# Other Aquarium Forums > Freshwater Fauna > Invertebrates >  Is water change necessary for shrimp setups?

## Spid

Hi all would like to listen to your views as above. 

For me, the more sensitive shrimps like CRS I would never ever do a large water change. What I mean by a large water change here is like 50% and above. 
A weekly change of 10% ill do for them, on raining days or on a hot day i will not do any change at all. I have bought some distilled water on standby from supermarkets and top it up if necessary. 

Other hardy species like Sakuras, snowballs, ill do a max change of 20%, try sucking out dirt in the gravel to prevent toxic build up. 

I found out that usually after direct water change coupled with dechlorinator- Prime, no matter what species, ill face few deaths after a day or two. Thus I ever wonder if the problem lies in the case of placing too much anti-chlorine or the case of our new muncipal water. To understand more, i did an experiment here by placing few shrimps in a small container filled with the tank water with a few drops of prime, guess what - 2 of 5 died after 3days. So is it antichlorine fault or our direct tap water fault? If its the Prime fault, and if i aged the tap water with no anti-chlorine, the chlormaine bond will still exist in the aged water accompany with some parts of heavy metals from tap. So they arent very clean after all... (anyone here used the carbon and sediment or even the DO/DI water treatment?)

With no water change may also prove harmful for our shrimps in the long run due to the build up of nitrates/nitrites. Though floating plants and other summersible plants may help in removing them, they may not help in fully eradicate them. I have tried denitrator in a no water change tank (only top up with distilled water) and have proved not so efficient after all as the denitrator tend to clog up very often. Nitrates still present in the tank after some time. If there is a population boom, well i guess the high nitrate level may not be very pleasant for ya shrimps. 

Ops guess I have talked too much here.  :Laughing: 

So bros and sis, any comments about this water change saga or myth?

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## Crfan

Hmm...on first thought, have you tried changing the dechlorinator-Prime to another brand and try the experiment again? It might have something to do with it.
I would do water change of between 10 - 20 &#37; but not more. However the tricky part is finding out the actual factor that is the cause of the deaths. It may be the soil, wood, weak shrimps... etc. Are you able to isolate the various variable and down to a single factor which might solve your problem?

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## imke

Hi Spid,

interesting topic and information... I do very regular water changes: at the moment twice a week with 30&#37; tap water - but I have tiger shrimp and no CR.

In my opinion, the shrimp like water changes and are more active and vital than before. A positive effect is that harmful bacteria populations, nitrat and othe 'waste' is reduced. But it is important to not change water parameter (like GH, KH, pH, temperature) at all but only increase water quality!

I use a undergravel-air-filter with an extra canister filter for one tank and water quality is very good. I guess that a good filtration only extends the time intervalls of water changing but not fully replaces them. But one can have lifetimes up to one year for one tank if filtration and gravel cleaning is good.

Imke

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## Spid

> Hmm...on first thought, have you tried changing the dechlorinator-Prime to another brand and try the experiment again? It might have something to do with it.
> I would do water change of between 10 - 20 &#37; but not more. However the tricky part is finding out the actual factor that is the cause of the deaths. It may be the soil, wood, weak shrimps... etc. Are you able to isolate the various variable and down to a single factor which might solve your problem?


Yep you remind me of that- I should go for other brands ad try it out. Im too relied on Prime because its one of the best dechlorinator I have used during my discus days. 

Other factors have being remain constant all this while. No other new objects or things have been added in. The only change in this case is water change. 



> Hi Spid,
> 
> interesting topic and information... I do very regular water changes: at the moment twice a week with 30% tap water - but I have tiger shrimp and no CR.
> 
> In my opinion, the shrimp like water changes and are more active and vital than before. A positive effect is that harmful bacteria populations, nitrat and othe 'waste' is reduced. But it is important to not change water parameter (like GH, KH, pH, temperature) at all but only increase water quality!
> 
> I use a undergravel-air-filter with an extra canister filter for one tank and water quality is very good. I guess that a good filtration only extends the time intervalls of water changing but not fully replaces them. But one can have lifetimes up to one year for one tank if filtration and gravel cleaning is good.
> 
> Imke


Hi Imke thanks for the wonderful input here. Care to ask do you use any water treatment for you new water during water change?> Water treatment I mean here is water filtration like carbon, sediment, do/di, ro? What brand of anti chlorine do you use? And finally is there any chlormaine used in your area for water treatment? 

Sorry Im a bit over zealous here. Hope you dont mind.

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## imke

> Care to ask do you use any water treatment for you new water during water change? Water treatment I mean here is water filtration like carbon, sediment, do/di, ro? What brand of anti chlorine do you use? And finally is there any chlormaine used in your area for water treatment?


In Germany we have no additions like chlorine or flurid in the water. I know some friends using Reiser Block Filter (=carbon) to get better water and they say that they have more offspring.

My tap water is around pH 6,7 in summer and above 7 in winter. The water provider has additional, softer water sources in summer, when water is running low in our city. I does not use any water treatment even I have done so a while with amtra clean and amtra pro nature. My filter is running with standard filtration material and no extras.

Imke

P.S. Doing water changes or not is one of the most interesting questions in shrimp breeding. Happy you touched this subject  :Wink:

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## Spid

Seems like you have good soft water supply at your side. No need worry about chlorine nor chloramine. Unlike fish hobbyist here in Singapore.Tap water here lately seems not very suitable for aquatic activites. Thats a reason I set up this thread here asking for other opinions.

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## NingNing

for me, im more kiasu.. 

when i change the water, i put the water in a pail before adding any dechlorinater.. 

in the pail then i add the dechlorinator.. only a few drops.. into the pail and mixed for a few minutes then add into the tank.. each time i only change about 20&#37; of the water... 

the shrimps dun seem to have any deaths but they will be more active right after the change of water.. 

as for the brand... im not sure because it was sold in a water bottle. =P

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## Crfan

Or it could be the way water is treated here is changing. Think we need to come up with a more comprehensive test kit for testing water used for CRS.
I am using NutraFin aqua plus dechlorinator. And I think JBl also has one type also specially for shrimps.

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## Spid

> for me, im more kiasu.. 
> 
> when i change the water, i put the water in a pail before adding any dechlorinater.. 
> 
> in the pail then i add the dechlorinator.. only a few drops.. into the pail and mixed for a few minutes then add into the tank.. each time i only change about 20&#37; of the water... 
> 
> the shrimps dun seem to have any deaths but they will be more active right after the change of water.. 
> 
> as for the brand... im not sure because it was sold in a water bottle. =P


Thanks Ning Ning for the input. Care to share in what way are they active?



