New fish bowl project for shrimp (maybe betta) - Page 3

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

sounds great. I wonder why the rasboras like the ten gallon so much. Maybe they just like having more space. I dunno. Your betta sounds really funny.

 

[bored411]

sounds great. I wonder why the rasboras like the ten gallon so much. Maybe they just like having more space. I dunno. Your betta sounds really funny.

My betta is a total goof. Loves to flare at me, get fed, and lay in the plants but I feel bad. He's one of those cheap Petsmart ones, which is fine, but he wasn't well-bred, is my guess. He has diamond eye, so he's mostly blind in one eye because his scales are covering it. He also has a tumor/cyst on his side that's grown. It's not bothering him and there's nothing I can do about it, but still feel bad.

As for the rasboras, I have no idea! They were out and about immediately after getting put in, though they like hiding out under the middle and background plants in the 10 gallon (I'll add a picture for you). It has a lot of open space in the front (trying to get the monte carlo I have to fill it out) so maybe between that and all the hiding places they're more comfortable? Maybe the other active fish encouraged them? Who knows.

And I think with them so happy in the 10 gallon, I might just get this bowl set up (and properly cycled this time without the nitrite issues I've had) and get a nice mix of neocardia shrimp and see how they do instead. I think if I had it less planted it would work for a betta, but I love lots of plants so shrimp are fine

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

The story about your betta sounds sad. I totally agree with keeping a lot of plants. Don't expect a reply from me until Sunday 2:00 pm pacific standard time. I'm gone until then

 

[bored411]

Lol I forgot to show the pic of my 10 gallon. Here it is. The rasboras lovely new home~ They like hiding in the reineckii in the middle. It’s a slightly older pic as the Monte Carlo has grown out as have the repens and there’s more stems I’ve added since. But I still like it even if the swordtail keeps uprooting the stems in the back left

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

That fish tank looks so cool.

 

[bored411]

Redid the bowl! I removed the plastic mesh between the sand and stratum, took all the sand out, rinsed it, and put it back after putting the wood in. Then made sure the rocks were on top of the wood, glued in place, and made sure that they weren’t leaving large gaps where I couldn’t clean properly like last time.

Put the sponge and heater back in to keep the cycle (if it’s still there; I kept water in this whole time for the plants and had the heater and sponge in other tanks) and for the plants given it’s been cold lately.

With the hair grass I took what really green strands I could and combined them together. Found MD’s technique of rolling them between fingers works amazingly well. Only plant I added was the S. repens on either side. Hoping everything grows as it should and that it cycles completely this time. If tests come back good, then it’ll be a neocardia paradise! I’ll probably debate for a while whether I’ll try nano fish again in here, but I’ll hold off until the tank can handle shrimp first. I just miss looking up at it and seeing something in there. I keep expecting a fish or shrimp to zoom by so I hope it cycles quickly this time and the plants grow well.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

You know what, I don’t even want to look at the bowl. You make me jealous all the time . The bowl looks amazing. I don’t think the bowl is big enough for nano fish. Shrimp can be super cool too. I don’t really think the cycle was interrupted btw.

 

[bored411]

You know what, I don’t even want to look at the bowl. You make me jealous all the time . The bowl looks amazing. I don’t think the bowl is big enough for nano fish. Shrimp can be super cool too. I don’t really think the cycle was interrupted btw.

The cycle probably is probably okay but I'll give it a few days and test it, just to see. And there probably isn't enough for nano fish, unless it were only like 4-5 tiny boys. There was technically more room the first time I had the bowl done because there was a large gap in the center of the wood piece. I've packed it full of plants though (it was tough keeping that area clean before) so the only "swimming room" is around the center, not through it. Given the rasboras are hiding in the plants in my 10 gallon, they wouldn't work in here. Which is fine. I'm more than happy to get a bunch of neocardia instead.

If I really wanted fish in there (nano or betta), then I'd probably redo the whole bowl into a more minimalistic scape. Few rocks in the center, sand only substrate (maybe thin stratum layer under it or the opposite, stratum substrate with thin sand layer), and just a carpet of something (monte carlo maybe?) and minimal plants. But, that's plans for future me, lol

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

sounds like you have another project to come. What species of shrimp do you want to add to the bowl?

