# Snail plague



## Guest (May 9, 2008)

Today I discovered at least 100 small snails in my 265g's sump and overflow boxes.

What I can't figure out is where did they come from? They couldn't have come from plants because the last time I added plants was like 2 months ago and this is the first time I've ever seen them in any of my tanks. Could they have come from my tap water during water changes, or could they have come from any of my frozen shrimp, krill, plankton, daphnia, cyclops, or baby brine shrimp packages?

Also what's the best and safest way to kill them all? I have a new thing of Had-a-Snail laying around, but is that catfish and plant safe? Any other way besides loaches that will get rid of them?

One last thing I can't believe is that these snails seem to love fast currents...90% of them are in my sump which has a 1800gph pump and a 700gph pump, and the other 10% in my overflows are in a ~700gph current....!

~Ed


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

2months ago sounds about right for a snail to lay eggs and those eggs to grow... 
no need to look further than those plants you added back then...

manual removal works to keep numbers in check... strongly recommend against chemical killing agents.


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## 748johnd (Jun 30, 2007)

I agree with Number6. It would almost have to be from the plants. I never add plants to my tanks without treating them first. I soak mine for about 30 minutes in a mild solution of potassium permanganate. Mild means the solution is pink in color. You can also use bleach diluted with water or alum. Bleach can kill some plants though. Check on the internet for getting rid of snails.


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## hollyfish2000 (Aug 23, 2007)

Sigh. Feel your pain. I have pond snails in both my planted tanks. I remove by hand -- every single freaking day . . .


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## Guest (May 10, 2008)

I can't just pick them off because most of them are in inaccessible areas. And I just took another look and it looks like I have another COUPLE HUNDRED TO A THOUSAND in my sponges and crawling in and around the bio balls and filter bags.

What are some other ideas for getting rid of them? Are they sensitive to other stuff like Iron, salt, heat, medicines (metronidasole?), etc?

What's so bad about using copper products like had-a-snail?

~Ed


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Won't kill all the snails, but WILL kill some of the fish. And plants. Plus if the snails are not removed but killed by a chemical, their decaying bodies will pollute the tank anyway.

I feel your pain too. And now my plants that brought the snails are getting eaten by the snails!

Hand-pick from inside the tank. My tiny ones in the gravel go up the Python. You will still have eggs and some babies left, but 90% fewer.

Underfeed your fish. I have heard that snails stop reproducing as much when there is no abundance of food.

For the sponges and filter bags, replace them and rely on the bacteria in the substrate to prevent a cycle. You may have to repeat this again every two months or so until the population is significantly reduced.

For the bio-balls, take them out and soak in bleach. Rinse well and add dechlor before using again.

They are truly a plague and this is a war!

I have also heard of people removing their fish (not sure about plants) to a temporary tank and adding ammonia to toxic levels for a week. The bio filter can live through this. Then you just have the problem of removing the decaying bodies.


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

I don't think I've ever had a plague of snails or had to wage a war... I've seen tanks with huge snail populations and they were never my tanks... snails in my tanks were always a reasonable number. Didn't matter if I added ramshorns, trumpet, or pond snails... they never overpopulated a tank. They are detritus feeders so make sure to keep filters clean and debris free and do not overfeed the tank.


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## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

i noticed one of my sumps has started to repopulate, after a good cleaning, and i'm not up to the task again. are there any risks to just letting them stay?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I was letting the hitchhiker pond snails and ramshorn snails stay...until they started chewing up the plants. I think because I decreased the feeding...now all they have to eat is the plants. There is no algae and virtually no nitrates because of the plants. Sorry, but they've got to go...at least most of them. Maybe if I do one big snail removal the remaining population will stabilize and be OK.


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

lloyd said:


> i noticed one of my sumps has started to repopulate, after a good cleaning, and i'm not up to the task again. are there any risks to just letting them stay?


 Only if the population grows to extremes... they can clog pipes or sit in overflows etc. and cause problems. 
In smaller numbers (e.g. in tanks fed amount that fish consume completely) then I have never given them a second thought.


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## jlspitler (Apr 27, 2008)

throw a couple slisces of cucumber in there and wait 24 hours and come back and just scoop out. i did this in my sump as well and i am under controll but not totally rid free fo snails. make sure you scrub the sides of the sump/tank to get rid of eggs. worked for me and from time to time i throw a slice or 2 of cucumbers in there to keep them under control but you are right i have no snails in my main tank and butthere all in my sump., good luck waging war on the snails.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

jlspitler, did you have plants in the tank? I don't get why they would flock to cucumber or lettuce if they have lovely plants already?


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## jlspitler (Apr 27, 2008)

i have no more plant in my tank but i did. the snails never messed with my plants. i only bought 1 and then it got worse and i was fighting a war. buti have no plants in my main tank or in my sump. not sure excatly how they are living in my sump no food gets down there because i have filter in my overflow box. must be eating each other lol.