> Or it could be the way water is treated here is changing. Think we need to come up with a more comprehensive test kit for testing water used for CRS.
> I am using NutraFin aqua plus dechlorinator. And I think JBl also has one type also specially for shrimps.


OK might go and try other brands again. Cos from what Im aware, good dechlorinator do not come easy. It has to be able to hold and break the bond between chlorine and ammonia (chloramine). What Im afraid is the chemical that were used to break the bond or to remove ammonia as claimed by the PRIME proves to be quite deadly for our dear shrimps.

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## imke

> And I think JBl also has one type also specially for shrimps.


Right, Crfan: It is called JBL Biotopol C and should also remove chlorine (Biotopol plus is the standard JBL product for removing chlorine); personally I havn't tried any of them.

One question: Can chlorid be removed by zeolite (as filter medium in a canister filter)?

Imke

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## Spid

Hi guys I have just goggled and check out the links. 

http://www.pub.gov.sg/general/Pages/WaterTreatment.aspx

Any comments on the given data on our tap water?

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## Spid

> Right, Crfan: It is called JBL Biotopol C and should also remove chlorine (Biotopol plus is the standard JBL product for removing chlorine); personally I havn't tried any of them.
> 
> One question: Can chlorid be removed by zeolite (as filter medium in a canister filter)?
> 
> Imke


Hi Imke, zeolite only able to remove ammonia and it acts like carbon in which its has a limit to how much it can absorb. Once its fully utilised, it will discharge ammonia back to the tank.

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## NingNing

> Thanks Ning Ning for the input. Care to share in what way are they active?
> 
> .


i know they're more active because those that were actually hiding came out and were swimming around.. then start chasing each other the same as when they are "horny" and finding a mate. 

or when u suddenly throw food in. 

they'll swim from branch to branch, then swim to the bottom then swim everywhere la.. 

they'll do this for about 3 hours or so.. lol..

btw, my shrimps seems to be doing fine.. all of them berried.. so i guess, the dechlorinator is okie..

i asked my fren where it was from, he said it costs about 12dollars a bottle and bought in serrangoon north at a arowana shop.. 

i used to overdose it.. coz stupid la.. dunno how to read label properly. 

but the shrimps were okie. 

but i think if u put "treat" the water in a pail before u add in, it might be safer? 

60liters maybe 10ml then if pail wise, 1 -2 liter, just add 2 drops or something lor. =) 

btw, why do ppl add the water directly into the tank and then add dechlorinator? lazy?

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## Spid

NingNing,

How about reduce your water changes to 10% and see if they still be so active. Chances of being active after change shows that they are stressed. In the long run it do more harm than good for ya shrimps. For sensitive species, slow deaths may follow after a few days if this shrimps are real weak. 

I guess the "pail" way and the method of straight into water with anti-chlorine works the same.  :Laughing:

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## cheetf

Do you agitate the substrate everytime you do a water change? If so you might be causing mini ammonia spikes everytime you change water and hence the deaths. I do 20% water changes straight from the tap to the tank and the shrimp are fine.

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## szxs

> Thanks Ning Ning for the input. Care to share in what way are they active?
> 
> 
> OK might go and try other brands again. Cos from what Im aware, good dechlorinator do not come easy. It has to be able to hold and break the bond between chlorine and ammonia (chloramine). What Im afraid is the chemical that were used to break the bond or to remove ammonia as claimed by the PRIME proves to be quite deadly for our dear shrimps.


hi Spid,
may i ask wat dechlorinator do u use or suggest ?

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## Spid

> Do you agitate the substrate everytime you do a water change? If so you might be causing mini ammonia spikes everytime you change water and hence the deaths. I do 20&#37; water changes straight from the tap to the tank and the shrimp are fine.


Nah. Not an issue for the substrates. Different areas have different water parameters and even different days have different parameters. If one would seriously studied about the incoming water, you will find on a raining day, chlorine level in out tap water will be higher than normal days. 



> hi Spid,
> may i ask wat dechlorinator do u use or suggest ?


All along I have been using Seachem Prime- Good stuff but have to be careful how you use it. Im using sodium thio-sulphate crystal form for water change at the moment, reason being they are slow to dissolve in water. Still observing how shrimps react after certain amount of water change.

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## NingNing

> NingNing,
> 
> How about reduce your water changes to 10&#37; and see if they still be so active. Chances of being active after change shows that they are stressed. In the long run it do more harm than good for ya shrimps. For sensitive species, slow deaths may follow after a few days if this shrimps are real weak. 
> 
> I guess the "pail" way and the method of straight into water with anti-chlorine works the same.


oh?! they are stressed? okie.. i thought they were mating.. because.. after that will have many berried shrimps.. haha! silly me.

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## NingNing

could it be... your prime has some certain problem? 

because.. i heard that prime is quite good.

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## haywas_35

Hi Spid, may i know what soil are you using? Is your tank a 2 feet?

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## owk688

i do a 20-30&#37; water change every week. so far so good.

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## boxedfish

i have a 19 litre tank and after adding substrate, rocks and so on, i think it;s effectively about 14 litres(estimation). i have a fan blowing at the tank 24/7. However everyday i have to replenish the water due to evaporation. The amount i have to replenish is about 0.8litres everyday. Is this harmful to the crs in my tank?

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## imke

> The amount i have to replenish is about 0.8litres everyday. Is this harmful to the crs in my tank?


No, it is not harmful to your shrimp as long as your (tap?) water parameter do not differ to much from your tank water. If you fill up osmosis water it's not problem but check GH from time to time - it shouldn't be too low.

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## jetset

> All along I have been using Seachem Prime- Good stuff but have to be careful how you use it. Im using sodium thio-sulphate crystal form for water change at the moment, reason being they are slow to dissolve in water. Still observing how shrimps react after certain amount of water change.


I'm surprised to hear that you have problems with Prime. I've read that Prime contains binders contains a binder which renders ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate non-toxic. 

Using sodium thio-sulphate solely can be risky as it only reacts against chlorine and not chloramines.

I do 20-30% w/c two times per week. Half of the refilled water comes from water treated by Prime overnight (1-3 days). The other half is treated by Otto conditioner with water straight from the tap.

I have tried doing 50% w/c in the past to fix hair algae issues. That plus Excel killed all my CRS and BDS. So not sure if it was the Excel or the large w/c.

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## Spid

> Hi Spid, may i know what soil are you using? Is your tank a 2 feet?


Mainly 2feets for those I use to perform large water changes. Soil wise I have mainly ada soil type 1, nisso custom black and Master soil. Have been for around 6months-3years. However most soil would have lost its ph-down abilities due to my frequent water changes. 




