the sump media. However, after multiple tests at different times over the last two weeks I still get 0 ammonia and nitrite. My nitrate right after a water change is 10 and gets to 20 right before the next water change. 

 

The substrate is ADA amazonia, but it is depleted for sure. It is at least 3 years old. 

 

For reference, my water pre-move was 

0-1dkh

4dgh

TDS of 60 (right out of the tap, I did add a scoop of remineralizer to get the tds to 130 right after a water change. TDS would rise to 180 before the next water change)

temperature same as above. 

 

More background on the tank. It is a 24 by 24 by 20 inch, with a 18 gallon sump. It is planted. I do dose about half of EI, with a weekly water change of 50%. This is the same routine I had before moving. The other inhabitants of the tank are some dwarf pencilfish, amano shrimp, and snails (ramshorn and malaysian).

 

Given my new water, I am thinking of getting tangerine tigers or some neocaridinia variety. At this point, I am not sure if any blue bolts will pull through in the end. I am discouraged by the slow but consistent deaths (usually find one casualty a day or every other day), but I am slightly hopeful in light of the newly berried females appearing. Any recommendations on new shrimp varieties welcomed. 

 

 

[pastu]

Or get a reverse osmosis filter 

[fishandshrimpguy]

I once had a tank of CRS with ADA Amazonia soil. After 3 years of going well, I started to have random shrimp deaths and no new shrimplets. I ended up losing all the shrimps one day in a mass die off. Tore the tank down and didn't set it back up. Recently I have been returning to the hobby after many years away. I have heard from experience shrimp breeders online that after a year or two ADA Soil will hold ammonia and it will not show up on ammonia kits. It will leech it back into the tank when shrimps stir the soil. They usually take down the entire tank and start fresh when they see random shrimp die.