Hey guys i was just wonder about cleaner shrimp. I have had my 12 gallon nano cube up and running for about 2 months with 9 pounds of l/r and l/s. I used the natural live seawater to start the tank out. I have 2 clown fish and HADD a cleaner shrimp for about 3 weeks, that just died yesterday. Fine in the morning swimming around, after work found him dead. All test are down to 0, Ph is 8.0 and salt levels are good (.23- .24. What the heck happen any ideas? it stinks loses a buddy specially 25$ shrimp. Everything else in the tank is doing very well. I got purple alge growth all over my L/R. And today i picked up some hermit crabs and turbo snails, i was too upset to get another shrimp and didnt really have the money, and decided to wait. BUt any ideas or imput about the tank thank youu

You're Ph is a little low. Is that the max PH or the average? I ask because it can fluctuate and if that's the max, then you should really raise it up. You may also have not fed it enough. It requires more than just algae. I'd wait to get one until you get some fish for it to pick stuff off and to help eat food layin around.

the max was 8.0, it didnt really change at all, stayed around there. Should i get a ph buffer? and how many more fish could i get, i was thinking maybe a mandarin goby, idk what else i dont want to over populate the tank? but i do miss my cleaner shrimp cus he use to keep the bottom nice and clean, i just wish they werent soo much money.

sorry.. missed the part about you having 2 clowns.. Check your gh and kh levels. If they are low, then you def need to raise them. if 8.0 was your max, ur on the minimum ph level that is recommended for sw. So yea, raise it to at least 8.1 and even better to 8.2. do it slowly though so you dont harm your fish. Before you get another shrimp, be sure to check on its diet. a 12 gallon tank only running for 2 months doesnt have much for one to eat. I think they'll eat dry seaweed or something like that but dont quote me there. Also, check your calcium levels and see if you can get copper levels checked. Copper is deadly to sw inverts.

All those levels should be fine cus i use R/O water for water changes, could u suggest one other fish i could put in there thanks

its safter to check. Copper could leech from the rocks, substrate, or silicon. You may get a not so aggressive wrasse or a goby. tons of gobies out there so thats a hard choice. Maybe best to go with they goby since it's a bottom dweller and usually stays small.

No mandarin fishes in a 12 gallon. They need at least a 50 gallon tank, because of their diet. They have to have a ton of copepods and amphipods. Right now your tank is probably about as full as it should get, but you could probably put in a clown goby, or a masked goby or something. Something that maxes out 2 inches or under probably. You could probably try a watchman goby, but that would be pushing the limit.

agreed. mandarins need bigger tanks.. but they're not gobys. a small yellow watchman may work well. They dont get very large.

Yeah, I have a ocellaris clownfish and a yellow watchman goby in my 12 gallon NC DX. Working great. Just make sure that the yellow watchman goby would have a lot of caves and hiding places.

i think tons of people start out with yellow watchmens.. like me.. haha. I dont have a lot of hiding places, but mine likes to chill on top of the rocks about half the time. but it definately does need somewhere to hide.

Yeah, they are great starter fish. Generally gobies are great for beginners.