 

[bored411]

sounds like you have another project to come. What species of shrimp do you want to add to the bowl?

Not sure. I'd have to look and see. Might just get a multi-color pack from somewhere and get a variety of colors. I like blue rili shrimp but dunno yet.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Just a heads up, if you have more than one kind of shrimp in one tank, their kids will look kinda weird. Not in a body shape weird, but a color weird. I have a tank with red cherry shrimp and, I think they're blue dream shrimp, and sometimes I see brown/transparent shrimp swimming around.

 

[bored411]

Just a heads up, if you have more than one kind of shrimp in one tank, their kids will look kinda weird. Not in a body shape weird, but a color weird. I have a tank with red cherry shrimp and, I think they're blue dream shrimp, and sometimes I see brown/transparent shrimp swimming around.

Yeah, I've heard. Some people don't like that but I don't really care. Shrimp are cute. The shrimp from my sister's tank (now my 15 gallon tall tank) were a group of red cherry shrimp and orange sunburst shrimp. She's got a fun mixture of shrimp in there now. Dark red, red and transparent with stripes, orange, orange and transparent with stripes, etc. I might just do 2 types of colors. Maybe blue rili and carbon rili, or blue rili and blue diamond, or blue rili and dream blue velvet. That way it's just two different blue types?

I'm looking at aquaticarts.com and they've got multi-packs of wild forms, primary colors (red, blue, yellow), red and yellow, deluxe primary color, crystal shrimp (red/white and black/white) and assorted neocardia. I'm considering the assorted and just taking what I get or mixing two types of blue, but dunno yet. Problem for future me, I assume

 

[guilyyalai]

I like your bowl aquascaping

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Shrimp are cute.

They sure are. I have no idea about what flors they turn out to be if they're two different types of shrimp

 

[bored411]

Added some hydrocotyle japonica to a bare corner of the tank and have just left it running with the heater and sponge in it. Discovered that some of the snail babies I thought had died off when I redid the scape are alive and well. I'll check the water parameters.... Friday? Lol, before the end of the week, anyway. See how it is. If everything's fine, I'll order some shrimp to deal with the poo these little stinker snails are undoubtedly making. Wish their sticky eggs were easier to remove. I've seen one on the cyrpt and another on my buce. dunno how many are hiding out. Though they would've died when I redid the bowl and left it with ice cold water for a while but guess not.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Bladder snails are super hardy. I find the best way to remove their eggs, is using an toothbrush

 

[guilyyalai]

Bladder snails are super hardy. I find the best way to remove their eggs, is using an toothbrush

I use a tube brush, but the most effective way is first use an algae scraper then use the tube brush, and you've done completely. Both tools from hygger aquarium cleaner tool kit I used to remove algae last time.

 

[bored411]

I use a tube brush, but the most effective way is first use an algae scraper then use the tube brush, and you've done completely. Both tools from hygger aquarium cleaner tool kit I used to remove algae last time.

It’s not on the bowl itself, it’s on leaves of the plants. I was mainly just using my hands and the turkey baster to remove them. But I’ll try a toothbrush or a tube brush since I don’t think an algae scraper will work given how small the bowl is and then being on the plants

 

[bored411]

Debating now.... I'm seeing biofilm on the heater and snail poo from those blasted bladder snails I'm slowly removing. I'm looking at shrimp from Aqua Huna and they've got a 6 pack of Blue Rili shrimp that look nice or I can go for their assorted neocardia davidi shrimp pack that's 10 shrimp (varients are: blue velvet, red cherry, yellow rice, green jade, red rili, and orange. at least five different variants in the pack)... Need to test the water still but I doubt there's any danger-level anything after I've redone the whole thing. I'm going to test it tomorrow to see and if it's good, order the shrimp.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

How long does it take aqua huna to ship them?

 

[bored411]

How long does it take aqua huna to ship them?

