# How to Eliminate Snails - not simply reduce



## hcubed (Sep 3, 2010)

I've searched the forum. What I've found is people offering alternatives to snail elimination. I do not want a single snail. I do not want to have any kind of fish for snail control. I want to eliminate snails from my 55 gallon tank. I don't intend to sound like I'm thumbing my nose. I just don't want any snails and don't want picking out snails to be added to my regular chore list.

I have a very small snail population now and I want to capitalize on that. I have actually only SEEN one, but again, don't want to wait to see how things go. It's a tank that was finished with fishless cycling a couple weeks ago. A couple weeks ago I added a small bristlenose, two little anubias, and two little java ferns from LFS foolishly thinking this LFS wouldn't have snails on plants... thought that'd only happen at Petland or big chain. I was wrong. Anyway, I was ready to buy Cichlids but saw the snail first and held off. Only aquatic animal is bristlenose.

I'm NOT overfeeding because I have not put a single piece of food in the tank yet. The bristlenose has been eating the layer that developed during cycling.

I have a temporary 10 gallon. I have already done a bleach plant dip (1 part water, 19 parts bleach) on all plants, dechlorinated, rinsed, and then placed in 10 gallon tank of fresh, hard, well water. Now I hope to put bristlenose into 10 gallon, shock the snails out of the 55 gallon, then at safe point put bristlenose and plants back in 55 gallon.

*1. Can anyone recommend (hopefully from experience) a product to add to 55 gallon to ELIMINATE snails from fishless tank?
a. Is there a product like this that will work with sand, big rocks, and driftwood IN tank?
b. Would I need to remove EVERYTHING from my Canister and BIO-Wheel Pros that are powered by canister output? If I remove those, that will cause bacteria culture to die, and presumably any snail kill product will kill bacteria, true? (In other words, is there any way to save my current 55 gallon filter media bacteria and bio-wheel pro bacteria?)
c: If there are workable solutions to issues thus far, when and how should things go back to 55 gallon (filter media, bio-wheel pros, fish, and plants)?*

...Two products I've heard of are "Rid-a-Snail" and copper sulfate... or maybe they're same thing. That's just what I've heard of.

Any help is much appreciated.


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

the snail killing additives work, and work very well. One has to be careful about ammonia spikes if you have many snails, and personally, I rid my tanks of snails gradually over time by simply pulling them off the glass each day. After a while, I wipe out the entire population.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I've read member horror stories about snail-killing additives also killing fish and/or plants. Do you think the problem in these instances was unfairly blamed on the additive Number6?

My reaction when I read OPs post was to throw away your entire set-up and buy all new, LOL. The criteria was just so restrictive and absolute. 

I "got rid" of an overpopulation of pond snails, but after the "treatment" I still had to pick the occasional snail. Within a couple of weeks they appeared to be completely gone however.

Then...I bought fish and I swear they must have had MTS larvae in their body fluids because I had an MTS infestation within a couple of weeks. No MTS in any tank for four years and pow. Got rid of those too now.

MTS treatment. Remove all substrate. I could still see a stray snail in the egg crate, but I was not willing to remove the egg crate. Add 3" of new substrate. I imagine the stray(s) in the egg crate could not make it up through the 3" and died because none were ever seen again.

Pond snail treatment. Note snails were dropped in clove oil/water and frozen. Remove all substrate and decor. Soak decor in a water bucket with hydrogen peroxide added.

Sift substrate (colander) to remove large snails. Spread substrate in trays and hand-pick smaller snails as best as you can. Filters, I just rinsed the filter and all media vigorously to flush out snails and hand-picked any stubborn ones.

Drizzle hydrogen peroxide solution (I did not add water) down the sides of the tank and let it sit while you do the other stuff. You can do a tablespoon or two in a 40G without harm. I used a plastic hamster syringe. No rinsing required since hydrogen peroxide turns to oxygen on contact with water when you refill.

As long as you see a single snail ongoing, at every water change, use the hydrogen peroxide soak on decor and drizzle on tank surfaces. The few I did see after the original treatment did not look too healthy.

Best of luck whatever you decide!


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## hcubed (Sep 3, 2010)

Number6: If I use rid-a-snail, does it say how long to use it and what removes it from the water when I want that chemical gone? I figured I can either use rid-a-snail or try 1:19 bleach in the big tank with no media, then 90 % water change, then replace media along with activated carbon and try that. I know some bristle at the word bleach but chlorine is supposed to have a short evaporation time and I could add ascorbic acid or another type of dechlorinator.


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## chc (Jul 28, 2004)

Many cichlids will do a number on snails, but clown loaches will absolutely decimate them!

I'd much rather go a natural route than use any chemicals.

Why are you so concerned about snails in the first place?


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

*hcubed*
things like rid a snail have instructions, but as Djransome mentions, they are a poison so they will injure other animals to some extent. If you are going to use it, pull fish and you MUST pull any invertebrates you have in the tank. High quality activated carbon should remove it, though I personally would do a 100% water change after using it.

