Fish that eat snails

[Banana mouse]

Can you name a breed of fish that will eat snails in a fish tank?
Or if not is there a treatment that will kill snails but won't kill plants and won't affect water ph hardness etc

I don't think I have any but iv noticed one in my tank if I see it again I'll remove it but I want it dead thanks

 

[smileyface9]

My catfish eats snails. It's a hybrid upsidedown catfish.

 

[Banana mouse]

That sounds good, could you tell me some stuff about them? Do they dig, how big do they get etc

 

[Mumma.of.two]

One little snail isn't going to cause any harm. They are beneficial for tanks because they eat uneaten food and decomposing plant matter. If the population explodes its a good sign your feeding too much. Adding a fish to eat snails isn't going to fix the problem and it will add to your bioload.

 

[Banana mouse]

Hmm.. Maybe so but my tank is in the first stage of the cycle so I want to chose fish that will benefit the tank, my tank is about 370L and I am planing on having around 13 fush

 

[smileyface9]

Some snails eat plants though, so they may not be good for the tank. Sure they eat leftovers from fish or dead plants. Yes catfish add to the bioload, but if it fixes the problem that's great. It's worth the extra effort to attain to. I love my catfish. Though keep your eyes out for more snails. If they become a problem you could get a catfish, but some are agressive and can kill your fish depending on what you have so be careful which type you get. Don't get a catfish that can fit your fish in its mouth. What kind of fish do you have? Maybe put a pic up of the snail? Some leave plants alone and some don't.

 

[smileyface9]

And I don't know how big they can get. Mine's just now hitting 5 inches long. I think they can get up to 6 iches maybe 8? I can't tell since it's a hybrid. Just make sure it has it's own spot so it can sleep in peace during the day.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

The only snails I know of that will eat healthy plants are some species of apple snail. Even then that behavior can be curbed with proper dietary supplementation. The OPs snail is most likely a pond, bladder, ramshorn or a MTS. All of which will not eat plants. Many purposefully introduce snails to their tanks to help with clean up and substrate aeration.
I'm not saying a catfish wouldn't be a good fit for the tank but adding one for the soul purpose of snail eradication is the wrong way to go about it.

 

[Banana mouse]

Smileyfacenine- thank you I'll look into it.

The fish I'm hoping to keep are tiger barbs a rainbow shark and I don't know what there called but iv seen people call 'Otos'

Do any of them eat snails?

 

[54seaweed]

get 4 kolie loaches they love snails I had a infestation of them
with in 2 weeks they were all gone
great tank cleaner ,

 

[Banana mouse]

Lol I don't see how such a small fish would do the job I had 2 of them in my old tank and they were really cool. I'll definitely consider a few of these

 

[MABJ]

get 4 kolie loaches they love snails I had a infestation of them
with in 2 weeks they were all gone
great tank cleaner ,

That response answers the question, but it isn't right to add fish or loaches to tanks just to clean out snails. Mumma is hitting the nail on the head here..

 

[MABJ]

Some snails eat plants though, so they may not be good for the tank. Sure they eat leftovers from fish or dead plants. Yes catfish add to the bioload, but if it fixes the problem that's great. It's worth the extra effort to attain to. I love my catfish. Though keep your eyes out for more snails. If they become a problem you could get a catfish, but some are agressive and can kill your fish depending on what you have so be careful which type you get. Don't get a catfish that can fit your fish in its mouth. What kind of fish do you have? Maybe put a pic up of the snail? Some leave plants alone and some don't.

What snail eats plants? The only ones I know of are sposo snails, and those are not going to hatch off plants.

Snails are not problems people. They're good critters. Very helpful, and very good indicators of a tanks health or unhealthiness.

If their shells are deficient, your tank doesnt have enough calcium. That can hurt fish too.

If there are too many, you are overfeeding.

If they all die off, you're under feeding.

Snails aren't the plague and we need to realize it lol.

 

[lastokes]

Yo yo loaches devour snails!

As do crayfish but they will also devour your fish

 

[MABJ]

Yo yo loaches devour snails!

As do crayfish but they will also devour your fish

.. Also not great info. Not all Crays eat snails. Certainly not all Crays eat fish.

 

[jetajockey]

That response answers the question, but it isn't right to add fish or loaches to tanks just to clean out snails. Mumma is hitting the nail on the head here..

To be fair we could say the same thing about assassin snails.

 

[MABJ]

To be fair we could say the same thing about assassin snails.

You know I respect just about everything you say, but I wouldn't even purchase an assassin snail to maintain a 'pest' snail problem.

They only eat about 1 every two days. I know some snails that could multiply at that rate.

I would only consider an assassin snail as a pet. I am considering one because they're just so neat. But again, I wouldn't prescribe an animal -- now at least -- for snail control. (I have at one point in time recommended them, but I don't any longer)

That's just my outlook on invert keeping, you know? I say it as much for the snails as I do for the fish they propose to put in.

 

[jetajockey]

You know I respect just about everything you say, but I wouldn't even purchase an assassin snail to maintain a 'pest' snail problem.

They only eat about 1 every two days. I know some snails that could multiply at that rate.

I would only consider an assassin snail as a pet. I am considering one because they're just so neat. But again, I wouldn't prescribe an animal -- now at least -- for snail control. (I have at one point in time recommended them, but I don't any longer)

That's just my outlook on invert keeping, you know? I say it as much for the snails as I do for the fish they propose to put in.

Well, don't take it personally, I wasn't really aiming that at you in particular. I just notice on the forum that a lot of people recommend assassins to help with snail control but there is this sentiment against getting a fish to do it for the same reason. I don't really have stance on it because I feel like every creature we take care of serves a purpose. I don't really find a big difference between using a fish/invert for my enjoyment versus using one to help maintain the tank, although I know there are plenty of better methods for the latter.

 

[smileyface9]

Go with the kuhli loaches since you'll have smaller fish. They're darn cute too!

 

[Rico]

I have had snail issues in both my 24g and 29g tanks. The rate of the reproduction was alarming so I did need to do something about it.

I got a Pakistani loach for the 29g. He did a great job but I do have to feed him now that there are no more snails. That's something to consider but he is a very cool fish and I love his company.

I got a assassin snail for my 24g and I must say it was something else to see him eat snails. I would have loved to see him stick around but I believe my ph was too high and his shell started to crack. He didn't take out all the snails which wasn't a bad thing but now that he's gone I'm noticing more and more snails...

I guess I would say to go with a loach but that's just my opinion. As most people have replied it depends on your situation. Those are just my experiences with snail infestation.