10 Gallon Tank [Help!] My CRS keeps dying! What should I do?

Hello Shrimp experts,

Around one month ago, I purchased 11 of Crystal red shrimps (CRS).
I kept them in 10 gallon of fully established/cycled and fully planted tank that is set up as 73-76'C with the heater.
But so far within one month, 6 of them passed away and only 5 are left now.

It has several Moss balls, Anuvia, Java moss, Java fern, and Hornworts.
There are also two of Malaysian driftwoods and one Hideaway pipes for shrimps in it.
There are 6 of Neon tetras, 3 of Endler guppies, 2 of Skunk corydoras and 1 of Panda corydoras in it.

What could be the reason why they keep dying?
I've checked the water quality so far. Ammonia: 0, Nirites: 0, Nirates: 20-40. pH: 6.8-7.0
I've been changing 10% water only weekly since I was told that CRS is somehow sensitive to changing water. Before adding CRS, I've changed 25% water weekly, but I changed to 10% after keeping CRS.

Could you kindly let me know what I need to do for this tank in order to stop CRS from dying?

Any feedback and advice to stop them dying would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you very much for your kind feedback in advance.

 

CRS is not the same as cherry shrimp. You need specific parameters (including TDS) for CRS. 20-40 nitrates is also a big NO for CRS.

I think what you wanted was cherry shrimp....not CRS....

 

CRS is not the same as cherry shrimp. You need specific parameters (including TDS) for CRS. 20-40 nitrates is also a big NO for CRS.

I think what you wanted was cherry shrimp....not CRS....

Oh. I see. I have some good experience with breeding cherry shrimps until now. I wanted to try to let CRS proliferate as well. I tried to do research myself, but it was not sufficient and my experience was lacking a lot. Then at this moment, could you give me some feedback for what to do to let them survive? Change 25% water (maybe weekly)?

 

Oh. I see. I have some good experience with breeding cherry shrimps until now. I wanted to try to let CRS proliferate as well. I tried to do research myself, but it was not sufficient and my experience was lacking a lot. Then at this moment, could you give me some feedback for what to do to let them survive? Change 25% water (maybe weekly)?

Do some research on raising caridina shrimp. They need significantly different parameters than neocaridinas (red cherry shrimp and the other colors), and in general I don't believe are as hardy. I'd give more specific advice, but I haven't kept them.

 

Do some research on raising caridina shrimp. They need significantly different parameters than neocaridinas (red cherry shrimp and the other colors), and in general I don't believe are as hardy. I'd give more specific advice, but I haven't kept them.

Thank you very much for your kind feedback. I did research for this cardina shrimp like CRS before putting them. That was why I added Malaysian driftwoods to lower pH and lowered temp to 73-76'C. And I tried to change water less frequently with less volume (25%->10%). But I should have done more research. I thought 20-40 nitrates level could be fine, but it was too high for CRS maybe. I just changed 25% water to lower nitrates level. Hopefully it will help.

Any more feedback would be greatly appreciated since I am very new to this CRS who are quite sensitive shrimps.

 

You might want to give them their own tank. CRS prefer pristine water and are extremely sensitive even to nitrate levels that are safe for most fish. With the amount of fish you have in a 10g, it would be very hard to keep things survivable for them.

They also have pretty demanding requirements in terms of pH, water hardness, and more. A separate tank would let you better control all these conditions, probably.

 

You might want to give them their own tank. CRS prefer pristine water and are extremely sensitive even to nitrate levels that are safe for most fish. With the amount of fish you have in a 10g, it would be very hard to keep things survivable for them.

They also have pretty demanding requirements in terms of pH, water hardness, and more. A separate tank would let you better control all these conditions, probably.

I see. Thank you very much! Do you think CRS can survive in 3 gallon tank? That is only tank I can use for CRS only.

There, I can try to lower pH further by using Malaysian driftwoods and almond leaves and try to control water hardness. And I can use pristine water there. Please let me know 3 gallon would be fine. Thanks.

 

I see. Thank you very much! Do you think CRS can survive in 3 gallon tank? That is only tank I can use for CRS only.

There, I can try to lower pH further by using Malaysian driftwoods and almond leaves and try to control water hardness. And I can use pristine water there. Please let me know 3 gallon would be fine. Thanks.

No, driftwood and almond leaves are not reliable enough. The easiest way is to start with RO water, remineralize to ~5dGH and use Fluval Stratum as the only substrate. The active substrate will take care of the pH and KH. TDS must be below 200 as well. With this combination you only need to buy 3 products: RO water, GH remineralizer and Fluval Stratum.

Top-off with RO water only, and water change with remineralized RO water. It would be helpful to find out what temperature the breeder keeps them at, and match that temperature in your tank.

 

I see. Thank you very much! Do you think CRS can survive in 3 gallon tank? That is only tank I can use for CRS only.

There, I can try to lower pH further by using Malaysian driftwoods and almond leaves and try to control water hardness. And I can use pristine water there. Please let me know 3 gallon would be fine. Thanks.

3 gallon could be ok especially if heavily planted. Lots of plants usually eliminate any ammonia or nitrates.

The combined effect of RO water, tannins from driftwood and other botanicals, and a soil-based substrate such as Fluval Stratum or ADA Amazonia would be enough to keep the water sufficiently soft and acidic. With dwarf shrimp, and especially crystal shrimp, it's necessary to use RO water to guarantee that there's no harmful particulates in the water, and to control the hardness of the water with greater precision. These two things are just as important as low pH.

I have to warn you though- don't put your shrimp in the new tank right away. Setting up a brand new tank like this, especially one this small, usually results in a lot of swinging and unstable water conditions. Soil substrate in particular will create significant ammonia spikes, and even if you do water changes to keep that under control. Dwarf shrimp in general require stable water conditions above all else, and a cycling new tank just ain't it.

 

No, driftwood and almond leaves are not reliable enough. The easiest way is to start with RO water, remineralize to ~5dGH and use Fluval Stratum as the only substrate. The active substrate will take care of the pH and KH. TDS must be below 200 as well. With this combination you only need to buy 3 products: RO water, GH remineralizer and Fluval Stratum.

Top-off with RO water only, and water change with remineralized RO water. It would be helpful to find out what temperature the breeder keeps them at, and match that temperature in your tank.

Thanks a lot for your very detailed advice!

3 gallon could be ok especially if heavily planted. Lots of plants usually eliminate any ammonia or nitrates.

The combined effect of RO water, tannins from driftwood and other botanicals, and a soil-based substrate such as Fluval Stratum or ADA Amazonia would be enough to keep the water sufficiently soft and acidic. With dwarf shrimp, and especially crystal shrimp, it's necessary to use RO water to guarantee that there's no harmful particulates in the water, and to control the hardness of the water with greater precision. These two things are just as important as low pH.

I have to warn you though- don't put your shrimp in the new tank right away. Setting up a brand new tank like this, especially one this small, usually results in a lot of swinging and unstable water conditions. Soil substrate in particular will create significant ammonia spikes, and even if you do water changes to keep that under control. Dwarf shrimp in general require stable water conditions above all else, and a cycling new tank just ain't it.

Much appreciated! I now realized the importance of RO water and substrates.. I need to prepare for them asap. Thanks a lot!