CHALKY GHOST SHRIMP

[vanvran]

I need help please! My water readings are 0 ammo; 0 trites; 20 trates; 7.2 PH. I do 25-20% weekly water changes, gravel vac and change filter monthly. My gs were bought a month ago. I have 2 platies; 2 ottocinclus and 5 neon tetras in my tank. There's no sign of a worm in any of the gs, only this white discoloration throughout, they are eating and swimming around, except for the whitest one who is now looking almost yellow, and hiding under a plant, not eating.

 

[gale]

My ghost shrimp that I've had for a month or so are turning white too-I lost 2 out of the 4 and of the other 2, one is very chalky looking and one is just a little. I think in my case it's because of my very soft water-there's no calcium in it to harden their shells after they moult. I'm going to start using a combination of hard and soft water and see if that works better.

Do you use soft water?

 

[vanvran]

I don't know what I have! I think my LFS said it was soft. So how do you add hard water?

 

[SRC]

You probably just need some iodine suppliment. Kents works well.

After they molt they especially need it. It won't harm your fish or plants either.

 

[vanvran]

Gayle, is your betta's tank heated and or filtered?

 

[lucky62]

EDIT



you could try using a small amount of crushed corral to raise calcium level in your tank .

 

[SRC]

Many shrimp keepers believe that iodine is essential to help freshwater shrimp complete their molt. In tanks with low iodine, molting shrimp turn white and die. Adding iodine (as iodide) can help prevent this. Those in the Shrimp Group recommend using half the recommended dosage of Kent Marine Iodine with water changes. I got some and used it the first time on 3/9/02 in my 40 gallon tank only to test it. At the time, there was one ghost shrimp (who was carrying eggs but dropped them before dying) becoming opaque (just starting). The iodine did not save her though as she was dead on 3/11/02.
http/www.fishpondinfo.com/shrimp.htm

I have not been able to find any reference to using the crushed coral in FW, but after reading advice on saltwater ornaments, I see a red flag.
<Yup, big red one, unless you want to keep African cichlids -- in which case it's a big green flag. Crushed coral will raise the pH in your tank as it dissolves. If you have enough crushed coral in the tank, your pH can go above 8.0!>
http/www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwgravelfaqs.htm

I've bought 10 Ghost shrimp, 8 of them died the same way...they turned white and not long after were dead. I did some research on them and found that they need iodine supplimentation for when they molt. If they don't have it and they molt it does something irreversable to their exoskeleton, thus turning it white. If you add iodine to the water once a month (Kent's Marine Iodine is fairly inexpensive..for a 8oz bottle, and that will last a good while)...this doesn't happen.

Minimum Tank Size: 10 gallon
Care Level: Easy
Tank Conditions: 68-85°F; pH 6.5-8.0; KH 3-10
Max. Size In Aquarium: Up to 1"
Color Form: Orange, Transparent, Yellow
Temperament: Peaceful
Diet: Omnivore
Origin: Farm Raised
Family: Palaeomonidae
http/www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Di...cfm?pCatId=1468

Aquarium PH Levels
Aquarium PH levels - pH is simply the level of acidity or alkalinity of water. The level of water's pH can range from any where between 1-14. Water of pH 7.0 is called neutral and is neither acidic nor alkaline instead a balance of both. pH levels above 7.0 are considered alkaline and those below 7.0 are acidic.

In aquatic environments, animals generally prefer neutral water. In freshwater the pH is typically about 6.5-7.0 with only a few species able to survive outside this range. For marine species the range is even more fine - the pH level MUST be highly alkaline, that is, 8.3 ± 0.2.
http/www.fao.com.au/aqua-ph-levels.asp

 

[gale]

Gayle, is your betta's tank heated and or filtered?

It's filtered. There's no actual heater but the light keeps it at a steady temp during the day and at night I wrap a blanket around it (when the light is off) to keep it steady overnight. It works like a charm.

 

[vanvran]

Gale: what kind of filter for your betta? Underground?

SRC: My lfs said iodine was very bad for fish. I don't know what to do?

 

[gale]

Gale: what kind of filter for your betta? Underground?

SRC: My lfs said iodine was very bad for fish. I don't know what to do?

My tank is an eclipse explorer which comes with a filter in the top of it and a bio wheel. I really like it a lot and my betta seems to as well.