> i have a 19 litre tank and after adding substrate, rocks and so on, i think it;s effectively about 14 litres(estimation). i have a fan blowing at the tank 24/7. However everyday i have to replenish the water due to evaporation. The amount i have to replenish is about 0.8litres everyday. Is this harmful to the crs in my tank?


Use distilled water if afraid of any changes in your tank. 



> I'm surprised to hear that you have problems with Prime. I've read that Prime contains binders contains a binder which renders ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate non-toxic. 
> 
> Using sodium thio-sulphate solely can be risky as it only reacts against chlorine and not chloramines.
> 
> I do 20-30&#37; w/c two times per week. Half of the refilled water comes from water treated by Prime overnight (1-3 days). The other half is treated by Otto conditioner with water straight from the tap.
> 
> I have tried doing 50% w/c in the past to fix hair algae issues. That plus Excel killed all my CRS and BDS. So not sure if it was the Excel or the large w/c.


Hi jetset, yes Prime contains these binders of which is a certain type of chemical that holds and breaks down chloramine into chlorine and ammonia. However what Im afraid is these chemicals are the one that is harmful for shrimps. Thats a reason why I change to just sodium thiosulphate crystal form at the moment. 
50% water change plus excel... Hmm ...any C02 input? Anyway whats your dosage like? I used to try half of the dosage as recommended and shrimps at my side still not able to take it.

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## jetset

> Hi jetset, yes Prime contains these binders of which is a certain type of chemical that holds and breaks down chloramine into chlorine and ammonia. However what Im afraid is these chemicals are the one that is harmful for shrimps. Thats a reason why I change to just sodium thiosulphate crystal form at the moment.


So far no casualties from using Prime. 5ml per 2 liters of water, thereafter left overnight for a minimum of 24hrs. However, note that my replenishment of water is only 50&#37; of this. The other 50% comes from fresh water treated by another water conditioner that is not aged.




> 50% water change plus excel... Hmm ...any C02 input? Anyway whats your dosage like? I used to try half of the dosage as recommended and shrimps at my side still not able to take it.


No CO2. I used about 10ml Excel to 10 liters of water. Another point that was left out was that my 50% Excel dosed w/c regime was done daily. Perhaps, too aggressive and asking for trouble but the Hair Algae was really getting on my nerves. On hindsight, I should have moved the shrimps to another tank first.

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## Spid

Hi jetset,

Nice feedback about the Prime usage. Your dosage of excel seems a bit too over. Thanks again for the input.

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## Biofeedback

> Mainly 2feets for those I use to perform large water changes. Soil wise I have mainly ada soil type 1, nisso custom black and Master soil. Have been for around 6months-3years. However most soil would have lost its ph-down abilities due to my frequent water changes.


 
Do we have to clean the soil after so many years?

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## Spid

Bro Biofeedback, probably you want start another thread about soil keeping over at this invertebrates section then we discuss.

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## mopa

I use jbl biotopol, added to the change water in a bucket at least 1 hour before i put into the tank. This might be what is giving you problems? There is a specific water conditioner for shrimps the new jbl biotopol c . regards from spain

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## globalcookie

I do regular water change, averaging 10% a week. In recent times, I have started to reduce the amount. I siphon the base (not whole base, but maybe about 30%) once every few weeks.

From my understanding, a mature tank with a good filteration system (eg canister) is good enough to do without, or to hv minimal water change. The colony of bacterials in the canister will help breakdown nitrate/nitrite (whatever is correct).

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## jetset

> I do regular water change, averaging 10% a week. In recent times, I have started to reduce the amount. I siphon the base (not whole base, but maybe about 30%) once every few weeks.
> 
> From my understanding, a mature tank with a good filteration system (eg canister) is good enough to do without, or to hv minimal water change. The colony of bacterials in the canister will help breakdown nitrate/nitrite (whatever is correct).


BB in the filter will take care of the nitrites but not the nitrates. However, as shrimps do not poop so much, the base ammonia-to-nitrite-to-nitrate would not be at a high level. 

If the amount of plants in the tank can consume all the converted nitrates, theoretically, no w/c is required. However, that is still a theory and that balance is difficult to maintain. Also, other trace elements may be exhausted and require top-ups.

Overall, I agree with you. If the bioload is not high in a matured tank, I would think that w/c requirements would be minimal.

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## Spid

After about a month of poll, it seems majority of people here still prefer a small weekly water changes and very few would actually opt for a distilled water top up.

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## Crfan

Spid hows your water change monitoring coming along? You using the crystals or seachem prime still?

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## chromes03

Hey Spid,

Nice subject to touch up on...
I use to use Prime when I first started shrimp keeping and whenever I did I remember my shrimps would die here and there...I think Prime raises the ph of the water
About water changes...I give my tanks at least 10-20% every 7 days...I find that after 7 days I will then start seeing shrimps die one here and one there...
For water changes for CRS, I use 100% Ro water w/ some liquid to raise the gh/kh up to about 4 or 5 degree....no dechlorinater needed..

Email wanna check out some of your shrimp products...

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## Spid

> Spid hows your water change monitoring coming along? You using the crystals or seachem prime still?


Im using sodium thiosulphate crystal form with carbon prefilter fixed to the incoming water. So far so good ill say. 




> Hey Spid,
> 
> Nice subject to touch up on...
> I use to use Prime when I first started shrimp keeping and whenever I did I remember my shrimps would die here and there...I think Prime raises the ph of the water
> About water changes...I give my tanks at least 10-20% every 7 days...I find that after 7 days I will then start seeing shrimps die one here and one there...
> For water changes for CRS, I use 100% Ro water w/ some liquid to raise the gh/kh up to about 4 or 5 degree....no dechlorinater needed..
> 
> Email wanna check out some of your shrimp products...


Hi Henry, thanks for the info. For me I used distilled water for minimal water change or top up in CRS tank. These sensitive ones are real headache at times.  :Laughing:

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## tsunamisurfer

I think it is essential to do water changes. I do fortnightly water changes without fail but only 20&#37; of the water max.
Large swings in parameters = shrimp death.

I also use gravel vaccum, I think its a must to remove waste.

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## neon

I am keeping cherry and CRS in a 2ft tank. 

The following are my routine :
- No WC , but simply top up water (overnight water kept for weeks)
- No CO2
- No dosing of fertiliser
- 35W PL light , 6 hours
- chiller temp set to 25 deg C

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## Numbskull

I had Diamond filtered water (if you guys know what i mean) installed at home. First 5 months i had used only tap water with Prime. Seems good a few deaths to my crs and few berried. Death of my shrimps is not caused by my water condition (i measure my ammonia-nitrite-nitrate-gh-kh almost once every 2 weeks). And i only change my water 20% once every 1 month.