They're the ones who shipped the rasboras, so not long at all. few days I think. Based off my posts here, the rasboras came in about 2-3 days.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

you can probably order the shrimp in a few days then. Which ones did you decide on, if you've decided yet?

 

[bored411]

you can probably order the shrimp in a few days then. Which ones did you decide on, if you've decided yet?

Debating still between the Blue Rili and getting a multicolored pack. I read reviews on the multicolored pack and people mentioned they've got over 100 now still multicolored and no brown ones and while there's still a chance of that happening, they might look nicer in the bowl than just the blue rili shrimp which are blue and clear in the center.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Yeah, I think that you should go with the multi coloured pack, since there's more to look at. But that's totally your decision.

 

[guilyyalai]

Agree with PlantedCommunityTank132 , multi color pack is more amazing than the Blue Rili

 

[bored411]

welp, did the water test today and 0.25 ammonia (my tap has this so probably a false reading), 0 nitrite, 5-10 nitrate. so I guess I'm ordering a multi-pack of shrimp

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

welp, did the water test today and 0.25 ammonia (my tap has this so probably a false reading), 0 nitrite, 5-10 nitrate. so I guess I'm ordering a multi-pack of shrimp

Sounds exciting

 

[bored411]

Added some more dwarf hair grass to fill out the front more. I am seeing some yellowing on the hydrocotyle so I added liquid fertilizer yesterday. I’m also seeing melting and some yellowing on the crypts but I’m seeing new growth on them too so I don’t think they’re lost just yet. New leaves on the anubias too. Moss had some brown when I got it so I’m just keeping an eye on it. It’s doing better than the Java moss anyway. Just waiting for the shrimp that haven’t shipped yet. And plucking out baby bladder snails bit by bit. I’ve got some ramshorns in my betta tank that I might consider moving over.

they’re hitchhikers that I just kept because why not? I like them better than bladder snails and his tank gets diatom algae a lot. I think the light is too powerful despite being one that came with the tank. but the betta doesn’t mind and I don’t either.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

The bowl looks so cool. Did you paint the back black? I like rams horn snails more as well. They just look so much better.

 

[bored411]

The bowl looks so cool. Did you paint the back black? I like rams horn snails more as well. They just look so much better.

I have not painted it, though still debating. I don't think the shrimp will mind either way (painted or not) so I may just leave it as it is. I am wondering about other things though.

My betta (as I've mentioned) is having eye issues and I'm wondering if I should get a larger second bowl to put him in instead of the 5-gallon tank he's in now. He's doing okay where he's at but he's having issues seeing food and is resting a lot more than he used to. Given the lump he has as well though, he might just be on his way out but I'll wait on that, I think. If I see he's getting really bad I might tear this bowl down and set it up simpler to put him in it instead so he's not having issues with corners and things.

For now, though, it'll be a shrimp house. I'm sure they'll enjoy it. I'm seeing fuzzy algae on the wood so they've got stuff to eat all over. Just need to keep an eye on the plants now.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Wait. So, do you have two bowls or is your betta in this bowl?

 

[guilyyalai]

Besides betta, do you have other aquatic pets in your 5-gallon tank? If your tank's ammonia under a concentration of 0.01-0.02ppm, that's safe for your betta. If not, a second bowl is a good choice for it.
And you can set the lighting time to boost your dwarf hair grass's new leaves, take more info from the article about lighting for plants growth.
By the way, keep the bowl as it is without paint, it's a cool ecosystem now.

 

[SamMe]

I agree it looks cool without the paint, very natural.

 

[bored411]

Wait. So, do you have two bowls or is your betta in this bowl?

I have one bowl. The betta has his own 5-gallon square tank. I’ll post pics of his below.

Besides betta, do you have other aquatic pets in your 5-gallon tank? If your tank's ammonia under a concentration of 0.01-0.02ppm, that's safe for your betta. If not, a second bowl is a good choice for it.
And you can set the lighting time to boost your dwarf hair grass's new leaves, take more info from the article about lighting for plants growth.
By the way, keep the bowl as it is without paint, it's a cool ecosystem now.

