a few unrelated questions

[mistermismatch]

hey i have a couple unrelated questions. just a few minor things i figured were small enough that they could go in the same post.

1. i tried having a coral banded shrimp once and he lasted about 4 days. the minute he molted my yellow damsel ripped all his arms and legs off :|. ever since ive been hesitant about adding any shrimp but i really would love to have one. i was wondering if i could slowly introduce a shrimp into the system via a net breeder hanging in the tank? my thinking is that the damsel will lose interest after a while while the shrimp is safely in the net breeder. then i could put the shrimp in the tank. any thoughts????

2. how much light does chaeto need in a sump???? im running a little fixture i made from LED strips (like the kind you use to accent your car that you can buy at autozone). they were cheap, water and salt resistant, and easy to work with. i really wanted to use some LEds in the sump to cut down on my already huge electric bill. The package says they are 12 volt and i have no idea about wattage. they are 2 white 12inch strips over about 13 inches of designated 'fuge area in my tank. really they were just for show more than anything untill i got the chaeto. any help?????

 

[pat8you]

1. Damsels can turn into some really nasty characters. If he did that to your coral banded shrimp last time there is a good chance he will be a repeat offender. If i were you the only shrimp i would try now would be a cleaner shrimp. Even aggressive fish will often leave them alone because the provide a service. Still not a sure bet and i would still start him off in a breeder net to make sure your damsel won't just gun him down as soon as you drop him in the tank. If your damsel is really that aggressive then i would consider getting rid of it now because it will cause even more problems as it gets bigger unless you plan on having a very aggressive tank set up.

2. Chaeto doesn't need all that much light. The more light you provide the faster it will grow ( and lock up nutrients for you to remove). I use a compact florecent spot light that you can pick up at a hardware store. They are still pretty energy efficient and really cheap.