Coming to 1 month now since i had changed to using the Diamond filtered water. Seems like my shrimps are chasing each other after moulting everytime. And i had 4 berried mamas already. (1 died off as my mum accidentally off my chiller while i am at work). 

I think filtered water are better since they remove some of the harmful elements (iron??) and purified the water. But not sure whether they remove some of the useful elements require by the shrimps as well.

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## cheetf

Bro according to the website the filter does makes the water alkaline.

Filter F : High-density activated carbon combined with natural magnetic stones help balance the water to a mild alkaline level and increase the number of calcium ions to further enhance health. 

That may be a problem for low ph shrimps.

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## dew

First you deduce whether the water is the sole cause of death. 2nd you can try dechlorinating the water by exposing it to air for several hours, thirdly toxins might be trapped in the substrate which mixed with the water at water change.

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## newlife

Hi all... just to share with you guys....I would normally top up all my 1 liter bottle with water and drop in a few drop of Anti-chlorine...and leave it for a week before water change. This way work out well for my CRS....I've from A-SSS grade in my habitat and all are happily surviving and some are berried....

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## berber

hello... my method is slightly simpler... i fill a container with normal tap water and add some shizhen solution into it stir it around, leave it for about 1hr then i will use the dripping method to introduce the new water into my tank.. all my shrimps are SSS only have 1 hino they are all doing well with my method and some are even berried with lots of eggs..  :Very Happy:  i do it about once to twice a week after using an airtube to suck out all the dirty stuff.. how much water i take out i will top it back with the same amount using this method BUT i try not to take out too much water!  :Very Happy:

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## WiNd08

My method is quite simple.

I have a tub of water aged with anti-chlorine / chloramine, Azoo liquid bacteria kit, Mineral plus and some ADA Amazonia II soil.


Every few days, I would remove 1 tauhuey tub of water and top up with 1.5tub (to refill the evaporation water lost).  :Very Happy:

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## martin.kwang

> My method is quite simple.
> 
> I have a tub of water aged with anti-chlorine / chloramine, Azoo liquid bacteria kit, Mineral plus and some ADA Amazonia II soil.
> 
> 
> Every few days, I would remove 1 tauhuey tub of water and top up with 1.5tub (to refill the evaporation water lost).


Bro your method is just top-up ?

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## WiNd08

yah, remove 1tub, top up 1tub.. as simple as that  :Smile: .

I don't use any drip method, works well so far as my aged water parameters and my tank parameters are the same  :Smile:

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## goody992828

My water change process are
1) A clean pail
2) pour in the sufficient amount of anti-chroline or shizhen
3) use a powerful spray head and turn on the tap water, this way will help to airate the water faster
4) leave it for a few days just expose to the air
5) remove same amount of water from tank
6) scoop in the new water with a tau huey tub

So far shrimp are fine.

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## lesley

A pail of water from the tap adding seachem prime, Shizhen and mineral plus is it overkill?

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## hyun007

It seem that those who leave their water for a couple of days tend to do better than the rest.

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## curryfishhead

Do you guys such up the shrimps Poo Poo during the water change process? Or the OHF or bacterial powder do the job? You use carbon too?

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## curryfishhead

Hi Sorry about the spelling mistakes..... I mean....

Do you guys suck up the shrimps Poo Poo during the water change process? Or the OHF or bacterial powder do the job? You use carbon too?

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## WiNd08

I doubt anyone of us here suck the shrimp faeces. Just leave them to decomposed by bacteria  :Wink:

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## lesley

> I doubt anyone of us here suck the shrimp faeces. Just leave them to decomposed by bacteria


Hi bro. By Leaving the poo to decompose by bacterial. Do you need to add any additives?

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## curryfishhead

I thought to remove the poo, we use bacteria powder like Mosura BT9?

I put carbon and ceramic rings inside my OHF as well to further help to cultivate the right bacterial to decompose the poo...

Any more effective ways to do this?

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## lesley

> I thought to remove the poo, we use bacteria powder like Mosura BT9?
> 
> I put carbon and ceramic rings inside my OHF as well to further help to cultivate the right bacterial to decompose the poo...
> 
> Any more effective ways to do this?


any other bacteria powder besides Mosura BT9 which can do the job?

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## icemanken85

I am using Pet Fran Ultimate Coat, is very effect.

Will add a few drops to a pail of water and let it age for a few days..

Personally, I think is important suck out the poo during every water change...this would greatly reduce bad bacterial building up..

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## sgshrimps

I add shizhen , rich water and old sea mud to the 1.5 litres ice mountain water bottle for like 5day before water change.Each week , i change like 3 litres for my 60 cm standard shrimp tank.

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## ivanthensf

I use diamond water too. I just condition my shrimps to the water. for mine i just overfilter, use carbon, mts to dig substrate and topup filtration once a week. 
shrimps moult and mate with no fatalities just that mts are quite unsightly. 

for dechlorinators i think the pail method works well, leave it overnight too or something.

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## SeahSengYong

I use distilled water for water change.
Not sure the difference between distilled water and mineral water we saw in supermarkets.

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## chumzhujun

How to sucks up the shrimp poor if there is alot of shrimplet?

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## eviltrain

> I use distilled water for water change.
> Not sure the difference between distilled water and mineral water we saw in supermarkets.


as stated mineral water has mineral content in it, distilled water is basically H2O with no other mineral content.

for topping up tank water due to evaporation, distilled water is a better choice.

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## v200

Hi Spid, 
Are you adding too much Prime? It states use 5ml to 200liters of new top up water. 
My pail is about 10liters, hence I use only a few drops.  :Wink:

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## v200

> How to sucks up the shrimp poor if there is alot of shrimplet?



Haa haa....I would like to know the answer to this as well.  :Smile:

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## reiner09

i shall share my experience for topping up water as well..I have a 4L super nano tank with 5 grade A crs(very difficult to maintain parameter stability), what I did is that I treat my tap water using those 5L mineral bottle then leave overnight(bottle looks similar to knife oil 5L bottle) with shizen and mineral plus..I use it to top up water and water changes with no problem at all(0 death in 2mths since i started and even have berried females ).I kind of discourage adding distilled water because it may cause change to the parameters to the water in the tank thus shocking the shrimps (unless you use the tau huey method). I failed the first time going by this method of using tap water for changes and distilled for top ups(different parameters).

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## kermit13sg

Oh, the last time I use aged water treated with Seachem Prime and Mineral Plus, my shrimps died. Not sure if this is the cause but generally the feedback I got here is "mineral plus cannot add too much".

By the way, what is tau huey method?