Snails can survive bleach dips, and even soaks... eggs can be especially resilient if they are wedged in somewhere and have a healthy sac around them. They can even survive snail poisons, so as mentioned above, don't be shocked to one day see another snail.

Bleach is, in my humble opinion, the most overrated and useless item to have in the fish room. Anything you'd want to sterilize, it may not, and anything that will be sterilized probably didn't need to be in the first place. Yes, it breaks down very quickly, so it's "safe" to use, but I don't use it for more than a cleaner. I prefer to leave it in the laundry room where it can wash my filter socks from all my sumps! 8)


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## hcubed (Sep 3, 2010)

*chc:*

I'd much rather go a natural route too, except I have a limited space to put fish, and I want to use that space to put fish that I'm particularly interested in. Loaches don't interest me and I don't want to use up my limited fish space simply to keep in check an organism that I never wanted.

I also have limited energy due to chronic health issues and I have to pick and choose carefully how I spend my time... wife, dog, aquarium, etc. I don't need one other thing--manual snail catching--taking my time and energy when I'm not interested in snail-keeping.

*Number6:*

So, if forced to choose between bleach and "Had-A-Snail" solely based on effectiveness, you'd choose "Had-A-Snail?" Again, I only have a small bristlenose and am all set to move it temporarily to a 10 gallon tank. I have no invertebrates and have no plans to acquire them. I have new, high quality, activated carbon on hand. I'm willing to do as big a water change as a tube/hose will suck out. I'll disturb substrate best I can, but really don't want to remove it or the driftwood.

BTW, I see no live snails on the plants I dipped in bleach, but I see shells. It would seem the bleach dip worked against the snails on the plants, but that doesn't necessarily mean Had-A-Snail wouldn't do a better job in the 55 gallon.


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## CoolCichlid (Feb 12, 2010)

Why do you want to remove snails? Does snail aren't cute? I think they are :roll:


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

*hcubed*
yes, I'd choose "had a snail" type products.


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## BillD (May 17, 2005)

Copper sulphate at 2ppm per gallon will kill snails. If you are using copper sulphate as a treatment, you put a snail or two in the tank. You begin slowly adding a solution of copper sulphate a few drops at a time, until the snails drop dead. You now have a 2ppm solution in your tank. The same method can be used to rid snails. As Number 6 stated, a 100% water change would be in order.


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## limpert (Aug 28, 2007)

Just use a heavy dose of aquarium salt every time you do water changes and they will go away.


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## hcubed (Sep 3, 2010)

I wanted to provide update to this thread in case it proves helpful to someone in the future.

I took Number6's advice, abandoned the bleached tank idea (but had already done bleach-dip on plants and that worked for them), and bought some copper sulphate, aka Had-A-Snail. I followed instructions on label, including retreatment even though I was catching my snail problem very early. After couple days (no fish or plants), I drained all the water a siphon could get--about 99%--and refilled. I DEPARTED from the instructions by removing all media from my canister during treatment and keeping it moist in tub during those two days. After draining and replacing water, I also replaced media, added fresh activated carbon, and let run for a day with new water. Tested good, added fish. Everything is fine with no sign of snails anywhere. I didn't remove substrate or even disturb it much.

Honestly, I prefer natural solutions when reasonable, but I don't understand why everyone seems so averse to using chemicals PROPERLY when the situation calls for it. This worked like a charm on the snails. I will bleach-dip all new plants in future, as my anubias and java fern survived just fine (3 minutes at 1:19 ratio).

Thanks to all who advised, especially Number6.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I wonder if there could have been eggs in your media. You will know better in a month or two if you get any hatchlings.

How did you get the dead snails out?


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## hcubed (Sep 3, 2010)

DJRansome: I left the foam mechanical filtration in my Fluval 404, through which everything of any size gets caught, so if there were any eggs, I'd think they would've been in there. I only ever saw one snail, but I have read and heard about how prolific they are, so that's what I mean by catching the problem very early. I had no snail carcasses to remove.

Maybe things would not have gone so well with a mature infestation, but that's precisely why I didn't want to lose time "trying" other control methods. I simply wanted rid of the problem immediately before it got out of hand.


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Glad to hear you seem to have solved your problem. But in case the snails return, here is some advice how to control them without chemicals. My background is in chemistry, and I am not averse to using chemicals when the situation calls for it, but controlling snails in a fish tank IMHO is simply not such a situation. Especially if you have life plants in a tank, having zero snails in my experience simply isn't a viable option. I have only ever had one setup in which I have never seen one single snail. That's my 240G Lake Tanganyika setup. I am not sure which of the fish in that tank are so effective at controlling snails, but they do a mighty fine job with it!

In all my other setups I have some snails, and I find them useful in the way that they are an indicator for overfeeding. If you overfeed, the snail population will explode within a week or two. If you cut back on food to the amount required by fish, the snail population will drop very quickly as well. If you want to remove excess snails after a population explosion, put a slice of cucumber or zucchini in the tank and pull it out the next day. It will be covered in snails and you can remove hundreds at the same time!

