Compatability of fish and shrimp

Question
Hello Susan,
I have nematodes, planarian, snails, and water fleas that I want to rid off the aquarium.
Well, I've got some information that Kuhli loaches can solve this problem but there seems to be a lack of them in the aquarium trade currently. So, I'm here to ask what other fish can help me solve this problem.
Things to note...

1)My tank would be a shrimp tank(red cherry shrimp and more)so I can only house fish that are "shrimp safe". I'm fine with some of the baby shrimp being eaten but not the adults.

2)I use ADA amazonia aqua soil which has peat(Organic matter) in it and fine particles of sand/dust so fishes that can stir up the gravel would not be a good choice.

3)I have driftwood(Organic matter) in my tank for decoration and I have plants growing on them. I only feed my fish once every 2 weeks so there wouldn't be any left over food. I can't clean the gravel due to plants neither can I use an in-ground filter.

Another thing, I read somewhere that dicrossus filamentosus can live with shrimp due to their small mouths. Is this true? Because I might want to have them in my tank in the future too. I'm thinking that maybe I should let the shrimp breed to quite a massive amount before adding the dicrossus in. That way, the breeding rate might be faster than the consumption rate.

Thanks!

Answer
Hi Arron,
Adding fish to get rid of the Planaria, nematodes and water fleas may not be the best solution. Some fish -may- eat them. Kuhli loaches may. But in many instances fish do not seem to eat the tiny critters. Perhaps they are constantly eating their fill or simply grow use to them. Or maybe they don't prefer the taste.

Nematodes, Planaria, and Water fleas can arrive on aquatic plants added to the tank. And their populations can thrive if the dissolved organic matter in the aquarium is high enough to provide them a good foodsource to sustain a large population.

I'm not sure what fish you have already. Or if you have shrimp in your tank already.

When mixing shrimp and fish together simply keep the small peaceful species like neons, harlequin rasboras, cardinal tetras, black neons, Endlers livebearer, Cories, Ottos and so on.

Theres a good chance the dicrossus filamentosus could eat a lot of your shrimp. Its a risk. But some people do keep the two together.

I do not have much experience in using strong chemicals to kill off pests like Planaria as I usually just do the daily 50% water change routine and the creatures are gone within 2 weeks or less.

There are shrimp keepers that use chemicals to get rid of planaria and even hydra that are invading their shrimp tanks -  

This article might interest you -
http://www.planetinverts.com/killing_planaria_and_hydra.html

This site also provides superb information about almost any aquarium shrimp species and overall shrimp tank care.

I hope this helps and best of luck!
Susan~