Dluxeshrimps Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 I have a 20 gallon high tank with bright colored pink pebbles (wife's tank) I want to take over it now and want to make it a low tech shrimp tank with some fish. currently I have some tetras. im sure they will destroy the shrimp but I figure if shrimp have enough hiding places perhaps it be okay. anyways, how can I make this tank a low-light planted tank? how can I remove the pebbles with out messing up the BB in it? idk what to purchase for substrate when it come to low-light planted tanks. help please I have plants on the way now and I have a couple of days to figure out what to do with them. this is what im getting, all for $6.00 1x Anubias nana "petite"2x Bolbitus heudolotii2x small Cryptocoryne lutea3+ Ludwigia arcuata stems and trunks8+ Bacopa caroliniana stems2 golfballs of Salvinia minima Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pokeshrimp Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 Pretty good deal for $6. Depending on what shrimp you plan to keep and what your budget is you can get a buffering plant substrate like brightwell which I'm liking a lot right now or even organic potting soil capped off with sand which is also doing well for me. I don't dose anything in my shrimp tanks either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 What kind of shrimp are you keeping? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dluxeshrimps Posted January 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 Well I have some RCS, Chocolate Shrimp and Black King Kongs. im deciding on the BKK's for that tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svetilda Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 I think because you want to keep BKK and grow plants in there you need Amazonia or something similar. I have brightwell in one of my tanks and don't see any difference in plant growth between brightwell and inert substract in my goldfish tank. I think brightwell is not made for plants but for shrimp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dluxeshrimps Posted January 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 @svetilda I was looking at Amazonia but at $50 a bag, if im fully convinced this is the only thing I need for these plants mentioned then ill have to buy it. lets say I buy this, how can I introduce this in my tank when I already have these pink pebbles in my tank already Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pokeshrimp Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 Amazonia leeches ammonia for a few weeks so you might as well empty and restart the tank. Save some of that old gravel in some panty hose and let i t sit in your tank. Not sure if the old bacteria can survive its new low Ph environment but it couldn't hurt and it might help speed up your cycle. svetilda 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dluxeshrimps Posted January 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 you don't think the ammonia in the Amazonia will mess with my fishes I have in there? "start over" freaks me out a bit. had this tank for 3 years and idk if I should do this. ughhhh why did my wife have to get this colorful pebbles!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svetilda Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 You don't need Amazonia for those plants (they all except the Crypt. take fert. from water). But if you are not going to add some fertilizers they are not going to grow but just sit there. And I honestly don't know how to change the gravel you have in any case without restarting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dluxeshrimps Posted January 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 so basically what your saying is all I really need is fertilizer, like liquid fertilizer? im super new to this part of planted tanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svetilda Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 New Amazonia leaks a lot of ammonia. I think it's impossible to start a new tank with it without cycling first. you don't think the ammonia in the Amazonia will mess with my fishes I have in there? "start over" freaks me out a bit. had this tank for 3 years and idk if I should do this. ughhhh why did my wife have to get this colorful pebbles!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svetilda Posted January 13, 2016 Report Share Posted January 13, 2016 I'm not an expert either but my low light plants were sitting in my inert gravel without any growth (some melted) and algae started to grow until I started to add some fert. Of course you can use just inert gravel and add fert! But many people don't add fert. in a shrimp tank and many of us like to use buffereing substrate for TB shrimp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aquariumlover10 Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 when you take the gravel out put half of it in a new pantyhose and leave it in the tank for a month while the BB builds in the new substrate, if you're doing a low tech I would do a 3" sand bed(play sand). a 20g high tank you can only get fish that will be ok in a 10gallon but you have double the stocking limit. I would do some micro rasboras and maybe some small tetras. have you decides on a light? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aquariumlover10 Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 I forgot to mention, the DSB builds up a certain bacterial that create nitrogen and is like a constant fertilizer for the plants, even just 2" is good., the deeper the better though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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