SpeakToMeDK Posted November 15, 2013 Report Share Posted November 15, 2013 Will asked me to check out his new forum (um, yeah, more than once, because I have short term memory problems. Actually I HAVE been here before but just forgot to sign up and actually POST sumpin'.) Just poppin' in to say "hi." I'm largely ignoring my shrimp tanks at the moment and futzing with my kitchen, but I do have Shrimptern I coming back for the 4th time in January, weather permitting. Mebbe we'll post our doings here at that time. Not sure y'alls want to hear about the kitchen stuff. DK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted November 15, 2013 Report Share Posted November 15, 2013 Welcome to the new forum, DK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OblongShrimp Posted November 15, 2013 Report Share Posted November 15, 2013 Welcome! I would love it if you could post your crazy experiments here . I will even make sure you have as much room as you need for attachments so you don't have to delete your old ones like you do on planted tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mosspearl Posted November 15, 2013 Report Share Posted November 15, 2013 Hi DK! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myklt8 Posted November 15, 2013 Report Share Posted November 15, 2013 Welcome!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axelrod12 Posted November 16, 2013 Report Share Posted November 16, 2013 Welcome! Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merth Posted November 16, 2013 Report Share Posted November 16, 2013 Welcome DK! Lets see some creativity Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpeakToMeDK Posted December 12, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2013 Um, yeah, so I just realized this morning that I totally forgot about coming here. I needa make a bookmark. So, DK spent the past 4-6 months doing magnesium studies. Shrimp bodies "read" mineral levels in the water, principally calcium and magnesium. They appear to read not only absolute levels, but ratios. DK spent the first half of 2013 dialing in their preferred calcium levels (she sorta had to start from scratch beginning 2013 as she was starting with the new WetWedding water RO system, so her starting water was now different, and basically empty), then she spent the second half of 2013 playing with magnesium levels, holding calcium levels at their "preferred" levels. A buncha tanks took a hit pretty bad, which is not unusual when you mess with their water, but DK was RICHLY rewarded, apparently cracking the code on 2-3 of her species, she thinks. The next year will tell. One of the species was yellow neos. Some people claim they are easy as pie to grow. Those people happen to have the right water. A lot of people have the experience that they linger a long time and don't breed, or linger a long time and then peter out, even set at "neo" water. Right now, DK has those suckers popping like popcorn with berries, and she THINKS it's due to her mag levels adjustment. The next six months will tell. For those of you who are not TPT-ers, DK runs an automated Shrimporium off well water. The well water is first put through WetWedding, her high-output 150 GPD 80 PSI RO system. Water is stored in a well tank, then fed into her Water Factory III where it is made into a number of mineralized streams that are then fed to each tank in specific ratios to make custom water. So, she makes water for each tank, individually. She can tweak the water profile at individual tank level, or at global (Water Factory) level. Below are pictures of WetWedding and Water Factory III: (well, there will be if Will helps me get 'em up here. I don't have a host and need to upload them. Will - I figured out how to upload but it's limiting me to 500 kb) . Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted December 12, 2013 Report Share Posted December 12, 2013 DK, darkcobra was trying to figure out a good DIY remineralizer for neos. Do you have a recipe you may suggest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OblongShrimp Posted December 12, 2013 Report Share Posted December 12, 2013 ok I increased the limit so you should be good now. The limit may just be for attachments too I am not sure. If you are writing a post and click on the "My Media" above it will show you attachments or gallery pictures you have already uploaded so you wont have to reattach the same pictures over again if you want to post them in a different thread. I would LOVE to see a more detailed description of your water setup and what you use to remineralize. I have followed you on planted tank but all your older attachments have been cleared over time to make room for new ones. I would love it if you could repost some of that old stuff....I will give you as much space as you need . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkcobra Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Hello DK! As [soothing Shrimp] mentioned, I would definitely appreciate any hints as to Ca:Mg ratios for neos. Even if you don't consider the experiment finalized, that's ok. I looked and found virtually no information on this topic. I mixed up and tested a simplified trial batch tonight, just for practice. It has a ratio of 3:1, which I admit I mostly pulled out of my butt. Will be interesting to see how reliable my butt is. And as for that WetWedding.. Wow, that's impressive! Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpeakToMeDK Posted December 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2013 Here's a pic of the Water Factory III. I hear y'alls questions about water parameters but even to answer WHY I can't give an answer right now is a long discussion. Holidays are coming up waaaaaaay too fast and as it happens my son's birthday is in the middle of this, and we're doing extended family here, and my house is in the middle of increasingly major construction, so I'll put this onto the back burner but ponder it, and get back to it. The short answer is if you are having problems with neos, particularly yellows, and your GH is nominally adequate, try boosting the mag portion. Perhaps the picture of WFIII will help you to realize that I know my recipes and settings. What I do not know is absolute amounts to tell you, because there is no way to measure them easily from how the system works, short of analytical, quantitative tests, which I don't have the facility to do. Hang in there... I'll be back, and if I forget ping me... gonna be busy busy for at least two months. . Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mosspearl Posted December 15, 2013 Report Share Posted December 15, 2013 All I can say is wow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkcobra Posted December 15, 2013 Report Share Posted December 15, 2013 Sounds like you're able to adjust nutrients, and see a corresponding change in the output (and the shrimp); but due to the complexity of the system, the exact ratios that actually end up in the tank are unknown. I'm continuing to search for info, and your suggestion to boost Mg if any problems are encountered agrees with what little I've found. According to one research paper, total body Mg increases 700% during pre-molt, then decreases again post-molt. That's a pretty dramatic change! The exact role of this extra Mg isn't known. But assuming it does play some necessary role, providing some extra Mg seems sensible - especially if GH is, as you put it, "nominally adequate". Of the commercial ratios I've found, Fluval Shrimp Mineral Supplement has a Ca:Mg ratio of 3:1. Duradrakon TH-Plus has 2.5:1. Seachem Equilibrium has 3.3:1. Various DIY mixtures for planted tanks are 3:1 to 4:1. Not much to go on, but the shrimp-specific formulas do seem to have a bit more Mg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted December 15, 2013 Report Share Posted December 15, 2013 Wow! Fascinating! Great info Darkcobra! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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