Pond snails

[khua]

I got some plants 2 weeks ago and introduced some unwanted snails. I know, I should've dipped them but I didn't. Now I have pond snails in the tank. Im netting them out whenever I see them but I want to get rid of them for good. Is that even possible? I put in a slice of zucchini last night to see if I could remove them that way but they don't seem interested in it. I don't have any fish in the tank at the moment, just plants so I'm not feeding anything but micro macro nutrients for the plants. Oh and I have some MTS in their to stir up the sand that I would like to keep. I've read that assassin snails can tackle the problem. Will they eat the MTS too or just the pond snails?
Thanks in advance

 

[Cecibella123]

I'm not sure what MTS are, but assassin snails will eat any snail they can catch if the size is right.
What type of pond snails do you have? I get an infestation of Malaysian trumpet snail occasionally. I use Yoyo loaches and assassin snails to bring the population down to manageable levels, and trap them when they become too infested. I use a glass jar with a plastic lid. Drill 3 3/8" holes in the lid, put a few shrimp pellets or algae wafers in the jar, sink it before you turn lights off, and in the morning, it should have dozens to hundreds of snails in it.
I don't mind a few snails in my tanks, as they eat left over food and detritus, helping to improve water quality.

 

[Cecibella123]

Duh to me!!!

MTS=Malaysian Trumpet Snails

 

[sinibotia]

Anything that would eat the pond snails would eat the MTS as well, loaches and assassin snails included.

 

[khua]

Guess I'll have to net out some MTS and put them in another tank while the assassins do their job and put them back in later. Thanks guys

 

[Cecibella123]

Trumpet snails are very prolific. I have Yoyo loaches and assassin snails in one of my tanks and still have to trap the trumpet snails every few weeks. I doubt you'll have to worry about them disappearing from your tanks.

 

[khua]

Trumpet snails are very prolific. I have Yoyo loaches and assassin snails in one of my tanks and still have to trap the trumpet snails every few weeks. I doubt you'll have to worry about them disappearing from your tanks.

I'll remove a few just in case. How many assassin snails should I get for a 55 gallon?

 

[Cecibella123]

I have about 8 in a 90g. Not saying that it's the right number, just saying what I have. I was told that assassin snails can breed and infest a tank as quickly as trumpet snails.

 

[khua]

Would 3 be a good start?

 

[Cecibella123]

Sure. Gotta start somewhere. How large are the pond snails? Assassin snails only get about 1/2" or so.

 

[khua]

The bigger ones are about half a centimeter and the others are newly hatched.

 

[Cecibella123]

I would think the assassin snails will have no problem with snails that size. After they're eradicated, what are you going to do with the assassin snails though? If you put your MTSs back in your tank, they'll be eaten also. I would try the snail trap mentioned earlier. You can discard unwanted snails and keep the MTSs by sorting them every morning.

 

[khua]

I forgot to mention that I will be moving the tank to a different location in the house. I was thinking of changing all the sand while I'm at it. I'll scrub the tank and dip the plants and place them in quarantine just in case the dip doesn't kill snail eggs. Is there a dip you guys can recommend for jungle Val, crypts, swords, and water Sprite?

 

[gzeiger]

At the risk of sounding rude, I think what is needed here is an attitude adjustment. Pond snails are at least as interesting to watch as most fish. I struggle to keep some around because most of my (native) fish eat them voraciously, but even in a heavily infested tank they are really fun to have if you just decide to like them.

 

[Coursair]

Pond Snails won't hurt your plants. My only issue with them and my MTS is when they over breed. So I trap them as needed and remove them.

I love my Nerites and my MTS do a great job with the sand. I have a Horned Nerite, Ramshorns , and Pond snails in my 55g and MTS and Pond Snails in my 10g.

I will keep numbers down in the 55g so they don't out compete my Otos and my Farlowella.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[khua]

I didn't think they hurt plants either, but it ate a hole in my lutea over my decaying jungle Val which is why I want them gone.