Horrible luck with mystery snails in my 55g.

[FreshyFresh]

I can't figure out why?

This tank has been cycled and stocked for 3-4 months and I've been through 4 mystery snails in it. A black, A gold and two really cool looking grey ones. They start out super active, get a bit reclusive, then die. Lasting about 4-5 weeks. Lots of algae and live plants in the tank and I feed them blanched veggies on occasion. I don't see the fish in this tank picking on them, but it is a tank full of inquisitive hungry hogs. Water parameters are 0,0,20. Water temp 76-80 depending on how hot it gets in the house.

On the other hand, the two mystery snails I have in my 20, I've owned since Jan 2012. A black and a gold. The black one is HUGE. This tank has fake plants, gets no algae and I haven't fed them much in the way of vegetables.

The gold MS in my 10g has also been around since Jan/Feb. Had a black one in that tank too, that died a few weeks ago.

 

[exhumed07]

I've had issues liek that before as well. my 55 for example had a little black beard so figured i'd get some nirite snails. they lived for a couple weeks and then died. the tank is filled with pond snails and rams horns but for some reason the nirites died. water was just fine as far as ammonia and nitrates and nitrites, ph and phosphates. so i'm with u on the dead snails.

 

[FreshyFresh]

My LFS has a pretty good assortment of snails, but no nerites. I'd love to try some nerite snails if I could find them. Going rate for mystery snails is $2.50/ea (ouch) in my area unless you can catch them at Petco/smart on sale for $1/ea.

 

[OrangeCones]

Can you measure your GH and KH in both tanks, FreshyFresh?

 

[FreshyFresh]

Can you measure your GH and KH in both tanks, FreshyFresh?

I don't have a means to measure for those. I don't measure pH often, but it's ~7.6 right out of the tap and my tanks have stayed right there the times I've measured.

The 55g, where I have the bad luck with the snails has the Lowes bought "marble chips" substrate. It's never changed my pH, nor does it even "fizz" if I try a sample with vinegar (another site freaked out at my mention of using "marble chips").

I do add glutaral for CO2 (currently API liquid CO2, soon to be metricide 14) and add API Leaf zone for iron, potassium and trace elements. I also tied API root tabs, but they seem redundant given the Leaf Zone.

Oddly enough, the snails doing best are in the tank with fake plants.

 

[OrangeCones]

You may be deficient in calcium or other minerals, which the snails need. Do you notice any abnormalities in their shells before they died?

 

[FreshyFresh]

No shell abnormalities noticed.

 

[FishDad]

I've had just about the same experience with my snails in all my tanks. I remember reading somewhere that they only live about a year anyway. Maybe by the time they get to our tanks they're at the end of they're rope.

 

[FreshyFresh]

I would have thought that too FD, but given I've been through 4 of them in less than 3 months in this particular tank, it's got to be something with my setup. The first two snails were Petco, the second two were from a LFS.

Just weird because the two in my 20L (formerly the 29g) are 6 months old. The gold was a Petsmart snail and the brown/black striped was a LFS. The gold in this tank has grown to about the size of an average cherry tomato, where the other is huge like a golf ball.

 

[Rotaripsnoc]

Most mystery snails max out at about 2" I've had 2, both about 1" when purchased, the first one died seemingly of natural causes, the second, well the second the Oscar saw to it's end.

After looking into all the nematode parasites snails can carry I'm not planning on re-introducing any to my tanks, other than the weekly feeding given to our F8 Puffer, and I'm raising those myself so hopefully any parasites that might exist will be weeded out in a couple of generations.