What to do with a "1.75" gallon tank...

[baylee767]

Once I finish making a sorority and transfering my guys to a 5 gallon tank, I'll have a 2.5 and 1.75 gallon kritter keeper left. I want to keep the 2.5 in case the soroity has a trouble girl and I need to remove her to bring her back to the store or something.

I kinda want to setup a RCS (Red Cherry Shrimp) Tank. I don't want to keep a Betta in a home under 5 gallons because 5 gallons are somewhat easy to cycle and I never have to use a net (I have a phobea of dropping my fish, and start shaking like crazy when I transfer them for water changes!)

I realize that shrimp need cycled tanks. This could be a challenge, something for me to work on since small tanks are famous for being hard to cycle. I definatly need to add plants to help, and feed the shrimps (Marimo and javafern or anarchis or maybe even anubias) I have some questions:

I'm going to attempt to cycle using raw shrimp and lots of plants... Is it possible to work? It will be hard, but will the tank be unstable and possibly start randomly going from high to low ammonia after it's cycled or just while it's cycling? I know shrimp are sensative, I chose one of the hardier types and plan on getting 5. If they decide to multiply most babies will be sold on craigslist or LFS since I know they take free fish/shrimp.

How long does a RCS live? Also, If they get some marimo (Getting driftwood with marimo growing on it, actually) And some other plants do I ever have to feed them? What type of filter do you reccomend? (Must fit into a lees kritter keeper, of course!) Do you think a sponge filter would be good? Do shrimp like current (Small, not huge current)? And how long would a difficult 1.75 gallon raw shrimp method cycle take?

Please answer! Thanks to anyone who does!! ;) (Sorry it's not really much to do with Bettas, but Betta people know a lot about these kinds of things!)

[small fry]

Hey, when it come to shrimp, cycleing is the easy part! Shrimp are extremely sensitive to nitrates, even a small amount can kill them. You have to keep a close eye on them.

Get a test kit and test the water ocasionally to see how often you need to do a water change. Once you figure it out, don't get lazy (like I do sometimes) and forget the water changes. Shrimp die pretty easy.

I want to keep a RCS in a bowl, and about 3 ghost shrimp in my 55g amazon/tetra tank I am setting up. I have had no expirence with shrimp, though. I have read alot about them.

[baylee767]

That's why I'm kinda worried about the cycle. If it isn't done well, good bye RCS tank... I'll try, though! This might take months for me to even begin my cycling because a fish is inhabiting this tank =D

[nomoretickets]

http://www.bookmasters.com/marktplc/00388Shrimp.pdf
just do this for your shrimp!

[baylee767]

Nomoretickets: Thanks! I think my substrate will be pure sand, though. I don't want sand in my other tanks but IMO sand would look cool with green plants and marimo ball covered driftwood etc.

They didn't say anything about cycling, but I'm still going to try to do it so that there are no probs! I'm guessing in a planted tank I don't need to feed them. I'm currently imagining that drift wood with its silky thick marimo coating. I want it =D

(I'm thinking about my sorority when I imagine living in a planted tank. The water smells and feels crisp and clean and clear, It's like the joy of smelling freshly cut grass and the pureness of Alaska in the summer when the pines give off a sharp scent and it's clean and pure. If I were a fish in a non planted tank it would be kind of foggy looking, bare, too. Much less beautiful in appearance. The water wouldn't be quite as crisp and clean and it would be like living in the city, hot, no special scents, and dirty. Where would you rather live, in the Alaskan pines or the city? Just a note on the benefits of planted tanks.)

[wallywestisthebest333]

The thing about the link that Nomoretickets posted is that you don't need to cycle it if you put the right plants in there. =] The plants grow and as they grow they suck up all the Nitrites and Nitrates (if any Nitrites get a chance to turn into Nitrates at all :P).

So it's basically the perfect living set up for them. =] If you set one of those up you'll want to wait a few weeks to a couple months though depending because the soil will need to get used to being submerged. =]

Here's some more info on the Natural Planted Tank Method of fish keeping and aquascaping.
General info (focus on the first paragraph)
How to set one up (With Pics!)

The best thing about NPTs is that eventually they require only small water changes once in a long while.

If you'd like more info or advice on NPTs you can start a thread or ask OFL about it. =] She's got a ton of NPTs large and small! =] I think she's got a 1 gallon NPT too (I could be wrong though) so you could ask her how her's is doing and what she did with it. =]

I'm actually going to set up a Red Cherry Shrimp nano Natural Planted Tank just like that over Christmas break. =] I'm doing mine in a 1.5 gallon vase or a 1 gallon exactly pickle jar. =] I'm leaning towards the pickle jar though because the glass is thicker so it'll retain heat better. =]

I already have the shrimps names planned out too though I'm not telling till everything's set up. :] <3