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## Jianyuan

Tauhuey method means, they use a tuahuey container to remove the water, and they'll replace it with the equal amount of water back. Mineral plus cannot add too much, unless you got very very low gH in your tank.

----------


## xconnect.

but my fan that keep the water cold one week evaporate my two feet almost like 15 percent so i think by just adding water will do.......and for my tank no casualties for half a year so yeah.

----------


## kermit13sg

> but my fan that keep the water cold one week evaporate my two feet almost like 15 percent so i think by just adding water will do.......and for my tank no casualties for half a year so yeah.


Same here, do you just add distilled water? And you don't do any water change? 

Do you add any other things like mineral plus, plants fert? I thought of getting BW Lush, apparently shrimp safe.

----------


## freshfish

I used to only take away 10% of the water , and then replace with water which has been aged for several months

----------


## Zenith82

My experience, when my water evaporates due to using a fan in a small tank. I just top up with aged water stored for a week. But every week try to do 20% water change for smaller tanks 2ft and below. If bigger tanks probably you got lots of media, good filtration canister and prefilter probably you don't need to do water change so frequent maybe once or twice a month.

I owned a 2ft tank, everytime I do water change, I will use a dropper to dose about 10ml Seachem safe powder premixed and 7~8 spoon scoops of Mosura shizen to condition water then I will use a small measuring cup of about 30ml water to mix 1 scoop of BT-9, Bio-plus and mineral plus one at a time till dissolved then add in tank to further enhance conditioning. Water will be cloudy when you add all the additives, once cycle for awhile it will clear up.

As I have alot of moss, I do daily dosage of BW Lush and 8hrs of light to maintain their healthy lush green.

----------


## freshfish

> My experience, when my water evaporates due to using a fan in a small tank. I just top up with aged water stored for a week. But every week try to do 20% water change for smaller tanks 2ft and below. If bigger tanks probably you got lots of media, good filtration canister and prefilter probably you don't need to do water change so frequent maybe once or twice a month.
> 
> I owned a 2ft tank, everytime I do water change, I will use a dropper to dose about 10ml Seachem safe powder premixed and 7~8 spoon scoops of Mosura shizen to condition water then I will use a small measuring cup of about 30ml water to mix 1 scoop of BT-9, Bio-plus and mineral plus one at a time till dissolved then add in tank to further enhance conditioning. Water will be cloudy when you add all the additives, once cycle for awhile it will clear up.
> 
> As I have alot of moss, I do daily dosage of BW Lush and 8hrs of light to maintain their healthy lush green.


bro you 7-8 scoops of shizen to how many litres of water? ??

----------


## kermit13sg

> My experience, when my water evaporates due to using a fan in a small tank. I just top up with aged water stored for a week. But every week try to do 20% water change for smaller tanks 2ft and below. If bigger tanks probably you got lots of media, good filtration canister and prefilter probably you don't need to do water change so frequent maybe once or twice a month.
> 
> I owned a 2ft tank, everytime I do water change, I will use a dropper to dose about 10ml Seachem safe powder premixed and 7~8 spoon scoops of Mosura shizen to condition water then I will use a small measuring cup of about 30ml water to mix 1 scoop of BT-9, Bio-plus and mineral plus one at a time till dissolved then add in tank to further enhance conditioning. Water will be cloudy when you add all the additives, once cycle for awhile it will clear up.
> 
> As I have alot of moss, I do daily dosage of BW Lush and 8hrs of light to maintain their healthy lush green.


Will 7-8 hours of light cause Marimo to turn brown?

----------


## Zenith82

> bro you 7-8 scoops of shizen to how many litres of water? ??


7~8 scoops for about 80L, but just dose according to instruction. Usually I only dose about 2~3 scoops for 20% WC. If major 50~70% change then I dose more.

----------


## Zenith82

> Will 7-8 hours of light cause Marimo to turn brown?


kermit13sg, marimo won't turn brown for 8hrs of light, instead it will grow bigger at a faster rate. Plants need light to photosynthesis, more light means faster growth. It also depends on the light setup you use. I notice difference in using T8 and T5 light tubes, I personally used 2 tube T-5, it improves growth and color of my moss. T-8 not that good, plants don't look that green.

Plant turns brown/yellowish usually are lack of light and nutrient/mineral in water. Therefore introduce some liquid fert or minerals will help enhances growth and color.

----------


## kermit13sg

> kermit13sg, marimo won't turn brown for 8hrs of light, instead it will grow bigger at a faster rate. Plants need light to photosynthesis, more light means faster growth. It also depends on the light setup you use. I notice difference in using T8 and T5 light tubes, I personally used 2 tube T-5, it improves growth and color of my moss. T-8 not that good, plants don't look that green.
> 
> Plant turns brown/yellowish usually are lack of light and nutrient/mineral in water. Therefore introduce some liquid fert or minerals will help enhances growth and color.


thanks, so for my 1.5 feet tank, i guess my 11W PL light is grossly insufficient?

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## Zenith82

> thanks, so for my 1.5 feet tank, i guess my 11W PL light is grossly insufficient?


Try switching to T-5 lightings for better plant growth.

----------


## kermit13sg

> Try switching to T-5 lightings for better plant growth.


55w? Would that be enough?

----------


## Zenith82

> 55w? Would that be enough?


Should be good enough as long your tank is not very deep. Because eventually is how bright and how much light can penetrate into your water to reach the bottom plants. Use the 12000k sunlight tubes.

Aquazonic have quite good and affordable ones. 2 tube T-5 cost about $36~$38. Can look out for 2nd hand ones too.

----------


## kermit13sg

Cool, thanks so much for the info

----------


## freshfish

> 7~8 scoops for about 80L, but just dose according to instruction. Usually I only dose about 2~3 scoops for 20% WC. If major 50~70% change then I dose more.



last time they had liquid shizen i preferred that .....

----------


## Zenith82

> last time they had liquid shizen i preferred that .....


Liquid shizen is expensive, then powdered more economical.

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## gryphon

For my water change, I only change about 7-8%. I will age the water treated with the recommended dosage of Shizhen for 1 week.
Before dripping the aged water into my tank, I will add in BT-9 and Richwater. Dosage is based on the amount of aged water I am using.

I am not sure if I should add BT-9 and Richwater based on my total tank volume instead.

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## xconnect.

I just add distiller water because my tanks fan powerful evaporate like ten to fifteen percent per week so I voted it so far my shrimps ok for 9months.I heard it is bad but bad in what way ?spike in what?experts Please advice

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## Jimmy

weekly change is necessary. i observed that for my 1.5 feet crs tank, if i only did it at frequency of 3-4 weeks, the reproduction rate is very slow, almost none. but when i regularly change weekly like 30% of the water, the rate shoot up! very obvious.

