[JosephM]

I am attempting to create a heavily planted shrimp tank. I have high lighting, sponge filter, HOB filter, BDBS substrate, osmocote fert in the substrate, dosing some api fert i have for the water column. Plant wise I have a lot of stem plants in the back, dwarf hair grass (attempting to make floor out of it), a couple small plants that I don’t know the name of, and a rock covered in Java moss. The Java moss is where my issue started. I noticed the algae start but didn’t do anything until it spread to some of my other plants. I completely took the Java moss out and tried to clean the other plants but there is little Java moss with hair algae all over and it’s spreading. What can I do? I was thinking of putting in a CO2 system. Water parameters are all zero since it just got started up and ph is around 8.2 (I don’t know why it’s so high) i use api master test. And I’m new to the whole forum idea so sorry if this is a mess.

 

[Blue Ridge Reef]

Welcome to the forums! Do you have a hardness test by chance? KH and GH tested out of your tap compared to other samples (water that's sat open overnight, water with some of your mystery stone, etc.) can go a long way to determining the issue. That said; high light, few plants, and a new tank equal algae blooms every time regardless of whether something is raising your KH and therefore pH.

 

[JosephM]

I would say I have quite a bit of plants in there. It’s only a 10 gallon but I have nowhere else to plant anything other then the area where the rock was. Would CO2 be beneficial to the plants and help the plants outcompete the algae?

 

[en7jos]

Hi Joseph, welcome to the forums

Is it primarily a shrimp tank that you have heavily planted, or is it primarily a planted tank that you have some shrimp in? Subtle distinction I know, but when you are deciding upon the details like fertilising and Co2, it's important to be clear about where you priorities lie for the tank. You can of course have a great planted shrimp tank, but if your priority is the shrimp then you might need to make some sacrifices / compromises when it comes to the plants, or vice versa. Just helpful to know your goals for the tank before offering any advice.

For example, CO2 generally not recommended for a shrimp breeding tank, but on the other hand shrimp will usually do well in a tank where the plants are doing well.

GH and KH measurements would be a good starting point, so invest in a couple of test kits if you haven't already got them (most people seem to use the API liquid drop ones, don't get the dip stick ones which are notoriously unreliable).

James =]

 

[JosephM]

Thank you for the response! I guess my ultimate goal is to have a tank with nice thick plants but to also have shrimp breeding, some sort of neocaridina shrimp. And I ordered kh & gh test kit coming in Sunday!