I'm here recommended from Reddit and I'm in a huge pickle
I wasn't able to cancel my order of shrimp when I discovered my tank parameters of my 5.5 gal were out of wack. They're still in the bag and the supplier said they'd be okay in the bag for a week or two while I get things straightened out (I got these guys from google.com)
Can anyone help me with what next step to take for their safety? Here are my parameters:
salinity: 1.010
pH: 7.8
ammonia: .50 ppm
nitrites: 2.0 ppm
nitrates: 10 ppm
This is probably set off by using Bio-Activ Live Aragonite sand for substrate when I should've just used the inert stuff. I got to these parameters doing partial water changes everyday and removing some of the sand until the shrimp got here, it's helped a ton but now I dont know what to do now that they're here.
Someone on reddit suggested just to dose Nite-Out II in the tank until it's cycled. I popped a dose in the 5.5 gal last night.
Someone else on reddit suggested I open the bag they're in and slowly add some partial salinity RO to their temp holding container in order to help them, and completely replace my substrate and let my tank fully cycle again while they wait there. I've heard that when you open the bag to air when it's waited awhile (they've been in there 4 days now incl travel time, just got here yesterday) their holding bag quickly develops ammonia, I'm worried that won't work but I'm unsure of my options.
Would it be wise to kind of cap the sand with the new substrate so nutrients won't leech into the upper tank, but I don't remove most of the nitrogen entirely?
Anyone have any tips of what to do? Sorry if this is a lot of information at once. Any help at all is appreciated.
I wasn't able to cancel my order of shrimp when I discovered my tank parameters of my 5.5 gal were out of wack. They're still in the bag and the supplier said they'd be okay in the bag for a week or two while I get things straightened out (I got these guys from google.com)
Can anyone help me with what next step to take for their safety? Here are my parameters:
salinity: 1.010
pH: 7.8
ammonia: .50 ppm
nitrites: 2.0 ppm
nitrates: 10 ppm
This is probably set off by using Bio-Activ Live Aragonite sand for substrate when I should've just used the inert stuff. I got to these parameters doing partial water changes everyday and removing some of the sand until the shrimp got here, it's helped a ton but now I dont know what to do now that they're here.
Someone on reddit suggested just to dose Nite-Out II in the tank until it's cycled. I popped a dose in the 5.5 gal last night.
Someone else on reddit suggested I open the bag they're in and slowly add some partial salinity RO to their temp holding container in order to help them, and completely replace my substrate and let my tank fully cycle again while they wait there. I've heard that when you open the bag to air when it's waited awhile (they've been in there 4 days now incl travel time, just got here yesterday) their holding bag quickly develops ammonia, I'm worried that won't work but I'm unsure of my options.
Would it be wise to kind of cap the sand with the new substrate so nutrients won't leech into the upper tank, but I don't remove most of the nitrogen entirely?
Anyone have any tips of what to do? Sorry if this is a lot of information at once. Any help at all is appreciated.
