Petshrimp.com Discussion Forum

Sigh...

I added two golfball sizes of java moss yesterday to my 5.5g. Tanks has been running for 3 months now and test two days ago were fine.

75*
7.2 ph
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
10 nitrate

Come into my room after class today and i find one of my nicest rcs dead. Not turned white yet, still red but on its side with no movement. This happened to me before about 2-3 weeks ago, but since i have switched from stresscoat to prime.

anyways just did a 15 percent water change (i have been keeping up i did a 10 percent yesterday with new plant and 20 day before that) When i purchased the plant i removed from store water and placed it into some of my tank water in a rubbermaid to seperate it and leave any gunk in there...

Water test before water change is

75*
6.8-6.9 ph went down from before
ammonia! 0-.25 not quiet there but present
0 nitrite
10 nitrate

so WTF?!

Post water change tests

PH 7.1 - 7.2
Ammonia 0

Perhaps i screwed up the ammonia test earlier (im a newb with testing)

still brings the question of why did it die?

I believe it is your plant that caused the death of your shrimps. Sometimes the plants in your local LFS or chain pet stores (petsmart) use potassium ermanganate to kill snails or other plant pests. Or maybe your the pet store you bought the plants from were using algaecide solutions to eliminate or decrease the amount of algae on the plants (hence easier to sell). Algaecide is also toxic to shrimps or other invertebrates as well (most I believe). It is better to soak the plants in another tank or container for a few days with changing 100% of the water where the plant is quarantined everyday (or several times a day).

Did you rinse the Java moss before placing it in the tank at all? How about the rubbermade Container? In my experience, it is best to siphon out the water that you're removing with the water change, and use it to rinse the plants prior to adding them to a tank, especially things like balls of java moss, there could have been any number of contaminents inside of it...

Kenshin wrote:I believe it is your plant that caused the death of your shrimps. Sometimes the plants in your local LFS or chain pet stores (petsmart) use potassium ermanganate to kill snails or other plant pests. Or maybe your the pet store you bought the plants from were using algaecide solutions to eliminate or decrease the amount of algae on the plants (hence easier to sell). Algaecide is also toxic to shrimps or other invertebrates as well (most I believe). It is better to soak the plants in another tank or container for a few days with changing 100% of the water where the plant is quarantined everyday (or several times a day).

I agree 100% with that!

Also keep in mind that some of those stores use the same water for all of their systems and have some heavy duty "Tricks" they use to hide the fact that they don't quarantine their livestock. I used to manage an LFS and until the owner finally relented to my persistant demands for full quarantining he'd had all of his swim and plant tanks running dangerously high levels of Copper to reduce parasites and make the fish look healthier than they were.

I rinsed them in old tank water before placing them into my aquarium. One of the employees told me they purchase it from a local guy when it out grows his tank so i doubt there were any stuff in there to kill snails and what not.

Other shrimp are happily eating away but im going to keep on eye on them...

Just my luck one of my fish from another tank has gotten really skinny and is being picked on by another tetra lol So i had to quarantine him too.

I put some java in my fish tank too they are all fine even the ghost shrimp.

Sometimes the plants in your local LFS or chain pet stores (petsmart) use potassium ermanganate to kill snails or other plant pests. Or maybe your the pet store you bought the plants from were using algaecide solutions to eliminate or decrease the amount of algae on the plants (hence easier to sell).

Also keep in mind that some of those stores use the same water for all of their systems and have some heavy duty "Tricks" they use to hide the fact that they don't quarantine their livestock.

These examples a the few things that do set me off in our hobby These stores take shortcuts and use tricks and it is the uninformed and new hobbyist that suffer for it! The hobbyist who has the bad experience will either give up and leave the hobby or try again by buying more plants and animals, thus continuing the cycle of poor practices

Thanks for helping to end this by sharing and educating

I would suggest
Checking to see if there is a Aquarium Club in your area.

You can find better quality plants, with no additives.

And this will help to spread the Shrimp Bug
You may get alot of strange looks from the fish people, when you tell them you Breed Shrimp.
It only takes around 1 year before they start to come around to our way of thinking.

John

I agree totally John.

My local Raleigh Aquarium Society is holding their annual workshop/auction this weekend. I remembered last year at their group gathering, I was asked what kind of fish do I breed? I told them I do not breed fish anymore (used to breed cichilds, platies, guppies, swordtails, and others) and is currently learning to breed rare dwarf shrimps. All of them gave me that "crazy" look.

Now this year, all of a sudden I have people from our group writing to me to ask about different kind of shrimps. It probably takes like 1 year for them to turn it around, but slowly

Interesting, so I will give my local club one year to get on the bandwagon ! I will bring shrimp to donate and use as prizes/trades and see how it catches on

Im going to college at northern Michigan university in the upper peninsula of MI. Small town = no aquarium club

TurtleBoyPW5 wrote:Im going to college at northern Michigan university in the upper peninsula of MI. Small town = no aquarium club

I used to live in a remote mountain town in the back-woods of New Mexico. The town only had a year round population of about 12,000 people, and it had NO colleges... It also only had one very small LFS. It had an Aquarium club with about 175 active members (about 105 of them were seasonal residents, but...). Look around, and you may be surprised at what you find. Also, if you find nothing, start something. Put up postings at your LFS and ask them if they'll host... more business for them, and great way to grow the hobby, most will hop at the chance.

Keep an eye on nitrIte and ammonia just in case you tested right the first time round.

Also, if you find nothing, start something. Put up postings at your LFS and ask them if they'll host... more business for them, and great way to grow the hobby, most will hop at the chance.

Wonderful Idea ! If you try this please let us know how it goes.