I have a 20gal with about 12 mixed molly/platy. It is a bit deep. At any rate I really wanted something to keep the bottom interesting. Since everyone swims moslty near the top. I think a snail would be very pretty But I keep hearing Horror stories about monstrously fast Snail Population Explosions and taking over the tank. "the gravel now looks like its alive there are soo many baby snails"..and so on. The pics are incredible! I just want 1 medium snail with a pretty shell. Should I just abandon the idea and get ghost shrimp?
I want a Snail...but IDK
- Thread starter geekgirl
- Start date
First of all, your tank is already overstocked with the molly/platy. A 20g is just too small for all those livebearers. They must be breeding too. How long has this tank been set up? Is it cycled?
The only snails that will have population "explosions" in your tanks are pond snails and malaysian trumpet snails. Both of these guys usually ride in on new plants or in fish bags. Mystery snails will not breed unless you try to breed them with specific requirements. Before you consider adding anything else to your tank though, please consider that it is already overstocked. With those stocking levels, you should be changing water 1-2 times a week just to keep the paramters in check. If this doesn't make sense to you, check out the link in my signature that explains the cycling/water changing process.
Welcome to the tank!
The only snails that will have population "explosions" in your tanks are pond snails and malaysian trumpet snails. Both of these guys usually ride in on new plants or in fish bags. Mystery snails will not breed unless you try to breed them with specific requirements. Before you consider adding anything else to your tank though, please consider that it is already overstocked. With those stocking levels, you should be changing water 1-2 times a week just to keep the paramters in check. If this doesn't make sense to you, check out the link in my signature that explains the cycling/water changing process.
Welcome to the tank!
Well, like missfishy said if you get a mystery snail or an apple snail (the ones that you would most likely see in a store for sale) you wont have to worry about an infestation, they cant breed by themselves. Their shells come in whitish, yellow, blue, black...and their bodies can be differnt colors too.
But, they dont always stay on the bottom of the tank, they also spend a lot of time traveling around the walls of the tank. So, if you really want more activity on the bottom then i would go with shrimp. I dont know if you have ever had any shrimp before but they really are entertaining creatures. They walk around picking at plants and the gravel for food and they even swim around sometimes. I really enjoy my shrimp just as much as my fish if not more. Also the shrimp arent as messy as snails.
But, they dont always stay on the bottom of the tank, they also spend a lot of time traveling around the walls of the tank. So, if you really want more activity on the bottom then i would go with shrimp. I dont know if you have ever had any shrimp before but they really are entertaining creatures. They walk around picking at plants and the gravel for food and they even swim around sometimes. I really enjoy my shrimp just as much as my fish if not more. Also the shrimp arent as messy as snails.
I agree with jen- I have an amano shrimp (one of the more boring coloured ones) and I love him. They stay at the bottom and are very interesting to watch.
But also as missfishy said your tank is overstocked, so I would wait until you either lose some fish or take a few back before adding any others (unless of course you have the many extra hours needed for the extra maintenance)
But also as missfishy said your tank is overstocked, so I would wait until you either lose some fish or take a few back before adding any others (unless of course you have the many extra hours needed for the extra maintenance)