Shrimp Trouble

[Tobythefish]

I got some RCS several weeks ago, and I had to adjust my PH by adding 3/5 ml PH down for them. The PH they came in was 7.2, and my PH is 7.6+. I left them in their original Ph for a week, then decreased the PH down by 1/5 ml over the course of two weeks. They started dying so I stopped decreasing the PH. They've been at the same PH level for two weeks now, and the last one died about 70 hours ago. I think they've recovered and I plan on decreasing the PH down until I'm not using any much more slowly than before. I think it would be best to leave their PH where it is now for a few more weeks, but my mom thinks it would be best to bring it back to what it was. Current PH is 7.6+ so it was a big change. What should I do?

Of the original 17, two were DOA, 5 went up the filter, and five died because of rapid PH fluctuations, which makes for a grand total of 12 dead shrimp. I counted seven today, and belive there are more since there are many hiding places. Several nights ago I counted 11 living shrimp, and then 2 shrimp died (one went through the impeller and the other is the last one that has died) so there should be about 9 shrimp. That means they're having babies(I've found two total).

Thanks for any help.

[Oldfishlady]

The shrimp will do much better if you acclimate them to the pH of your water....unless you adjust your hardness the pH will just rebound....much easier and safer to work and acclimate with your source water as is....

Also, RCS are not a long lived shrimp to start and can be sensitive to high nitrate, copper, medications, additives and other heavy metals in your water as well as the sudden extreme pH, temp and high ammonia, nitrite just like fish.

[Tobythefish]

Thanks.