Substrate Change & Shrimp Transfer

Hello,

So I have a bit of a concern. I have cherry shrimp that hatched about 2 weeks ago, of course, right before I had planned on doing a substrate change.

Just before then I lost 5 of my neon tetras but could only find one of them. The other four either got eaten by my black neons/yo-yo loaches or simply got sucked into the filter.

Both of my HOBs need a good cleaning before I can do a substrate change and I had planned on transferring the cherry shrimp to their own tank with a sponge filter.

My question is should I go ahead and clean my filters and do a water change before transferring them and doing a substrate change? I fear that if I clean and change filters that I’m not only going to lose my cycle but I’m also going to chance my shrimp getting sucked in. If I do keep them in there through the filter change I could always do the panty hose trick over the intake.

My second question is is how long will my fish survive in a tub with one of the HOBs, tank water and the heater? I’m wanting to rescape with sand and Fluval Stratum and add more plants and decor. Currently using Eco-Complete but I’m unhappy with it.

And lastly, my third question is if I use the filter media and tank water from the already established 36 gallon in the new sponge filter for the shrimp tank, how long should I wait to transfer the shrimp? At least a week after doing regular water checks? Ideally it shouldn’t take long to grow beneficial bacteria if I do this, correct?

Thanks a ton and I apologize if these questions seem overly paranoid or off the wall. I am still fairly new to fishkeeping and had never kept shrimp before this, and now I have 16 shrimp which is way more than I bargained for... but I’m not complaining. It’s got me excited to set up their own tank! Just want to make sure I do it safely.

 

so I'm going to try to answer in order what I would do personally few questions tho
will the shrimp be returning to the tank after the substrate change?
will the other fish stay in the tank as well during the substrate change?
what type of fish are currently in the tank (besides the shrimp)
1. I would transfer them before cleaning the filter and doing a substrate change for a few reasons

• changing/ adding substrate changes the PH which can shock them and if your moving them after causes extra stress
• smaller the shrimp the higher the chances of them getting sucked up OR they hide and get buried with the new added substrate

2. its not necessarily how long they can survive but how much stress is put on them in a "tub" id say roughly 24-48 hours (not enough time for a cycled tank) with a filter bubbler and heater depending on the size of tub ? do you have a QT? if not id advise you to get one defiantly a big help my friend stripped her tank and kept hers in a 10 gallon pail for a week with said HOB filter bubbler and heater she lost some fish but majority made it
3. using an established filter will help with the good bacteria growth in the tank to get it all started I would check the water but would estimate a week DEPENDANT ON TANK SIZE as well can put some of the jump start beneficial bacteria that will get it going faster

notes:
if you Google adding sand to an aquarium with a water bottle there are methods for substrate change to least stress the fish/shrimp possible ie water bottle for sand
also cherry shrimp from my experience are hardy little guys I threw 7 into a week old under established tank (once) and they survived tho I don't ever recommend this they are pretty resilient
another tip for breeding and I noticed you stated you don't like the eco complete but I had the best luck breeding with that substrate due to the muck like texture they prefer more "soil type" to sand but that is my experience

 

I fear that if I clean and change filters that I’m not only going to lose my cycle but I’m also going to chance my shrimp getting sucked in. If I do keep them in there through the filter change I could always do the panty hose trick over the intake.

What do you mean by "clean and change filters"? Are you planning to remove filter cartridges to install new ones rather than just rinsing in tank water?

And lastly, my third question is if I use the filter media and tank water from the already established 36 gallon in the new sponge filter for the shrimp tank, how long should I wait to transfer the shrimp? At least a week after doing regular water checks? Ideally it shouldn’t take long to grow beneficial bacteria if I do this, correct?

It seems that there's two ways to tackle this:

1. transfer some media, water, etc to the new tank to help get the cycle started
2. OR, run the sponge filter in the 36 gal tank for a while so that it can build up some BB, then transfer to the new tank.

In either scenario, I think you need to provide an ammonia source to the new tank and run tests for as long as it takes to be properly cycling ammonia and nitrite. Results vary, so I don't think there's a reliable timeline that anyone can give you. The answer is "when's it's ready".

 

I’m wanting to get a tank only for shrimp, cories and snails with a mix of Fluval and sand substrate. I found all but five of the dead neons but the filtration flow is super low so I know the filter media needs to at the very least be squeezed while doing a substrate vac and water change. I’m going to do a cleaning today and I’ll go ahead and squeeze out the filters and put some pants hose on the intake to ensure my shrimp don’t get sucked up. I need to make sure my water parameters are good before I can start setting up a QT and a shrimp tank. When they finally stablalize, I plan on getting the sponge filter like mentioned above and running that for a week or so to establish good bacteria in the filter. And then can use one of the HOBs to start cycling the QT and the sponge filter to start cycling the shrimp tank.

once all is said and done, ideally I should have all of my fish in the QT and all of my shrimp in their new tank as well. This is when I plan on rescaping.

Just to be sure, this does sound like a solid plan, correct? Just want to reiterate and repeat some of what both of you said to make sure I’m understanding correctly. Forgive me if I ramble or state unnecessary info. I’m an avid overthinker.

Sorry I meant that I only found one of the 5 missing neons so I’m assuming the rest were either eaten or now they’re rotting in my filter. Which is why it’s important I clean the filters as soon as possible before even thinking about using one of the HOBs for a quarantine. That would just be asking myself for my problems lol. All other fish are fine.

My tank is stocked as follows:
8 black neons
2 yo-yo loaches (plan to get more)
3 neons (plan to get more)
12-16 shrimp

I also apologize for all of my typos. I’m at work at the moment.

 

Yes this sounds like a solid plan