Snails

[Barrie Smart]

I think this subject might have been covered before, so my apologies in
advance if I'm wasting anyone's time.

My 3' x 18" x 18" tank has heaps of small snails resident, which I think
came with plants I bought from a LFS. Didn't realise at the time I
should have givent the plants a quick bath in something before I planted
them in the tank - I'll know next time.

I pick them out of the tank as they get close to where I can get at them
- but its obviously going to be a never-ending job, as I bet they breed
faster than I pinch (!) Someone did tell me that snails aren't
necessarily all bad, as they do clean up excess food, some algae etc.

I went to another LFS and asked, and they showed me "Snail-Rid" which
they said would work. However, it expressly mentioned a problem in soft
water aquariums, which mine is, and I don't want to lose any of the fish
I have (guppies right now, and they don't seem to have any adverse
reactions to the snails, altho I believe the snails can harbor disease
that can be passed on to fish).

My question is - I thought I read the Clown Loaches will help reduce
snail quanities - is that so? I read up on them, and see they're
carnivorous, bottom dwellers etc, but no mention of any effect on
snails. Also, if they're carnivorous, what could happen to the guppies?

Alternatively, does anyone have any suggestions? I am thinking I'd buy a
2nd small tank, transfer the fish to it - clean the bigger tank,
restock with treated plants, new gravel etc. A big task, but it probably
might pay off for other reasons in the future. I've got 2 of everything,
pumps, heaters etc, so I'd only be buying a tank. If I did, and
suggestions on size?

I'd appreciate any comments.

Regards

Barrie

[Neil Law]

On Thu, 03 Jul 2003 19:57:23 +1000, Barrie Smart >
wrote:

>I think this subject might have been covered before, so my apologies in
>advance if I'm wasting anyone's time.
>
>
>My question is - I thought I read the Clown Loaches will help reduce
>snail quanities - is that so? I read up on them, and see they're
>carnivorous, bottom dwellers etc, but no mention of any effect on
>snails. Also, if they're carnivorous, what could happen to the guppies?
>
I had a big snail problem in my community tank. Added 4 clown loaches and all I
ever see are empty snail shells. Haven't seen a snail in 2-3 years.

They are great fish to have. They haven't touched any of my Danios, Mollies or
Plecos.

[Graham Ramsay]

"Barrie Smart" wrote
> Alternatively, does anyone have any suggestions?

A trio of Yoyo (Pakistani) loaches will make short
work of your snails and are great fish in their own right.

--
Graham Ramsay
You might be a Bright:
www.the-brights.net

[Flash Wilson]

On Thu, 3 Jul 2003 15:18:03 +0100, Graham Ramsay
> wrote:
>"Barrie Smart" wrote
>> Alternatively, does anyone have any suggestions?
>
>A trio of Yoyo (Pakistani) loaches will make short
>work of your snails and are great fish in their own right.

And I don't even have room for that, so I've got a khulhi and
it's making short work of the snails ;)



--
Flash Wilson
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Losing the Electric Ballroom to compulsory purchase by LUL sucks!
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[Sherry Michael Weller]

Honestly, if the snails are not hurting anything, I'd leave them be. If
you just have too many and want to weed out the population, put a
blanched lettuce leaf in there and wait for them to climb over it. Then
remove the leaf and the snails.


Barrie Smart wrote:

> I pick them out of the tank as they get close to where I can get at them
> - but its obviously going to be a never-ending job, as I bet they breed
> faster than I pinch (!) Someone did tell me that snails aren't
> necessarily all bad, as they do clean up excess food, some algae etc.

[Cammie]

"Barrie Smart" > wrote in message
...
> My question is - I thought I read the Clown Loaches will help reduce
> snail quanities - is that so?


I have red cap orandas (like big fancy fantail goldfish) and they took care
of my snail problem.. Yep, turns out they LOVE escargot! LOL They suck the
snails right out of their shells and eat them whole. yum yum

[Flash Wilson]

On Thu, 3 Jul 2003 17:13:28 +0000 (UTC), Flash Wilson > wrote:
>And I don't even have room for that, so I've got a khulhi and
>it's making short work of the snails ;)

A day later I found him - stuffed full and bloated, but dead :(

--
Flash Wilson Webmaster & UNIX SysAdmin
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[Flash Wilson]

On Sat, 5 Jul 2003 09:05:02 -0400, Jim Brown > wrote:
>Interesting. I have never seen any snail reduction capabilities in any of
>the kuhlii's kept over the years. Right now, there is a large pair (closing

Hmmm, maybe it wasn't that that he ate then (I've still got snails
but TBH I've got huge numbers.) He was definitely lots larger though.
And very definitely dead :(((

>in on 5 inches) in an aquarium that is heavily populated with Malaysian
>livebearing snails. Never any indication of them wanting anything to do
>with the snails, even if some small ones are crushed. It would be nice if
>they were as efficient as clown loaches, as the various kuhlii's are
>appealing to me. The skunk loaches help when they are moved into snail
>infested tanks, but they get rough on other fish. Never met a mean kuhlii.