The betta is by himself in a square tank with some ramshorns that hitchhiked on some plants. My tanks all have 0.25ppm ammonia that is a false reading because of my tap’s 0.25 ammonia. The light for the bowl come on at 10am and are turned off at about 5pm but it’s in my room which has its lights on until about 10:30pm. And I probably won’t paint it given there will just be shrimp in it for now.

I’m just going to keep an eye on my betta for the moment. He hangs out in the back of his tank a lot resting on the rocks and plants. He does come out and flares but is just having a harder time seeing his food lately. Here’s his tank right now. It’s been redone as it used to have a side filter compartment but I have having issues with getting into it so I took it out, got a mini HOB filter MD Fishtanks used and gave the betta more room. Second pic his is tank before and you might be able to see the tumor he has too.

 

[Cooperman411]

Just found this thread and just got caught up. I may have missed it but what kind of light are you using?

I have a 3 gallon acrylic bowl that's sitting empty and now . . . .

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Oh, that makes sense now. He looks so cool even though he has the tumor. I don't know how you can aquascape such cool tanks.

 

[bored411]

Just found this thread and just got caught up. I may have missed it but what kind of light are you using?

I have a 3 gallon acrylic bowl that's sitting empty and now . . . .

It's just a light I got off amazon that plugs into a USB port. Both it and my sponge filter are connected to my computer (though I should find a way to keep the sponge running at night but haven't yet).
Led Aquarium Light - Innovate Flexible LED lamp Freshwater Aquarium - Fish Tank Light - Pico&Nano Soft Plus

Oh, that makes sense now. He looks so cool even though he has the tumor. I don't know how you can aquascape such cool tanks.

Thanks! The tumor wasn't even there when I got him then steadily got bigger and not its.... deflated? Idk, but it doesn't bug him. Can't really do anything about it. I've got more concerns with his eyesight because of his scales covering it. I figure if I start seeing bigger issues I'll get him a bowl and do a simple scape in it so he's not bumping into corners or getting stuck anywhere. He's happy where he is right now though.

And his tank is honestly a mess to me, lol. I just sort of threw everything in when I rescaped it using MD Fishtank's substrate layering idea. Much like MD though, I get easily bored and need a new project and end up redoing tanks every few months or so. Like I found a nice wood piece at my store that would work great in the tall 15 gallon I have (which is currently scaped with one large wood piece and a bunch of smaller loose pieces) and I want to switch the wood out in there and maybe escape the long 29 gallon. Not doing it anytime soon with my trips coming up but got the wood anyway so someone else wouldn't take it and have a whole bag of seiryu stone I want to use too.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Sounds cool. I kinda like redoing tanks as well, but since I don't have a job yet, I'm not sure if my wallet would appreciate me redoing tanks all the time.

 

[bored411]

Sounds cool. I kinda like redoing tanks as well, but since I don't have a job yet, I'm not sure if my wallet would appreciate me redoing tanks all the time.

oh trust me, my wallet does not approve, but I enjoy it. the biggest cost is the hardscape and the plants given a bag of stone is about $30 and so is one large spiderwood or one large mopani piece from Petmsart/Petco. Shipping stuff is even more expensive because shipping heavy items is costly. Idk how costly things are in Canada but I find I spend the most on plants, I think.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

I usually buy my stuff from my LFS. But that sadly means that I don't have the best selection.

 

[Cooperman411]

It's just a light I got off amazon that plugs into a USB port. Both it and my sponge filter are connected to my computer (though I should find a way to keep the sponge running at night but haven't yet).
Led Aquarium Light - Innovate Flexible LED lamp Freshwater Aquarium - Fish Tank Light - Pico&Nano Soft Plus

This may do the trick. It's got enough power to actually have multiple USBs plugged in at once. A lot have extra ports but will only power/charge 1 thing at a time:
Amazon.com

 

[bored411]

Shrimp have arrived just in time! There was some miscommunication with the post office (thought I had to pick them up because of an email but didn't) and while I ordered 10 shrimp, I only got 8 and one dead one. The dead one was half eaten as well, soooo.... but 8 is fine and I've already contacted the company for refunds of those two. Now acclimating them and plopping them in!

