I know dark (black) substrate is pretty popular with many of the shrimps (CRS, Fire Reds, etc.) to help bring out the color.
But I was wondering what everyone else would recommend for the Chocolate Neos who are already dark. Would something light like PFS help bring out the color better? I would think a black substrate would make them disappear...LOL.
You could try something light and if not happy put them on something dark. Cherries only need inert substrate, so you won't hurt anything or need a cycle to if you decide to change.
i ended up mixing some black sand and pool filter sand for the oebt i had cause on black sand all you would see was little orange eyes moving around and on pool filter they would get really light colored. i used mainly pool filter sand with a really thin layer of black over it so as they picked though the sand it would mix. it worked out really well
Many of my chocolates are black, and I'm thinking nothing's gonna make them fade, the color so solid through their shells. Unfortunately their tanks have dark substrates, one with Fluval Shrimp Substrate (the Ebi tank) the other with black old fashioned inert gravel (the hex). They are lost in their tanks unless they're in the weeds near the glass where I can see em.
I am thinking of setting up a new 10 gallon tank where I can put just the chocolates... and may try a lighter colored substrate so I might see more of them. (Just need to find space for a new tank! LOL!)
This mix looks nice, and I bet you can adjust the ratio of black to white to get it just how you'd like it. I assume the price point is better than the ADA sand. :icon_wink
I'd skip mixing dark and light substrates. Not always a natural look.
If you go the pool filter sand route, be sure you shop around to find one that suits your aesthetic, as there are dozens of looks and colors on the market.
Some can look quite nice:
Up close with Corydoras habrosus:
Some can look rather janky. Since it's all pretty cheap, check around for different brands, colors and grades.
That is some nice PFS shocked. Where are you getting that PFS from? I am from Bowling Green, so hopefully we have a similar store? The PFS I am getting from Ace is very uniform....so its pretty white.
Ya no dark sub. I have black with my chocos and crs. Looking into the tank from 2 feet away I can spot at least half the crs and maybe one choco. But chocos are awesome. Out of the 18 I have they are probably 10 shades or chocolate.
+1 Let's face it, PFRs are beautiful but most are one color- RED.
With chocolates it's like having 10 shades of shrimp in the tank without having to worry about different shrimp colors breeding and messing up the offspring! :thumbsup: One of my favorite vars. of cherries!
play sand tends to compact more. i like the pool filter sand cause it stays loose. plus with play sand you really have to wash it alot to get it clean where as pool filter sand is ready to just dump in no need to rinse it several times. pool filter sand is totally irnert so it doesnt change the chemistry in the pool. its used to polish the water i think. this is what mine looked like when i got it.
Thanks for the feedback everyone! Surprisingly, there seems to be a lot of chocolate love here. I like the look you got speedie, exactly what I was thinking of in my head...so I guess I will be giving PFS a try with the chocolate neos. Thanks again!
Okay... Will be on the lookout for pool sand... Gonna have to check out PetCo, see if they're still having their dollar a gallon sale. Think I need a 10 gallon tank.
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