Hmm. Well hey, you've been doing this for *ages* and me only a few
years, so practically every fish I have is new to me. I thought all
loaches liked snails (I know kuhliis are small but most of my snails
are babies - very ickle) and the guy in the LFS agreed and suggested
I have one instead of one (or more) YoYos. I am very much corrected.

>If they were well known as snail killers/eaters, I would have them in every
>tank.

Meantime I have a kuhlii which I didn't want to have killed but
which obviously wasn't happy, (although I can now spell it :)
and a major snail problem.

I dont like to "borrow" a clown into that tank as the water params
are quite different - the clowns are in my medium hard, more basic
tank, this is the slightly acidic, softer, slightly cooler tank.

Any ideas on what WOULD suit the tank and those parameters?
Something small that likes escargots?

Thanks for the advice.
--
Flash . o O ( www.gorge.org )

[Flash Wilson]

On Sat, 5 Jul 2003 20:30:37 -0400, Jim Brown > wrote:
>Probably, trapping the snails in a jar with pellets will be the most
>effective removal for you.

I've been trying this with a jar on its side at the bottom, with
some algae wafers (which I know the snails love) inside it.

So far my cardinals have been having fun. It's really brought them
out of themselves having food trapped in a jar at their level, and
they go in and out like anything! So much fun to watch that I
might keep a jar of food in there permanently.

But I now have a jar of cardinals. My snails (which go nuts for
algae wafers on the gravel) have been carrying on with my plants
instead.

Any ideas for technique?! It sounds like a good plan but it isn't
quite working.

I guess I could just feed wafers as normal and try to be better
at scooping them up when covered in snails. Usually it takes me
a turn or two, and the snails run away. (Yes, I know they cant
run fast! But if they spread out it's harder to scoop them up!)

Snail ideas very very welcome!

--
Flash Wilson
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<rant> Outlook -> Tools -> Options -> Mail Format -> Plain Text
Quote properly. Obey http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc1855.txt </rant>

[Earl D Fitzgerald]

Ummm can you say loach? The yoyo loach is one of the best snail eaters that
are smallish and don't mind being solitary.

They are also aren't too hard to catch after you figure out where thier den
is... I had a single loach clear out ALL snails from a 75e tank that was
heavily planted. I had to spent a good amount of time removing the
shells...

just my two cents...

Fishboy


"Flash Wilson" > wrote in message
...
> On Sat, 5 Jul 2003 20:30:37 -0400, Jim Brown > wrote:
> >Probably, trapping the snails in a jar with pellets will be the most
> >effective removal for you.
>
> I've been trying this with a jar on its side at the bottom, with
> some algae wafers (which I know the snails love) inside it.
>
> So far my cardinals have been having fun. It's really brought them
> out of themselves having food trapped in a jar at their level, and
> they go in and out like anything! So much fun to watch that I
> might keep a jar of food in there permanently.
>
> But I now have a jar of cardinals. My snails (which go nuts for
> algae wafers on the gravel) have been carrying on with my plants
> instead.
>
> Any ideas for technique?! It sounds like a good plan but it isn't
> quite working.
>
> I guess I could just feed wafers as normal and try to be better
> at scooping them up when covered in snails. Usually it takes me
> a turn or two, and the snails run away. (Yes, I know they cant
> run fast! But if they spread out it's harder to scoop them up!)
>
> Snail ideas very very welcome!
>
> --
> Flash Wilson
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
> <rant> Outlook -> Tools -> Options -> Mail Format -> Plain Text
> Quote properly. Obey http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc1855.txt </rant>

[Flash Wilson]

On Wed, 9 Jul 2003 20:14:01 +0100, Marcus Fox
> wrote:
>> Snail ideas very very welcome!
>
>Dump a piece of cabbage or lettuce on the bottom. Leave overnight and
>remove, with snails.

Thanks... I already tried that, but maybe if I don't feed anything
that night for the bottom feeders they will pay it more attention.

I have plants which seem to be more tasty! Damn.


--
Flash Wilson
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"Hard, fast, long. Pick two" - Mike Bristow
[Programmers - please don't apply development criteria to sex!]