----------


## marimo

> Will 7-8 hours of light cause Marimo to turn brown?


eh no marimo will not burnt, sunlight will burn marimo

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## huizhong

i think topping with evarporated tank water with distilled water is very safe.
but the problem is where and how to get so much distilled water at cheap price?

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## chansl

Hi experts and pros

I just started shrimp hobby .. I didnt cycle at least week because mine was not soil .. just gravels .. So i added cherry and sakura shrimp in it ... I started with 50% tap 50%mineral water ... topping up and changing water is use distilled water ... However, every day i will have one shrimp died =(

My tank is super small kind .. like 20 cm by 20 cm for my study desk ... I dun know if it is my GH level .. So i bought a JBL test kit .. but it said the water should turn red or green .. But it didnt turn red to green ..it turn green .. light green ... I dun know if my water is crazy or my test kit is spoiled ... I am a student so budget .. Now i seemed like spending alot .. 

The CRS haven young boss told me that i didnt cycle enough that why my shrimp starts to die but it have been around 2 weeks from the start of the cycle to now .. yet shrimp are dying ... I think is my water quality .. So can someone advise if how should i change water ? can i keep using distilled water but i am worried that if i keep using distilled water, the mineral may not be enough .. The boss told me to use mineral water instead to change water .. may i know is it possible ?

Greatly appreciate all of your help =)

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## hann

> Hi experts and pros
> 
> I just started shrimp hobby .. I didnt cycle at least week because mine was not soil .. just gravels .. So i added cherry and sakura shrimp in it ... I started with 50% tap 50%mineral water ... topping up and changing water is use distilled water ... However, every day i will have one shrimp died =(
> 
> My tank is super small kind .. like 20 cm by 20 cm for my study desk ... I dun know if it is my GH level .. So i bought a JBL test kit .. but it said the water should turn red or green .. But it didnt turn red to green ..it turn green .. light green ... I dun know if my water is crazy or my test kit is spoiled ... I am a student so budget .. Now i seemed like spending alot .. 
> 
> The CRS haven young boss told me that i didnt cycle enough that why my shrimp starts to die but it have been around 2 weeks from the start of the cycle to now .. yet shrimp are dying ... I think is my water quality .. So can someone advise if how should i change water ? can i keep using distilled water but i am worried that if i keep using distilled water, the mineral may not be enough .. The boss told me to use mineral water instead to change water .. may i know is it possible ?
> 
> Greatly appreciate all of your help =)


The GH in your tank depends on how many drops you dip into the test cylinder before it turns dark green. So to speak if you drop 5 drops before it turns dark green, the GH is 5. How many drops did you drip before you observe it turns green? 

If GH is above 6, your shrimp might have an issue to molt. On the other hand, too low might not be good, too.

----------


## cheetf

> Hi experts and pros
> 
> I just started shrimp hobby .. I didnt cycle at least week because mine was not soil .. just gravels .. So i added cherry and sakura shrimp in it ... I started with 50% tap 50%mineral water ... topping up and changing water is use distilled water ... However, every day i will have one shrimp died =(
> 
> My tank is super small kind .. like 20 cm by 20 cm for my study desk ... I dun know if it is my GH level .. So i bought a JBL test kit .. but it said the water should turn red or green .. But it didnt turn red to green ..it turn green .. light green ... I dun know if my water is crazy or my test kit is spoiled ... I am a student so budget .. Now i seemed like spending alot .. 
> 
> The CRS haven young boss told me that i didnt cycle enough that why my shrimp starts to die but it have been around 2 weeks from the start of the cycle to now .. yet shrimp are dying ... I think is my water quality .. So can someone advise if how should i change water ? can i keep using distilled water but i am worried that if i keep using distilled water, the mineral may not be enough .. The boss told me to use mineral water instead to change water .. may i know is it possible ?
> 
> Greatly appreciate all of your help =)


Go ask uncle google about what a nitrogen cycle is and it may shed some light.

----------


## felix_fx2

> eh no marimo will not burnt, sunlight will burn marimo


Huh. I didn't know sunlight can burn the ball.

Off topic: read this the wrong way and think bro can get burn by the sun. Lol.

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## Papito

Hello, 
I have they exact problem with my shrimps. Perfect water, fertilizer is at is best, they only possible solution i can think of is *Prime*. Here What i have tried after hearing it in you conversation. I change to Fluval shrimps safe. The name say it all. will it fix my problem. We will see.

Now a bit of info on what, is going on. After adding 24h tap water with Prime in my aquarium all my plants started to dye, lots of bubble. One shrimps is affected 3 days later, plants style dying. today i added 6h tap water* Fluval shrimps safe*. 

tank info
32 gallons, high light, PPS-pro fert. c02 24h, ph controler.

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## ZackZhou

> Hello, 
> I have they exact problem with my shrimps. Perfect water, fertilizer is at is best, they only possible solution i can think of is *Prime*. Here What i have tried after hearing it in you conversation. I change to Fluval shrimps safe. The name say it all. will it fix my problem. We will see.
> 
> Now a bit of info on what, is going on. After adding 24h tap water with Prime in my aquarium all my plants started to dye, lots of bubble. One shrimps is affected 3 days later, plants style dying. today i added 6h tap water* Fluval shrimps safe*. 
> 
> tank info
> 32 gallons, high light, PPS-pro fert. c02 24h, ph controler.


Hi, I believe that there are several threads in shrimpnow.com stating how bad fluval shrimp soil are, you may go and have a look. It's been reported by a few breeder already.  :Smile:

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## Neondagger

I use shizhen(liquid) distill eater got no cholrine also that's what I thought. But mosura shizhen somehow improve water quality without changing parameter and work like dechlorinator so not bad

In the process of learning. painful but fun!

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## Spid

I am surprised and happy that this thread is still so much alive after 2 plus years.

Whats more is that more and more people are voting for it. 

With regards to water conditioner, I guess most brands are of the same purpose-break chloramine bond and remove chlorine bla bla. What makes them differ from one another is their DOSAGE. 

Majority of people still go for a weekly change of less than 20% of water and for me I felt thats the most optimal way to do so, irregardless whether there is a need to. 

Please contribute more to this thread if you have any queries. 

Cheers to shrimp breeding!

