Caridina Shrimp - is anyone keeping them?

[*Ci*]

I am setting up a vintage 10g tank as a planted “shrimp playground”:
10g Chrome Metaframe
and am debating about the inhabitants, leaning towards crystal blacks. My tap water has zero kH or gH, so I can adjust it however I like, but I do have some other questions I would like to ask, if there are any experts here on the forum.

 

[FrankZ]

I currently do not but I am planning to once I redo my 40 gallon this spring. I’m interested in what others have to say on the topic.

 

[Count Krunk]

I have two tanks with blue dream, but those are neocardinia. However both tanks use rodi water that is re mineralized with shrimp king. They are doing great.

 

[*Ci*]

Well, @FrankZ, perhaps we should share our research and experiences here for future reference.

It seems like water parameters and stability are super important for Caridina shrimp, but I find some of the numbers to be all over the place with fairly wide ranges. I found a local breeder of many varieties of Caridina shrimp so I am going to follow his advice on things that I am questioning.

So far:
- leave kH at zero, raise gh to 8ppm using a shrimp specific gH booster. I’ve ordered some APT Sky from 24hr Aquarist (via Amazon) for this.
- My tap water has 5ppm of phosphate which is too high for these shrimp to thrive in. Closer to zero is better, so I am going to install an RO unit for water changes and drinking water, as well.
-Leave the heater off, consider fan cooling or ice water bottles in summer if temps get over 70-72F.
- Use an active soil - I have spare ADA aquasoil in the tank right now as it is cycling.
- Don’t add shrimp until well established with plants and biofilm thriving.

My dealer sells a bunch of stuff, additives, mineral balls, etc. which, depending on where you read are either snake oil junk or highly beneficial! I like stuff like this, though, so I bought a variety pack of the Ebi-Ken line:
Ebi-Ken

That’s where I’m at so far. The tank is set up with filter, water, hardscape and substrate (which is producing ammonia) and cycling for two weeks now. I will replace all the water with remineralized RO when I get that set up. I have plants on order. I’m not thinking of shrimp, probably until maybe April or so.
My build thread which I will update shortly:

10g Metaframe “Shrimp Playground”

 

[FrankZ]

I haven’t yet pinpointing which caridina shrimp I want to try. Just between the various ones I looked at the parameters are all over the place. The only consistent number was as close to 0 alkalinity as possible.

I’m going to use RO/DI water with APT Sky for GH.

Substrate is most likely going to be mineralized top soil with BDBS cap a couple inches deep. I’m working on what type of scape I want since this will not be CO2 enriched (I don’t think anyway) and my ideas keep changing.

Once I get the scape layout I want to try and figure out the parameters for that, then I will figure out the shrimp.

Somehow I’ve become a plant first, critter second aquarist.

 

[FrankZ]

so I am going to install an RO unit for water changes and drinking water, as well.

Be careful of these units for making RO water for an aquarium. Most units come with a remineralizer cartridge because straight RO water tastes terrible and it will dehydrate you. FYI it’s a weight cutting secret used by fights, competitive body builders etc. Anyway, these add back minerals and alkalinity to make it safe to drink and taste better, which can be counter productive for aquarium use.

 

[*Ci*]

Be careful of these units for making RO water for an aquarium. Most units come with a remineralizer cartridge because straight RO water tastes terrible and it will dehydrate you. FYI it’s a weight cutting secret used by fights, competitive body builders etc. Anyway, these add back minerals and alkalinity to make it safe to drink and taste better, which can be counter productive for aquarium use.

Yes, I see that and am not going to use a remineralizing cartridge. I prefer to use a custom amount of mineral drops per flask for my drinking water, which I already do now because my tap water is so devoid.

 

[riioKen]

leave kH at zero, raise gh to 8ppm using a shrimp specific gH booster. I’ve ordered some APT Sky from 24hr Aquarist (via Amazon) for this.

Not an expert here, but I did lots of research then I decided to not risk with caridina due to summer temp where I live (water temp can easily reach 26-28° in summer - 78+).
KH close to 0 as you have said, but the GH usually is 4-6 (and tds, just as reference, between 100 - 180ppm), I gathered info due to CRS.