After a disastrous move where I managed to crack the base of one of the tanks and also one side of the sump it took a while to regain the motivation to get the shrimp rack up and running again. The shrimp survived in the transportation buckets for over six weeks with only an air stone running for oxygenation and water circulation. This goes to show that caridina shrimp are actually pretty hardy when there is minimal variations in the water chemistry and as I had thinned out the numbers before moving apartments there was minimal bioload so the bacteria on the plants was enough to keep the toxin levels down.
I was able to get the two outside compartments of the top tank running and cycled to be able to house all the shrimp. Making sure to divide them up so I would be able to separate them back into their colours without mixing the colonies of the same colours I had.
The new tanks are running ADA amazonia which still leaches a fair amount of ammonia but as I didn't add plants I just left it. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get them cycled before going on a month holiday so I have only now divided the shrimp back out into their own tanks.
I was able to get the two outside compartments of the top tank running and cycled to be able to house all the shrimp. Making sure to divide them up so I would be able to separate them back into their colours without mixing the colonies of the same colours I had.
New replacement tanks for the sump and lower aquarium
I managed to buy three identical 60x45x45 cm aquariums for a good price from a local aquarium builder who had them sitting around after their buyer didn't want them. With one of the aquariums I made it into a sump and using the dividers with stainless steel mesh from the cracked tank, I divided the other two tanks in half and drilled them in the back for plumbing.The new tanks are running ADA amazonia which still leaches a fair amount of ammonia but as I didn't add plants I just left it. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get them cycled before going on a month holiday so I have only now divided the shrimp back out into their own tanks.
Lessons learned from moving aquariums
- In future I plan on keeping the tanks to 60 cm maximum as the large 4' tanks are a pain to move and require an extra person to be able to lift and even with two people it is difficult to get the top tank into position.
- Aquariums with bottom plumbing are difficult to move as either the tanks have to be fully drained to remove the pipes or the plumbing will stick out the bottom and make it harder to get off the rack and also require blocks to transport.
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