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## avex30

yea after chloramine bond is break chlorine is bubble off in the air leaving behind ?? Ammonia!!!! that explain why nowadays i find ammonia in my age water.......  :Razz:  Give up on Pub water

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## GeToChKn

> yea after chloramine bond is break chlorine is bubble off in the air leaving behind ?? Ammonia!!!! that explain why nowadays i find ammonia in my age water.......  Give up on Pub water


Its not ammonia though, but rather ammonium which is not toxic to fish or inverts. Any liquid test kit will give a false-positive reading on water treated with prime for the first few days. The only true way to know if its ammonia or ammonium is with the Seachem Total Ammonia Test Kit. This will tell you the amount of TOTAL ammonia compounds and the amount of toxic ammonia. I have tested my water after treating with prime and found it to be 0ppm ammonia despite the normal liquid test kit showing a 0.5ppm reading.

The best way to use tap water is get yourself some big plastic water bottle, fill, treat with prime, and then add an airstone from an air-pump into the water. It will help mix the prime all the way throughout the water and also help off-gas any CO2 which is actually common in a lot of tap water and do that for a few days, then store the water and use as you need it.

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## avex30

> Its not ammonia though, but rather ammonium which is not toxic to fish or inverts. Any liquid test kit will give a false-positive reading on water treated with prime for the first few days. The only true way to know if its ammonia or ammonium is with the Seachem Total Ammonia Test Kit. This will tell you the amount of TOTAL ammonia compounds and the amount of toxic ammonia. I have tested my water after treating with prime and found it to be 0ppm ammonia despite the normal liquid test kit showing a 0.5ppm reading.
> 
> The best way to use tap water is get yourself some big plastic water bottle, fill, treat with prime, and then add an airstone from an air-pump into the water. It will help mix the prime all the way throughout the water and also help off-gas any CO2 which is actually common in a lot of tap water and do that for a few days, then store the water and use as you need it.


Er... you mean you have tested the water here in singapore?? I've tested after dosing it show 1ppm

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## Kenng

> Haa haa....I would like to know the answer to this as well.


I would like to know how to do this too as my tank had shrimplets and moss. 
Cover the input with net or?

Another question, how you keep aged water, fill up container and cap it or?
Leaving it open don't attract mosquito?

----------


## avex30

> Its not ammonia though, but rather ammonium which is not toxic to fish or inverts. Any liquid test kit will give a false-positive reading on water treated with prime for the first few days. The only true way to know if its ammonia or ammonium is with the Seachem Total Ammonia Test Kit. This will tell you the amount of TOTAL ammonia compounds and the amount of toxic ammonia. I have tested my water after treating with prime and found it to be 0ppm ammonia despite the normal liquid test kit showing a 0.5ppm reading.
> 
> The best way to use tap water is get yourself some big plastic water bottle, fill, treat with prime, and then add an airstone from an air-pump into the water. It will help mix the prime all the way throughout the water and also help off-gas any CO2 which is actually common in a lot of tap water and do that for a few days, then store the water and use as you need it.


Hi just to let you know incase Singapore treatment plant uses chloramine to treat the water and this is the defination from Wiki the compound that make it 

*Chloramines* are derivatives of ammonia by substitution of one, two or three hydrogen atoms with chlorine atoms.[1] Monochloramine is an inorganic compound with the formula NH2Cl. It is an unstable colourless liquid at its melting point of -66° temperature, but it is usually handled as a dilute aqueous solution where it is used as a disinfectant. The term chloramine also refers to a family of organic compounds with the formulas R2NCl and RNCl2 (R is an organic group). Dichloramine, NHCl2, and nitrogen trichloride, NCl3, are also well known.

So when you add anti chlorine it lock or dissolve the chlorine thru bubbling the aging water and what is left behind is the other substances.

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## eviltrain

Wah. Chim chemistry lesson here. Must learn. 

Send from my GT-P1000 (Overcome 7 Series v4.0.0)

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## felix_fx2

It's a cut and paste from Wikipedia.
Until today, I still think very hard reading periodic tables.

But ain't we using NEW water mixed in our water already?

----------


## xconnect.

Ya a few percent only though 5% if I remember and new water is acually ro water so should be save but is the other 95% I curious about XD

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## Owls

Hi all just to share my water change method.

Tank 1.5ft cherry shrimp. HOF dolphin H500
Direct tap water into a bottle with indication dose with bio top around 0.5ml for shrimps and direct into tank.

Weekly change 2liter of water.
Test GH and TDS 1month twice.

Now my tank have full of shrimplets and 3 berried mama 
Total adults shrimp is 9 female cherry fire red and 1 male rili.
Once my mama release all shrimlets the next few mama will get berried again.

Have try before topping up water using tap water, over time the GH will rise.

1ft Tank Sulawesi.
Water change method is the same as above but using drip method.

All tank dose liquid carbon daily 5drops - 15drops

Cheers :Smile:

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## chansl

I only top up with distilled water for my two feet tank. Tank have thirty plus crs bds fire red. Around thirty plus babies . Mum also berries once they release the babies. Alot of frogbits. Minimum feeding.

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## Guppy77

Hi Chansl,

guess what, i did not feed the shrimp for the past 4-5 days and there are no deaths, and i did not change water since thursday, guess the enviroment stabilise, i will just top off with water too, later will do a nitrate test and let you know

 :Smile:

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## Spid

Recently met a bro who told me his friend mentioned PRIME kill shrimps. 

Well, I have been using PRIME for about 10years and has no qualms. I believe it all boils down to the usuage of this powerful dechlorinator. 

Just to share how I use Prime-

Whenever I bought PRIME, Ill pour into a empty old GENESIS bottle. Genisis bottle is a drip container by the way. 

A change of about 10-20percent of the tank water equals 10litres there about and I only use a few drops of PRIME to dechlorine the incoming water, which is usually straight from tap. 

I know a lot pple tend to follow according to the usuage of what PRIME recommend. But you have to real careful. Anyway for those hobbyist who suffer high ammonia in your tank, you can use PRIME to lower it as well. But then same thing applies, have to becareful with the dosage.

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## globalcookie

> A change of about 10-20percent of the tank water equals 10litres there about and I only use a few drops of PRIME to dechlorine the incoming water, which is usually straight from tap.


I use about 3 drops (using drinking straws) into about 10 litres of aged water. So far so good.

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## warrick75

I change about 10% of the water weekly.

I am using Prime dechlorinator too, and my CRS are doing fine and breeding.

I agreed with what Spid said.

It is not Prime that kill shrimps, more likely it could be due to overdosage.

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## haywas_35

I've once used an expired Prime dechlorinator when doing WC for my guppy tank, confirm not overdosage....... all my guppy died

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## edijutsu

i dont really do waterchange, just top up..seems fine to me

----------


## joe

For the record, I did not perform any WC for my office shrimp tank for ... *drum roll* ... 2 years!!! ... only water top up every 1-2 weeks  :Smile:

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## kohanson

> For the record, I did not perform any WC for my office shrimp tank for ... *drum roll* ... 2 years!!! ... only water top up every 1-2 weeks


Wow. Is it a heavily planted tank ?

