How many snails

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It could be debated wether or not you "need" snails at all. Im sure they would'nt hurt. I suppose it would depend on the kind of snail you want...you could start with one or two and in a months time end up with 50. Some snails will multiply faster than you can keep up.

I personally have quite a few snails in my 15 gallon community tank. I inherited them when I bought a plant from Petsmart :x They mulitply a bit and I just keep removing them as they become too much for my liking. I think some of my fish are actually consuming them....I had all the fish removed from the tank for a week and the snail population quadrupled from what Im used to.
I also have a 1"-1.25" Gold Mystery Snail. Now this dude is just plain cool. He hasnt multiplied; I believe that the Mystery snails are NOT asexual so you have to actually have a male and a female to copulate, which is a good thing imo. He likes to nibble on my plants a tiny bit, but has really made short work of my Radican Sword. Im not sure if the thing will grow as fast as he eats it. :lol:

I cant say if he really does much good as far as eating algae and junk in the tank...Ive seen him eat my plants and shrimp pellets, so Im not sure if he ever has eaten algae. I also have a dozen ghost shrimp and 2 cory cats in the tank that really do a number on cleaning up the leftover junk on the bottom of the tank. So far, the snail is just cool to look at. In all, I would certainly think that 2 of the big mystery snails in a ten gallon tank should be fine. One is neat to look at, but I guess I wont really know how well hes keeping my tank in order untill hes gone.
 
Actually in SW aquaria snails are highly recommended and quite honestly rarely ever result in offspring. They will try to repropduce often laying eggs for some or in most cases broadcast spawners release reproductive material into the water column. Iregardless of how, it rarely if ever results in anything. The odds of survival are greatly stacked against them. With the exception of the nasty nasty evil hitchiker species...

As far as what to get, it really depnds on need. It's always best to start with smaller amounts and add if needed later on. For a 10 gal tank I would opt for 4-5 total. Mabye two or three nassarius for the sandbed and detritus and then mabye a few nerite, cerith or margarita snails for the glass and rocks.

Cheers
Steve
 
I used a molly mainly in my 10 gal QT and 20L gal FW. Sometimes i let him stay in the 75 gal SW. He seems to do a much better job cleaning algea than the other 60 plus snails in my 75 gal.
 
The GARF website says that as a general rule you will need 1 and 1/2 cleaners per gallon of tank. I assume they mean a combination which counts all snails, crabs,stars, urchins, etc. Would that be right? Any opinions on that qty?
 
electrikat said:
Would that be right? Any opinions on that qty?
It's a good guideline for a well established fully stocked system. A new tank would not normally have enough of a food supply to keep up with that many. It's always best to start with much less and add as needed.

Cheers
Steve
 
I agree, slowly add them to balance the system. You should end up with about a dozen or so.
 
Wow. I cant believe I replied to this post and didnt even realize this was in saltwater/reef. Sorry about the mis-information then!! :lol:
 
Well it already has algae all over the rocks and bottom and now up about 3 inches on the sides all the was around lol.
 
What is this evil hitch hiker species of snail?!
 
Phyl said:
What is this evil hitch hiker species of snail?!
There are many. Whelks being the worst. Along with Tulip, Conus, Olive, Murex, Pyramidellids and more.

Cheers
Steve
 
Yeah what is the evil kind? I am adding more snails to help my tank with algae. Everything I have been reading says they will help a lot.
 
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