Trying new setup; shrimp died in previous attempt

[attygirl]

I am trying a new setup. From my prior post, you will recall that I purchased 20 shrimp, "live rock" and "live water" and attempted to establish a tank in a large vase. Today, there is no sign of life in the vase. I went to Petsmart and purchased a "modern" betta bowl that holds 1.2 gallons of water. I also purchased 2 pounds of gravel, two small plastic plants, shells, and some fossilized coral rock. I already had Instant Ocean and bought more distilled water. I was going to use left over lava rock from my previous setup that I had let dry out but am concerned since I do not know if I can rinse it off well enough for it to not cause problems.

My questions:
Can I use the lava rock and if so, what do I have to do to make sure it does not contaminate my new system? I like the look of the lava rock but can live without it.
Do I need to add Cycle or something like it to help with the setup? If so, can I add the shrimp sooner than 2 to 3 weeks?
Should I buy a "master test kit" to test for everything? I already bought the API ammonia test kit.
Should I purchase the macroalgae now to help get the tank going and later get the shrimp?
Do I really need snails and if so, why? How many should go into a 1 gallon tank? I am concerned about them breeding.
Assuming that the water in my first tank is really contaminated and I happen to find a survivor, should I remove the shrimp and put him into my new setup even if it has not cycled for 2 to 3 weeks?

Thank you for your help

Lisa

[KenCotigirl]

Wow that is a lot of questions. Since you are starting from scratch I would follow the supershrimp instructions. You already learned the hard way how easy it is to mess up. I believe in the take it slow method. Get your tank setup with water and decor. Buy a batch of algae and snails. Maybe you can PM a member and they can give you the snails and algae just pay for shipping. Wait another week or so and buy another batch of shrimp. That would be about a month from setup to adding shrimp. Buy API nitrite kit. If you do not over feed the snail population should stabilize over time. Give the excess to a friend. Do not add anything from the other tank. 2lbs of gravel seems like a lot for a one gallon tank. Try lava rock from another source. If you find a shrimp or two alive add them to the new tank. Keep it simple. The less variables easier to solve a problem.
Ken

[MelWong]

COTIGIRL seems to have gotten it all down for technical advice, but another bit of advice is that these shrimp do hide very well even if they seem dead - mine aren't hiding all the time, but when the spouse comes in to try and catch them swimming around they can be a bit perverse and hide in there (even though they're perfectly fine swimming around when I'm there), so don't write all your shrimp off yet.

[attygirl]

Ken and Mel: Thanks for your responses. I am sorry for all the questions, but I have never kept any kind of aquatic pet before nor do not have any friends with this hobby either. And, the pets stores I have visited have been less than helpful. The new 1g tank is up and running -- the only thing I added that was not on the prescribed directions on this site were a few drops of Prime to remove any tap water contaminates left on the gravel, coral, etc from rinsing. The new tank will have light on it (a LCD desk lamp) for 12 hours a day. I plan to add the macro algae and snails after June 3 when Mustafa returns from vacation and can send them. But, by that time, could I also add the shrimp as well?

Sadly, all the shrimp in my first attempted vase died. I removed a few of the lava rocks last night and there was no life. I was amazed at the amount of "dust" that came off the lava rocks and clouded the water with sediment that I am wondering if little guys suffocated . . . I threw out the lava rocks and everything else to start fresh.

Again, thanks for the help.

[MelWong]

I plan to add the macro algae and snails after June 3 when Mustafa returns from vacation and can send them. But, by that time, could I also add the shrimp as well?

That should be fine, yes, and I'm sure they'll appreciate their new home. I also dosed my tank with Prime to make sure the tap water residue from rinsing my rocks wouldn't hurt the shrimp. Also, as for the snails, they won't outbreed your shrimp if you don't overfeed the tank, and they're actually quite fun to watch when your shrimp are being quiet.

- Mel

[Mustafa]

The snails are definitely not as efficient as the Supershrimp at turning the little food in the tank into biomass, plus the shrimp have legs (and can swim), which is a huge advantage when it comes to reaching newly "sprouted" algae and bacteria etc.. So snail reproduction is directly related to the amount of excess food available in a tank. Plus, I personally don't think the snails look bad at all in a tank, even in large numbers. They add even more live to an already quite alive (after cycling, maturation etc.) tank.