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## joe

> Wow. Is it a heavily planted tank ?


Yes, heavy moss tank. Let me find the pic.

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## AhVy

Wow joe... Beautiful moss grown. Can ask wat fert u dose to get that? And did it take you 2 years?? 



Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

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## Navanod

> Wow joe... Beautiful moss grown. Can ask wat fert u dose to get that? And did it take you 2 years?? 
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2


Hi AhVy, please refrain from SMS lingo  :Mad:

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## AhVy

> Hi AhVy, please refrain from SMS lingo


Oh sorry!! Typed too fast..didnt even know it. 



Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

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## felix_fx2

> Oh sorry!! Typed too fast..didnt even know it. 
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2


I think the best solution is to read your posts before sending.

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## surfersp

Joe ... you do indeed have a very nice nano moss planted tank there.. care to share what fertilisers and filter you have there? doesnt seem to have any Co2 supplementation there ?

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## Whitechicks7

i dont siphon nor change water.. i just top up (tap water + batax 3in1) 
add around 5-10% due to evaporation...
so far there isnt any visual casualty.... maybe died in the plants i dont know..

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## bichon

I change about 10% using water from my 5ft tank.

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## memzsa

hi all,

I'm new and had just created my nano tank and am cycling/conditioning the water for 2 weeks before adding shrimps(crs).

by then my nano is aged water, do I need to dechlorinate it still ? before adding crs.

Need advice:
-where to buy?
-brand?
-price?

Appreciate your advise and guidance.

I've attached my Nano pic to be placed in office. 

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1388334852.055344.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1388334871.471557.jpg

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## Urban Aquaria

> hi all,
> 
> I'm new and had just created my nano tank and am cycling/conditioning the water for 2 weeks before adding shrimps(crs).
> 
> by then my nano is aged water, do I need to dechlorinate it still ? before adding crs.
> 
> Need advice:
> -where to buy?
> -brand?
> ...


Yes, you should always dechlorinate the water before adding it to your tank... note that aging water only removes chlorine but there is still chloramine present in the water, so you still have to declorinate it.

One of the most commonly used declorination solutions is Seachem Prime, it removes chlorine and chloramines, and detoxifies ammonia too. You can get it from most LFS, usually around S$8-$10 for a 250ml bottle (that amount will treat up to 10,000 litres worth of water, so it'll last you quite a while).

Btw, 2 weeks might be too soon to fully cycle a tank. It'll be best to test your tank parameters before adding the shrimps, especially if they are CRS as those tend to be more sensitive to adverse water conditions and fluctuating parameters.

----------


## qngwn

It is important that the tank is fully cycled before putting in livestocks, especially for sensitive invertebrates like CRS. 
I believe that you recently set up your tank with plants. Other than watching water parameters, do wait for the plants in the tank to settle and spread to ensure the sustainability of the plants before introducing sensitive species. Death of plants as well as uprooting of the soil may lead to an ammonia spike, leading to deaths of fauna if went unnoticed. 

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Tapatalk

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## xuan87

Once your tank has been fully cycled, you should see a high level of nitrate (I got 40 ppm recently after cycling my 2ft tank), which means you'll have to do a water change anyway to bring down your nitrate level before you can put in any shrimps. It's best to keep your nitrate level at 20 ppm or less. 

I use ocean-free anti-chlorine special which costs only $0.80 from C328. I believe it's quite common and you should be able to get it from other LFS as well. I believe it's either produced or distributed from Qian Hu based on a German formula but unfortunately, the tag is abit vague on the gases that it removes (definitely chlorine, but not sure about other gases).

----------


## memzsa

thanks you all for your expertise advise and guidance, will take heed and let the cycle span for longer period but first, I'm buying dechlorinator.. making my way lunch time from office  :Smile: 

Shrimping is actually science of understanding water parameter and the type of ecosystem investing.
Thank you all again for your detail guidance that will serves useful for a greenhorn like me.

----------


## qngwn

After using different dechlorinators, I am sticking with seachem prime. Most dechlorinators are the same, and doing the maths for the amount of water that they treat, it works out to be almost the same. You can try around and see which works for you, as long as the dechlorinators do what they are supposed to do, it should be fine. 

Do take a look at their description to see if they do remove chloramine as well, not all dechlorinators do that. 

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Tapatalk

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## cheetf

> hi all,
> 
> I'm new and had just created my nano tank and am cycling/conditioning the water for 2 weeks before adding shrimps(crs).
> 
> by then my nano is aged water, do I need to dechlorinate it still ? before adding crs.
> 
> Need advice:
> -where to buy?
> -brand?
> ...



Think maybe you should start a new thread and make it a journal.

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## memzsa

hi all just to share, here is my other tank on my desk.

I wasn't sure with the concept but I want it to be minimalistic.. so I tried Iwagumi with fine white sands. Was seeking for Frogbit donation heh..

I left this cycling for 2 weeks and it was office tap water. Chlorinated I guess..

What happen a few days back, a colleague of mine, self-help and donate 3 baby shrimps into my empty tank.

Surprisingly, they settle nicely, alive and one of them even molted over 6 days. I was on-leave.

-Should I changed to shrimp soil then fine sands? 
-I would prefer a white soil, any idea what and where I can get? this will look good in contrast.. 

I intend to keep King Kong black shrimps (I call them Chanel shrimps lol) look good with white or biage soil..

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1388402522.525596.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1388402543.924790.jpg

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## Hund Wong

Sudo reef sand??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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## Hund Wong

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1427297508.799159.jpg
Will be this colour. But its fine sand though


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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## gboy2242

It depends on the tank and the conditions of the tank.

----------


## wooty100

I notice this thread has alot nice desk tanks. I have 2 questions to those who do not do water changes. 

1) Does your tank have stains on the glass panels? How do you overcome those?
2) Does algae becomes a problem

----------


## gboy2242

Get red nose shrimps to clean up.

----------


## Dscheng

> I notice this thread has alot nice desk tanks. I have 2 questions to those who do not do water changes. 
> 
> 1) Does your tank have stains on the glass panels? How do you overcome those?
> 2) Does algae becomes a problem



As for water mark or stain, use a brush to remove it.
Algae issue, really have to monitor the lightning period, Co2 and water temperature. If algae wall spot, use the razor blade to scrub it off, do a water change and doze algaexit solution.
Rear some OTO, SAE, yamato and an army of cherry red shrimp.

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## Whitefit

Just to side track. Do I add soil n cycle or soil with plants n other items like crisom ball etc 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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