Are these decorations safe to use in my shrimp tank?

[BostonJill]

Pink sea urchin, plastic grass, and white shells without messing up the water parameters?
I should probably avoid dried small starfish is that right?
Sorry if we discussed this before I just want to start off with no problems when I set up a new small tank.

[KenCotigirl]

I see no problem with any of them. As long as they are clean and natural they should be fine. You could soak them in brackish water for a week or so just to make sure there is no hidden ammonia causing debris. I have even let algae grow on some hardscape and then introduced it into the tank. It attracts a lot of attention from both snails and shrimp.

[BostonJill]

I see no problem with any of them. As long as they are clean and natural they should be fine. You could soak them in brackish water for a week or so just to make sure there is no hidden ammonia causing debris. I have even let algae grow on some hardscape and then introduced it into the tank. It attracts a lot of attention from both snails and shrimp.

Thanks Ken! Do you think boiling the urchins will kill everything that needs to be killed?
I can scrape any dried material out after the boiling.
Also if I boiled small dried starfish do you think that would still chance the water parameters?
I guess what I'm saying will boiling kill anything that can cause a problem with urchins and starfish?

[KenCotigirl]

I never boiled anything. Some people have added hardscape and had ammonia spikes. That is why I put it in a separate container. A few days a week maybe two later I do an ammonia check. Still zero I feel it is safe. Maybe boiling is a good idea. Maybe this is over kill but it makes me/you fell better. I would be careful with the grass. i do not know how the plastic will hold up to heat.
Ken

[BostonJill]

I never boiled anything. Some people have added hardscape and had ammonia spikes. That is why I put it in a separate container. A few days a week maybe two later I do an ammonia check. Still zero I feel it is safe. Maybe boiling is a good idea. Maybe this is over kill but it makes me/you fell better. I would be careful with the grass. i do not know how the plastic will hold up to heat.
Ken

I think the plastic grass should be fine. I meant I would just boil anything that was alive at one time.
Do you think if I boiled a dry starfish it would be safe? I like the idea of testing it in a separate container.

[nick11380]

I’m just guessing here but wouldn’t putting the dried starfish in the water or boiling it rehydrate it and turn it into a mess.

[Mustafa]

I’m just guessing here but wouldn’t putting the dried starfish in the water or boiling it rehydrate it and turn it into a mess.

That's exactly what would happen...even without boiling it. Honestly, until I read this thread and performed a search, I had no idea dried starfish even existed...amazing. It's one thing to collect shells of dead animals, but another to go kill a bunch of starfish and dry them. At least that's how, I assume, they are harvested and processed.