snail removal

[tom91970]

I've tried several different ways to remove snails from my tanks and most of what I have used hasn't worked very well. Putting a piece of blanched lettuce/cabbage didn't work at all for me.

I read about putting an empty 35mm film canister with holes in the lid. I put some raw potato in the can, tied it to a string, and in the past 24 hours have pulled out 7 pond snails (a few each time).

Just thought I'd share what worked for me in case anyone was looking for an easy way to get rid of some pesky snails.

 

[HomeSweetFishTank]

I had a major snail infestation in my 10G last year. They came riding in on live plants that I failed to wash every little nook and cranny on. Holy CRAP do they breed fast! Anyway, I tried all of the above, with only moderate success. My solution was to get some clown loaches. I picked up a couple and they cleaned the snails right up. One note though, they get big and I moved them immediately after the snails were eradicated (only a couple days).

Thought I'd share what worked for me as well!

 

[TheMainer]

One day when I was walking through PetSmart, I noticed in some of their tanks they had placed a "1 week feeder" block. The blocks were whitish and circular, but they probably come in different shapes and sizes. Anyway, they were all covered in snails! Makes sense though... the snails can just sit on that block and feed forever. Why go anywhere else?

I haven't tried this myself, but it might be a cheap experiment.

 

[MissFishy]

My 20g high has a big infestation of both pond snails and trumpet snails. However, it seems like the trumpets outcompete the pond snails for any food that's around as there are very few pond snails left. I truly prefer the trumpets anyways, they are actually very fascinating, good at cleaning up the tank, and good looking.

 

[tom91970]

I had a major snail infestation in my 10G last year. They came riding in on live plants that I failed to wash every little nook and cranny on. Holy CRAP do they breed fast! My solution was to get some clown loaches. I picked up a couple and they cleaned the snails right up.

Yeah, that's how I received my free pets. Thank you Petsmart!

I thought about the clown loaches but found out how big they eventually get and that ended that option. Maybe when I get my 75g I'll get some.

 

[tom91970]

"1 week feeder" block.
I haven't tried this myself, but it might be a cheap experiment.

Good idea...I might try that sometime.

 

[tom91970]

My 20g high has a big infestation of both pond snails and trumpet snails. However, it seems like the trumpets outcompete the pond snails for any food that's around as there are very few pond snails left. I truly prefer the trumpets anyways, they are actually very fascinating, good at cleaning up the tank, and good looking.

Yeah, my 30g high was pretty infested. I really don't mind having snails since they do a good job of cleaning up...I just don't care for the white specks on the glass.

I wouldn't mind a few trumpet snails, though.

 

[HMarcks]

How come my snails don't seem to clean up anything, they just leave holes in my plants