Completely new and would appreciate help!

[Meowly]

I've been wanting pet shrimp since a few years ago when I went to a family friend's house in Asia and he had a huge bowl of tiny shrimp. They were so neat to watch!

Fast forward, I was updating my online Christmas list and was notified that someone had bought me a Marina Cubus betta kit that had been sitting on my list for a while. I figured it would be the perfect beginners Opae Ula tank as it is only 1 gallon, has a breathing hole on top, and without an unnecessary built-in filter.

I've been reading a lot of threads on this forum but I feel like some of them are really advanced. It makes me feel like I'm i over my head and I just really want to provide a happy life for the future shrimp!

My plan is:

Substrate - I was looking into Caribsea Moonlight Sand, but of course open to more suggestions! I thought that the white would make the red shrimp really visible.

Macroalgae - Marimo ball (but I heard this tends to overgrow easily and overwhelm?), do you have other suggestions?

I also wanted to put in a dead sea fan or something that they can climb around and still have lots of visibility. I really like the minimal clean look that the Ecospheres had. I'm hearing dead sea fans are essentially dead coral and can still release nitrates? I'm also reading about buffers like a limestone or eggshells? Are there other options too?

I was also unsure of what type of food. I keep seeing just plain fish flakes or spirulina?

Also lastly, snails. I know that snails can reproduce quickly as I remember them overtaking my friend's fish tank a long time ago. I've no other experience with snails but I kind of want only 1-2 snails in there, I don't want them to be very visible. Is it feasible to only have 1 snail in there? or do you recommend more? Most places are selling them in a pack of 10 and I'm scared they'll reproduce and overwhelm my tiny tank. Do you guys have any specific type of snail that is most recommended? Most snails I've seen are brown but I wouldn't mind a more colorful one if I had to had more snails in there.

I am thinking about receiving all these items together and using RO water with marine salt to start. I then plan on cycling it for about a month with the whole setup (is that sufficient time?) before I start buying shrimp. How many shrimp do you suggest? I hear up to 50 per gallon, but I'm also afraid they will start spasming and dying (from the horror stories I've read!) I am a bit tight on money but I want to be able to give them a great life without breaking the bank and I am seeing that they cost around $2 dollars per shrimp and I don't want that to be $100 down the drain because I did something wrong. The life of a poor nursing student.

Please help me, I would appreciate it so very much!

[KenCotigirl]

Meowly since you said you have read a lot of posts you may have come across one or two of mine. I also assume you read Mustafa's articles on Opae ula. But I will repeat my version/suggestion of Mustafa's minimalist approach.

1. A one gallon tank is great.
2. RO water great.
3. Marine salt like Instant Ocean used at half strength great
4. Substrate such as Caribsea Moonlight Sand great. 1/4"-1/2" great, do no buy a bag. See if the fish store has an open bag and sell you a small handful.
5. The marimo ball may not survive long term.
6. Dead sea fan. I use them. They look great.
7. Patience, patience, patience. Did I say patience.
8. Cycling: add brackish water, substrate, sea fan, rocks, broken coral. Wait a month, two would be better. When you see algae and a film on surfaces cycling is well along. I would add a portion of Mustafa's macro algae (it would be nice if Mustafa would start selling his macroalgae balls) and 5 snails. When the snails grow and begin to multiply order shrimp. Another month or two I guess. Total time 2-4 months. If you follow this path especially the 4 months no water tests would be necessary.
9. 10 shrimp are fine but 20 would be nicer.
10. I added a low cost low output led puck light on my desk top tanks. I found one that was dimmable. Nice to have flexibility.
11. Food. Any good quality fish food. Smallest size you can buy. You do not need much. $1-$2. So cheap you can replace it yearly.

[Meowly]

Regarding the Marino ball, what would else would you suggest?

Where do you know of a reputable place to buy dead sea fans? I never know whether or not the ebay sources are good. Would the dead sea fan also double as broken coral? or do those corals need to be alive. Would I just buy coral from a pet store then? and how much to buy for a 1 gallon? Is this something I never need to change out?

Lastly, the store here sells the snails in 10, but is there a specific species I should look for at a pet shop then if I only want 5?

20 shrimp is much more manageable than 50, price wise. I can do this. It seems patience is key, and I can do that. After 2-4 months, is the key looking for a biofilm on top of the water?

Thank you again!

[KenCotigirl]

I use Mustafa's macroalgae. I bought the sea fan on ebay. The vendor said they collect dead fans. Hope they were telling the truth. I have dead coral and broken pieces. My fish store sells base rock and broken coral for a couple bucks a pound. Buy as much or as little as you want for looks. Too many hiding places hard to see shrimp. MTS snails maybe a catch all name for a number of small snails. Buy 10 and remove some if their population grows too much. You need a brackish snail. The biofilm should begin after a month or two. It grows on surfaces, rocks, coral and glass.

Ken