A crazy idea

[Darkkon]

After getting a bigger 2 ft tank i was contemplating converting my old 1.5 ft tank into a shrimp tank. However it would be hard to get family support to get it up and running unless i can make it a really low maintainence one.

So... is it possible to have a shrimp tank with only a internal filter and nothing else? I know there are low light plants, but in this case i am thinking of NO lights, just tank placed next to window where sunlight shines in.

Also, can shrimps survive without a fan? Seriously right now my 2ft has a fan and i think it's pretty limited in cooling ability... difference between on and off is 1 degree C only. What i heard is shrimps thrive in cool water so does that mean no chiller no go?

[budak]

I have a 20 cm x 10 x 10 cm tank populated by 9 boraras maculata, 3 kuhli loaches and countless tiger, malayan, cherry and 'Taiwan' shrimps (the latter very prolific).

No filter, no base fert, no CO2 - just a 11 W clip on PL light (common in many lFs) a very thin (0.5 cm) layer of lonestar gravel), java moss, java fern and anubias tied to driftwood.

It's as low maintenance as it gets. Lights are on 10 hours daily (via a timer) and I change water once a fortnight, adding just anti-chlorine and a little Mallick Lushgrow. PLants grow slowly but are otherwise fine. No algae whatsoever. No fan either. It was set up last November.

YOu just have to start off modestly with a few hardy inhabitants (I used guppies to cycle) before you load in the shrimps (try a few first). Once stable, just daily feeding (half a algae wafer or flakes, not too much) and fortnightly 30% water changes.