I also did a water change and quick cleaning of the bowl today. Levels were fine but those pesky bladder snails have been making a mess so I cleaned that up and removed the dead leaves on the crypts (just melt! they're gaining new leaves and growing okay). The s. repens are growing as well and I threw some extra dwarf water lettuce from my betta tank in to see how they fair since there may have been an excess of nutrients but we'll see. If they start dying (or the other plants do) I'll throw them in a different tank.

I'm house-sitting this week though, so the shrimp came just before I leave. They'll have plenty to eat given the tank has just been sitting in wait. So, it's just a matter of getting them in and seeing how things go! Hopefully better than last time with just shrimp in here (and the few cheeky bladder snails still lingering).

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

They look so cool. Is your sister looking after your tanks while you’re gone?

 

[bored411]

They look so cool. Is your sister looking after your tanks while you’re gone?

Yes. She won't really mess with this one (they should be fine) other than seeing if the dwarf water lettuce needs to be moved to another tank. All other tanks she's going to top up with dechlorinated water on Friday or Saturday next week and add liquid fertilizer. She'll be feeding the fish (which she's done before) but mostly taking care of my dog. Told her to text me or message me online if anything changes or fish start acting weird/dying. Should be fine though. I did water changes on the dirtier tanks today and topped up the others. Shrimp in the bowl are cleaning away so should be fine.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Doesn't sound like its too much of a challenge. Last year my family and I went to Germany to visit our relatives, and we had some house sitters while we were gone. I made a video explaining everything and how to clean the glass and filters, but when we came back, the tanks were super full with algae and some of the tanks had a huge snail infestation. Thats when I realized that the small things do change a lot. In this case, clean the glass a bit more, or not feeding my fish way too much.

 

[bored411]

So, mid house-sitting update. I’m not home until Sunday so my sister is caring for all the tanks and this bowl. She informed me today that one of the shrimp has passed. He was upside down moving his legs a little and jerking a little. I had my sister remove him right away once he passed (which he did within 15 minutes of the video she sent me of the behavior) and do a water test. Surprisingly, ammonia and nitrite were 0. Nothing is wrong with the tank. I thought maybe they ran out of stuff to eat and sis put 1/4 of an algae wafer in for them that she will remove if it’s uneaten. No water change was done because the levels were fine. I suspect just a bad shrimp though I can’t be sure, especially since there’s nothing going wrong with the tank. Plants are thriving and the other shrimp are fine and molting.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

Maybe the shrimp was dying of old age. I’m not sure if that could be the case tho, since you bought it from a store

 

[bored411]

Maybe the shrimp was dying of old age. I’m not sure if that could be the case tho, since you bought it from a store

They're very small too, even the females, so I think they're young, not older. I'm assuming either a molting issue or the shrimp just wasn't healthy.

 

[PlantedCommunityTank132]

They're very small too, even the females, so I think they're young, not older. I'm assuming either a molting issue or the shrimp just wasn't healthy.

I guess that's what happened

 

[logqnty]

So, mid house-sitting update. I’m not home until Sunday so my sister is caring for all the tanks and this bowl. She informed me today that one of the shrimp has passed. He was upside down moving his legs a little and jerking a little. I had my sister remove him right away once he passed (which he did within 15 minutes of the video she sent me of the behavior) and do a water test. Surprisingly, ammonia and nitrite were 0. Nothing is wrong with the tank. I thought maybe they ran out of stuff to eat and sis put 1/4 of an algae wafer in for them that she will remove if it’s uneaten. No water change was done because the levels were fine. I suspect just a bad shrimp though I can’t be sure, especially since there’s nothing going wrong with the tank. Plants are thriving and the other shrimp are fine and molting.

I had almost 30 adult shrimp, and tons of fry a few months ago. Now I have 4 left. Water chemistry was fine, they had food. I did tons of 10% water changes, everything. Nothing worked.
I would say that shrimp keeping works for some people, and doesn’t for others.