With that method I have been able to effectively control snails in all of my setups but one. What I mean is that you usually can't see snails when you look into my setups. Only if you spend some time in front of a tank, you might discover a few. Like you, I am not particularly interested in snail keeping, and I also don't want to spend hours picking them out.

The one setup where the reducing food method did not work was a 125G tank, in which I wanted to bring up large numbers of fry. I had to feed excess for the fry, and good water quality was guaranteed by an automatic water change system, but the snail population was huge. I eventually bought a dozen assassin snails (_Clea helena_). These are comparatively fast moving snails that actively hunt other snails, drill a hole in their shell, and suck out the flesh. They are very attractive looking, and procreate very slowly, if at all. I added a dozen to my setup a year ago, and I doubt there are any new ones yet. If assassin snails run out of other snails as food source, they will readily switch to regular fish food, but they prefer snails whenever they can get one.

In summary, in controlling snails - like in most other aspects of fish keeping - I find it pays to work with nature rather than against it :thumb:


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## hcubed (Sep 3, 2010)

@fmueller: Thank you for taking the time to get specific. Much of what you said I had already read elsewhere, but in much less detail, which made the statements seem off-handed and dubious. The specifics you provided (i.e. not spending hours picking out snails, assassin snails and how long you've had them without their procreating, etc) were helpful to me and the way I think. If I have a problem in the future, I will remember that.

This was a unique time in the life of my tank. It was just cycled, only had a bristlenose and 4 plants I could isolate easily from chemicals, and snails infestation--if you could call it that--was at its earliest. I thought I should capitalize on the rare opportunity to take drastic measures. After having everything all in place for some time full of plants and Cichlids, I would be more hesitant to use chemicals and more open to the natural solutions.

Thanks again for taking the time to "spell it out" for me in greater detail... for next time... if there is a next time.

HCubed


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

You are right that at the stage your tank was at using chemicals was comparatively easy, and they did no harm. So why not! I only thought for one snails you took extreme measures, but again, no harm, no foul 

One thing I should mention is that catfish are extremely sensitive to chemicals, including medication, snail killers, and so on. I believe that's because they don't have scales like other fish. Mostly they have just skin, and even catfish like plecos that have scutes (bony plates) covering part of their body tend to have just skin on the belly. Chemicals can penetrate skin much more easily than a scaled body, and that's why catfish often don't survive any type of chemical treatment of a tank. I'd bet money on the fact that your BN pleco would not survive a snail treatment with chemicals, if he was left in the tank.

Anyhow, best of luck, and may your tank remain snail free forever :thumb:


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## ebjdftw (Aug 24, 2010)

I have a snail problem in my 29g german blue ram tank. I looked into assassin snails because I saw it mentioned and decided to try this method. Got three of them in the tank now hoping they can control the other ones. I have to say for snails they are actually very interesting to watch. :thumb:


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## NoiR (Oct 31, 2010)

@ebjdftw: assassin snails have worked like a charm for me before. Only thing you have to worry about is their population bursting out of control!  They're not as hard to control than other snail species though: when they have eaten all the other snails, the assassins live only by leftover food from fishes and so their numbers can be kept in check relatively easy.

You should give them some time to get rid of the other snails though. They won't eat all the snails overnight. It took me some 4 months in a ~100liter tank with 5 assassin snails. After they had finished eating there was like 25+ assassins and no other snails left. :thumb:


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## punman (Oct 24, 2003)

My 90 gallon tank was snail free for 5 years until I introduced a live plant. Six months later I had snail problems that I could not keep under control.

I gave the plant away, threw out the substrate, boiled the filter sponges and HOB boxes, and then for good measure, left them out overnight in the minus 25 C weather (I live in Canada eh).

I put 10 gallons of water in the tank with a 5% bleach solution and got a cloth and went at cleaning all surfaces including tank top.

I them rised the tank multiple times, added media from an old tank, bought new substarate and put my fish back in the tank. I think I did this over a three day period.
It has been over a year and I have not had snails. I will not go back to live plants.


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

punman said:


> My 90 gallon tank was snail free for 5 years until I introduced a live plant. Six months later I had snail problems that I could not keep under control.


No doubt you got the snails with the life plant, and I agree with you that it is virtually impossible to buy life plants without also getting snails. But the reason you could not keep the snails under control is that you were overfeeding. The main food source for snails is leftover fish food. Fewer leftover fish food means fewer snails. :thumb:


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## hcubed (Sep 3, 2010)

@punman: I put all my live plants (which had snails) back into my tank after dipping them in a bleach solution. My plants are doing well and not a single snail. I followed the instructions I found many places on the net... 19 parts water to 1 part bleach. I submerged plants in this for 3 minutes, then removed and immediately put in 3 gallons of water with 3 x 1,000 mg vitamin C tablets ground to a powder as a dechlorinator to neutralize any residual bleach. I have anubias and java fern. They may have been effected a little by the bleach, but like I said, they are all alive and doing well. That was over a month ago.

I really like my live plants. It's fun to watch them grow with the fish as they attach to wood and rock. Plus, they bring the tank to life with color and mine have helped keep my nitrates down, stretching the time between required water changes.

HCubed


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