What's The Proper Water Parameter for Neocaridina and Caridina?

The Proper Shrimp Care

In order for a colony of shrimp to thrive and populate they will need the proper water parameters. Without the proper parameters the shrimp will not multiply and reproduce or worst; they will slowly die one by one or maybe even 2 or 3. Shrimp molt a lot! They molt about every 3-4 weeks, and they need to molt to grow bigger or populate. There is a cost/requirement in order for the shrimp to molt and that is calcium and magnesium. When you see the "Ring of Death" what that mean is the shrimp trying to molt and there is a chance it may not make it alive. What lead to this can also be the cause of low crude protein. A lack of protein can slow down the molting process and result in weaker shells. On average you will want to feed your shrimp between 40-47% Crude Protein. For Neocaridina tap water are fine as long as the TDS of your tap water is between 30ppm-75ppm (parts per million). Therefore, make sure to test your tap water. And speaking of testing tap water I have heard story of tap water contain ammonia NH3/NH4 or nitrate No3. As for the Caridina Shrimp the water you use MUST BE RO (Reverse Osmosis) or Distilled Water. If you don't have a RO system and can't afford one you can always buy Distilled Water from any grocery store. Make sure it says Distilled Water on the bottle. These little vibrant creatures love a steady water parameter; if you do too much water change or change too much of water then the shrimps won't multiply. Therefore a 10-15% water change biweekly is my recommendation. They do not care what kind of substrate you use whether is fake or real. A couple live plants will definitely boost up their happiness. These shrimps does not like hot water or fast current. 

Example of "Ring Of Death" is the white line you see slicing the head and the tail into half.

The Proper Water Parameter by using the API brand test kit:

Neocaridina Parameter:

• pH: 6-7.5 max
• gH: 5-9
• kH: 4-6
• TDS (Total Dissolve Solid) : 200-300 max
• Calcium + Magnesium
• Temperature: 65-78F (84F is the max)

Caridina Parameter: 

• pH 5.5-6.5 max
• gH: 5-9
• kH: 0-1 (Best at zero)
• TDS: 90-135 max
• Calcium + Magnesium
• Temperature: 65-78F (82F is the Max)

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