Best substrate for breeding CRS

[Dincho]

Shirakura was the first brand i ever used, i thought it was brilliant until i tried others. The substrate is their best product, i have it in about 6 of my shrimp tanks, the only downside is it lasts about 6 months less than other substrates that do the same job.

Give Benibachi or Ebi-Ten a try, you will never go back to Shirakura.

 

[Antoni]

Certainly will do, Bungy! I will love to see your setup too and get some of your shrimps 😀

Shirakura was the first brand i ever used, i thought it was brilliant until i tried others. The substrate is their best product, i have it in about 6 of my shrimp tanks, the only downside is it lasts about 6 months less than other substrates that do the same job.

Give Benibachi or Ebi-Ten a try, you will never go back to Shirakura.

That is really interesting! I will try them for sure, the only problem is that in UK you can not get hold of any shrimp substrates... 🙁

 

[Aquadream]

I have been using only Shirakura for CRS both in the tank and in the external filter. I do not know how so many say that it does not last long, but in my set ups it goes for years an there was never crumbling problems, not once.
Certainly the rumour that Sirakura can actually kill shrimp is a big manure business.
The survival rate in my CRS tanks is always over 95%.
I use RO water with GH (self made) booster only, no additives, no ferts or CO2.
I also use some moss, Fissidens Fontanus in particular, which developes very well in CRS tank propagating only on byproducts from the shrimp feeding.
The filtration is done by under gravel filters (self made) and external filters Eheim 2224 filled with only Shirakura substrate for e medium.
The under gravel filter is basically a flat plastic plate 1.5mm thick with a lot of holes and a net on top so that the Shirakura substrate will not pass trough. Then the plastic plate is placed on top of several stand offs made out of shortened plant pots.

As for the Shirakura shrimp food I am not convinced that is as good as some other foods out there, but never had a comparative test done to establish what is what.

I can not say how does Shirakura substrate compares to other brands. From my experience it is perfect in any every way.

 

[Dincho]

That is the only downfall 🙁 Although, more and more people are starting to use Akadama bonsai soil, which is fairly easy to get hold of over here. I tried it in a few tanks but didn't like the colour so changed it, for the short time it was in there it done a great job buffering the water. If you don't mind a lighter substrate then i recommend giving it a go, its cheaper than substrate too.

 

[Dincho]

I have been using only Shirakura for CRS both in the tank and in the external filter. I do not know how so many say that it does not last long, but in my set ups it goes for years an there was never crumbling problems, not once.
Certainly the rumour that Sirakura can actually kill shrimp is a big manure business.
The survival rate in my CRS tanks is always over 95%.
I use RO water with GH (self made) booster only, no additives, no ferts or CO2.
I also use some moss, Fissidens Fontanus in particular, which developes very well in CRS tank propagating only on byproducts from the shrimp feeding.
The filtration is done by under gravel filters (self made) and external filters Eheim 2224 filled with only Shirakura substrate for e medium.
The under gravel filter is basically a flat plastic plate 1.5mm thick with a lot of holes and a net on top so that the Shirakura substrate will not pass trough. Then the plastic plate is placed on top of several stand offs made out of shortened plant pots.

As for the Shirakura shrimp food I am not convinced that is as good as some other foods out there, but never had a comparative test done to establish what is what.

I can not say how does Shirakura substrate compares to other brands. From my experience it is perfect in any every way.

I have to agree its a good substrate, the issue i had was its lifespan, 12 months tops. After 12 months it stops buffering the water so well and ph levels start creeping up. I have also heard many stories about it killing shrimp, its blahblahblahblahblahblahblahs, people used it as an excuse for there poor understanding of the hobby.

I know use Ebi Gold, same colour, size and target parameters as the Shirakura but it lasts about 6-8 months longer.

 

[Aquadream]

I have been using only Shirakura for CRS both in the tank and in the external filter. I do not know how so many say that it does not last long, but in my set ups it goes for years an there was never crumbling problems, not once.
Certainly the rumour that Sirakura can actually kill shrimp is a big manure business.
The survival rate in my CRS tanks is always over 95%.
I use RO water with GH (self made) booster only, no additives, no ferts or CO2.
I also use some moss, Fissidens Fontanus in particular, which developes very well in CRS tank propagating only on byproducts from the shrimp feeding.
The filtration is done by under gravel filters (self made) and external filters Eheim 2224 filled with only Shirakura substrate for e medium.
The under gravel filter is basically a flat plastic plate 1.5mm thick with a lot of holes and a net on top so that the Shirakura substrate will not pass trough. Then the plastic plate is placed on top of several stand offs made out of shortened plant pots.

As for the Shirakura shrimp food I am not convinced that is as good as some other foods out there, but never had a comparative test done to establish what is what.

I can not say how does Shirakura substrate compares to other brands. From my experience it is perfect in any every way.

I have to agree its a good substrate, the issue i had was its lifespan, 12 months tops. After 12 months it stops buffering the water so well and ph levels start creeping up. I have also heard many stories about it killing shrimp, its blah, people used it as an excuse for there poor understanding of the hobby.

I know use Ebi Gold, same colour, size and target parameters as the Shirakura but it lasts about 6-8 months longer.

I think it all depends on the load. More shrimp in one case less in the other. Differences in the water supplements and so on.

My smaller CRS tank is only 15 litres. It does not have under gravel filter. It was started about 18 months ago. The gravel is still in one piece and the water parameters are all the same.
I guess the reason is that I do not expect the substrate to buffer anything and therefore stop doing the job. I just use the RO water with the correct GH buffer and always keep the same water parameters at the regular water changes.