Confused?!? - How'd snails get in my tank?

[mrwizard]

Ok so I was just looking in my tank, (my daily hour watch) and I seen a snail climbing up the front glass.
I haven't added any snails and the last thing I put in the tank was 3 bn plecos, about 2 months ago, how is this snail in my tank lol I can't get my head round it. Any ideas? Surely I would of seen it before??

 

[stingrays4]

Hi they can come in with the fish,or plants or if you moved any decor from one tank to another can introduce snails My tank over run with the dam things

 

[mrwizard]

Hi they can come in with the fish,or plants or if you moved any decor from one tank to another can introduce snails My tank over run with the dam things

Thanks for the reply my old tank was over run with them 2 that's why I started this new one lol, I'm very cautious when added things now so I'm surprised to see a snail, only thing I can think of is when I added all my plants and he sneaked in somehow lol, but that was at least 6-7months ago now. I'll just have to keep a close eye on things incase there is more.

I'll add a pic to see if anyone can tell me what kind of snail it is.

 

[stingrays4]

Hi i have know idea what type of snail it is i'm afraid,but if i was you i would remove the snail while you can see it,before you get over run Also you could add some fish to help keep the number of snails down i believe most loaches a pretty good at keeping the numbers down,also stripped dora's are good

 

[mrwizard]

Hi i have know idea what type of snail it is i'm afraid,but if i was you i would remove the snail while you can see it,before you get over run Also you could add some fish to help keep the number of snails down i believe most loaches a pretty good at keeping the numbers down,also stripped dora's are good

I actually think my tank is just about stocked so I don't think I can add more fish definitely a good idea to get it now but just went up to where I seen him and.... He's gone lol fastest snail in the west lol.
I think I'll try the lettuce trick overnight, hopefully it will encourage more to come out if there is any lol. Thanks again

 

[wvanderborg]

Try to find asassin snails. They eat other snails. But a pair of clown loaches would take them out as well.

 

[mrwizard]

Try to find asassin snails. They eat other snails. But a pair of clown loaches would take them out as well.

I'll look them up if the lettuce trick don't work, do they reproduce by themselves do you know?

 

[Mumma.of.two]

I'll look them up if the lettuce trick don't work, do they reproduce by themselves do you know?

You need 2 snails, both snail is male and female.
Whatever you do do not get clown loaches. They get huge and need schools. Getting a fish to fix a problem is the worst throng to do IMO. If you don't over feed and remove the ones you see it'll be fine. You are not going to be over run by snails. I have pond and ramshorn snails in all my tanks.

 

[mrwizard]

You need 2 snails, both snail is male and female.
Whatever you do do not get clown loaches. They get huge and need schools. Getting a fish to fix a problem is the worst throng to do IMO. If you don't over feed and remove the ones you see it'll be fine. You are not going to be over run by snails. I have pond and ramshorn snails in all my tanks.

That's good to know in my old tank I started with one then a few weeks later they were everywhere, then I found out they reproduce by themselves, crazy lol.
No I'm not adding anymore fish to the tank, all my fish get along great so don't want some fish coming in and causing problems lol. I might see how this snail gets on, from how fast he moves I think he'll do a good job cleaning everything up. Thanks

 

[severum mama]

Looks like a pond snail. Considered a pest by many, I've never had a problem with overpopulation as long as I wasn't overfeeding. I don't think they are anything to worry about, but if you see the population start to get out of hand, cut back on feeding some. Assassin snails love to eat these, and assassin snails reproduce slowly so they aren't going to take over your tank. While I agree with Mumma of Two about not adding fish to correct a problem, the bioload of the assassin snails is minimal, so if you decide that's something you want to try, I don't think it would be a problem.

 

[mrwizard]

Looks like a pond snail. Considered a pest by many, I've never had a problem with overpopulation as long as I wasn't overfeeding. I don't think they are anything to worry about, but if you see the population start to get out of hand, cut back on feeding some. Assassin snails love to eat these, and assassin snails reproduce slowly so they aren't going to take over your tank. While I agree with Mumma of Two about not adding fish to correct a problem, the bioload of the assassin snails is minimal, so if you decide that's something you want to try, I don't think it would be a problem.

Thank you I've been searching websites looking for an id and the pond snail was my guess too, thanks
I think I'm gonna let him be for a while (aslong as the gf don't see him that is, she's not a fan of snails lol) see how he gets on and hopefully I won't end up with hundreds lol. thank you

 

[stingrays4]

Hi yes adding a fish to cure problem not ideal,but removing snails manually is tiresome and takes dedication my tank over run with the dam things and yes i do overfeed,but i wouldn't say by that much? My problem being i have fish which are slow to get to the food and take awhile to consume it,so the snails think its christmas This is the first time i have ever had a problem with snails! My advice is to remove the snail as soon as possible,just my opinion

 

[stingrays4]

Hi just read your last post now yes keep an eye on it and see how it goes after all they do a good job of cleaning up