Ok, I reread this entire thread.
A. I don't grow Algae for my Shrimp !
They eat biofilm off of plants and surfaces.
I feed a variety of quality Shrimp food, Omega One color flakes, Omega One shrimp pellets , Omega One algae wafers ( just a tiny piece), and Rapashy gel food. I used to feed only 2x weekly when tank was Shrimp only.
I feed daily to twice a day now, tiny amounts, for my fish and Shrimp eat that.
I do blanch veggies/greens here and there.
I also add an Indian Almond leaf and Cholla cactus skeleton as they grow lots of Biofilm and Shrimps love them.
B. I never run my lights over 6-8 hours. You are heading for disaster blasting lights for so long. Algae can ruin a planted tank.
C. You still say you change water, weekly to every 2 weeks. Try to stick to weekly. TDS needs to be kept lower in Shrimp tanks. Look it up. Total Dissolved Solids...your phrase of the day.
D. If you want to rip up your Moss Ball, go ahead. It is a type of algae. I wouldn't, but I like the round shape.
E. 26c = almost 79f that is too warm for RCS IME. Others may say it's fine. I keep and breed mine in unheated tanks in a bedroom. The room is naturally a bit warmer than rest of house. Mine breed better in low 70sf YMMV
Caring for Red Cherry Shrimp | The Shrimp Farm
Red Cherry Shrimp .:. Neocaridina heteropoda sp. "Red Cherry" .:. Freshwater Aquarium Shrimp Species Information Page
F. Anacharis plants prefer cool water.
Planted tanks should have at least 2" of substrate. My tanks have at least 1.5-2" of sand. 3" is supposed to be ideal, but I don't go that deep. I use MTS ( snails ) to keep sand aerated.
I use DIY root tabs that I buy from other hobbyists either on here or from The Planted Tank. It's free to join, only members can see sales section. I add root tabs about every 4 months.
I started with 15 RCS. I had over 100 in a few months before I added fish. I wish I had kept it to just Shrimp and Otos as I miss seeing the baby Shrimp.
CRS are more fragile. RCS are the way to go to learn to run a Shrimp tank.
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