FishProfiles.com Message Forums

I have a 2 gallon hex setup between two 10 gallon tanks. Currently I only have some willow moss in this hex. The problem is, the moss isn't growing.
So I was thinking that I needed some kind of life in the hex. Hoping that would create enough nutrients for the moss to grow.
Since this hex isn't heated or filtered, I don't want to add a betta or any ADF.
Want I am leaning towards are some shrimp. Since this is basicly just to help with the moss growth, I don't want to spend more than a few dollars on the shrimp. So all of the colorful red and green shrimps are out of the question for now.
Ghost shrimp seem to be the only choice I have. How would they do in a 2 gallon hex that's unheated and unfiltered? And how many shrimp should I get?

Well, I guess there are differing schools of thought on this but, unless we're talking about a dense-dense-DENSEly planted tank, I'm of the opinion that if you're going to put some sort of animal in a tank, it should be filtered.

Is the hex lit? What kind of lighting is it? I'm sure it's growing in some form, but just not quickly enough to notice day-to-day.

If you want to add shrimp for the purpose of getting the moss to grow, there are better ways of getting the moss to grow. Why not just get a light for the top, then dose Excel and the occasional KNO3? These are all inorganic and pretty harmless. Adding shrimp means adding ammonia. Besides being bad for the shimp themselves, there has been some research done by planted tank enthusiasts suggesting that ammonia may be a major cause of algae outbreaks, especially green water. Not a good thing.

So I guess I would say, if you want it to be a shrimp tank, then just buy a small filter for a nano tank, seed it, and you should be set. If you just want the moss to grow fertilize it with dry ferts - it's a lot easier.

---

Back in the saddle!

I agree with bensaf that if you plan to keep a living thing in any tank, even a tiny tank, and even if you only wanted to keep a betta, that filtration and heat are necessary. There are very small heaters and filters available now, so there's really no reason not to. Tetra makes a very tiny nano-HOB filter, and there are 25 watt heaters available for tiny tanks. If you buy online from Big Al's or That Fish Place, they aren't even that expensive, even after shipping. I find that for equipment, it's cheaper to buy online than in LFS where they mark up the merchandise as much as 300%.

But, since you're not interested in spending much money on this tank, I'd probably stick with a betta. Even ghost shrimp will probably do better in a heated tank.

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

Well, first I'm not Bensaf. The old fella copied my color scheme a while back - what can I say, I'm a trend setter. But it's OK because I, in turn, try to copy his ability to make beautiful planted tanks, and use his knowledge to do so, so we're even.

Second, I even think the shrimp will be fine without a heater. I have two small tanks with shrimp, neither of them heated. Shrimp will tolerate a wide range. Lower 70's should be fine, even upper 60's. Cherry shrimp, for example, can even be kept in warmer climate ponds. If you want to keep them I would think filtration is the main thing, IMO. Drsfostersmith.com lists a little nano filter that I have, it's external and perfect for a 2-4 gallon tank.

The bigger question is, if you just want to grow the moss then grow the moss. It seems a round-about way of growing moss to ad shrimp and wait for their waste to decompose instead of just dropping a few drops of Excel every day and a pinch of KNO3 every week or so.

---

Back in the saddle!

Oops, sorry Nowher... It was the color scheme that threw me.

Huh, I guess I've just always kept my shrimp at tropical temps because that's what I'd read about them. That and my house is pretty cold, so if I didn't have a heater, the water temp would probably drop into the 60s overnight.

I do know that your moss would appreciate the higher temps, though, in addition to some nutrients. In higher temps, most mosses grow fuller and thicker, especially in soft water. What kind of lighting do you have over this little tank? Even though moss doesn't need lots of wattage over it, some direct light will help a great deal.

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

I don't think you really need a heater or filtration but you do need some way to oxygenate the water and shrimp will not withstand ammonia at all. If this tank has had nothing in it but plants it is not cycled and any waste from the shrimp and shrimp food will cause ammonia levels to show up. That will probably cause dead shrimp. Unless your seeding a tank or very heavily planting it you cannot add shrimp to an empty uncycled tank. They are one of the most sensitive creatures to ammonia and nitrites. 2nd you really should have some type of aeration such as an airstone or sponge filter even if it has no sponge in it. I just use sponge filters and have yet to clean the one that's been running 6months on my 5g shrimp tank. They produce very little waste and what they do produce gets mixed into the substrate and used by my plants. So I don't think they need an all out filtration system but they do need oxygen and with just slow/not growing willow moss you probably don't have enough.

First let me tell you about the lighting. I have a 4 foot shop light hanging above the three tanks. With the 2 gallon directly in the middle. I currently have just one 40watt, 6500K fluorescent bulb in the fixture. Algae growth was too much with both bulbs.

I realize this tank isn't cycled in the normal sense. But I was also going to add a large fake plant from another tank. Combined with frequent water changes, I thought I'd be able to pull it off.
I actually didn't even think about the oxygen. I didn't have to worry about that with my other non-filtered tanks. They either had Bettas or ADFs.
Maybe I'll just add a few shrimp in my other tank(s). Would ghost shrimp do OK in a 25 gallon with Platies and Cories? Or in a 10 gallon with ADFs and Harlequin Rasboras?

One thing I've wondered for awhile, how do you dose KNO3. Isn't that nitrates?
Could I just do a water change using old water from another tank?