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## Guest (May 11, 2008)

Could I do an ammonia bath in my overflow boxes and sump, ie dumping 2 liter bottles in each overflow and the sump (with the return pumps off of course) to try and kill them?

The problem is none of the snails are actually in the tank (where the fish are), they're all in accessible areas. I thought about putting small loaches in the sump and overflows, but I can't figure out how a month or so from now how I'd net the loaches back out, especially out of the overflow boxes which are very tall and narrow (I don't think a net can even fit in there...).

I'd might as well give the veggie trap a try but I'm not so sure how well it would work.

Let me know what you guys think.

~Ed


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## nimboman (Jan 11, 2008)

There is an African cichlid known for eating snails in the wild-- Chilotilapia rhoadesii. Not a bad looking fish either :thumb:


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## nimboman (Jan 11, 2008)

I noticed you said non of the snails were in the tank but if you had this fish you could scoop them from the filter and throw them in the tank.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I think the method of raising the ammonia takes a week. It's got to be high enough to kill the snails...eventually, but low enough not to kill the biofilter. If you could separate the overflow/sump from the tank where your fish are living somehow, I don't see why not.

But...you'd still have the problem of removing the bodies so you would still have to tear everything down.


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## Guest (May 11, 2008)

DJRansome said:


> I think the method of raising the ammonia takes a week. It's got to be high enough to kill the snails...eventually, but low enough not to kill the biofilter. If you could separate the overflow/sump from the tank where your fish are living somehow, I don't see why not.
> 
> But...you'd still have the problem of removing the bodies so you would still have to tear everything down.


My idea was to seed some crushed coral and set up a temporary filter somehow...maybe in a 2gal bucket and a plastic tub? For the sump I was just going to buy ammonia and raise it until it reads max on my test kits.

Would the high ammonia levels damage any of my equipment though?

~Ed

Edit: I don't care so much about the dead snails. If I have a mini cycle I'll just do daily water changes or something.

How long do you think the ammonia would take to kill them? 24hours?

And lastly before I go through all this trouble is Had-A-Snail worth giving a shot?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

The information I read said it would take a week. Maybe you can do a search on Had-A-Snail and see if you can find any success stories?


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## Guest (May 11, 2008)

DJRansome said:


> The information I read said it would take a week. Maybe you can do a search on Had-A-Snail and see if you can find any success stories?


There are mixed reviews. 2/3s of them say it works though.


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## Guest (May 11, 2008)

Also the snail shells seem to be escargot shaped. Any idea what kind it could be?


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## Guest (May 11, 2008)

I did a google search and it looks like I have Pond Snails (Physa sp.). Is that good or bad news, and would copper surely kill them?

~Ed


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## Guest (May 12, 2008)

Do you think skunk loaches could live in my sump for a few months to help control the population?

~Ed


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## TailorO (Apr 7, 2008)

i had a snail problem untill i got clown loaches. now i have zero snails...


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## Laurel (Jun 17, 2007)

If you want an intense snail predator that does well in hard water(maybe I missed what type of tank this is) a dwarf puffer or pea puffer loves to eat snails, and I guess petsmart carries them.


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## Guest (May 14, 2008)

Laurel said:


> If you want an intense snail predator that does well in hard water(maybe I missed what type of tank this is) a dwarf puffer or pea puffer loves to eat snails, and I guess petsmart carries them.


I would but I fear the slow moving puffers wouldn't be able to handle the fast current (there's a 1800gph pump and a 700gph pump in the sump) let alone like the dark (absolutely no light down there) or be able to see the snails... I added a skunk loach down there and I can tell he already hates it there (as well as hasn't eaten any snails).

~Ed


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## Guest (May 14, 2008)

I'm considering using copper to kill the snails. Would the copper stain the silicone? And is it true that it can get absorbed into the silicone, and if it does will it leech back out?

~Ed


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## Laurel (Jun 17, 2007)

I've read (when I made a brief foray into saltwater) that if you ever use copper in a tank, you won't be able to grow inverts in it after that ever. I'm not sure if this holds true for FW, but I'd imagine it does to some extent.


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## BillD (May 17, 2005)

Marduk said:


> I'm considering using copper to kill the snails. Would the copper stain the silicone? And is it true that it can get absorbed into the silicone, and if it does will it leech back out?
> 
> ~Ed


A copper concentration of 2ppm, using copper sulphate will kill snails in mimutes. I used snail one time years ago as an indicator when doing a copper treatment. I added drops of copper sulphate solution, a bit at a time until the snails started to fall off the glass, giving me a 2ppm concentration in the tank. You could do this in the sump, and than drain it before putting it back in use. It may be a little extreme, but it is a possibility. Copper will not stain the silicone.


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## Guest (May 15, 2008)

BillD said:


> Marduk said:
> 
> 
> > I'm considering using copper to kill the snails. Would the copper stain the silicone? And is it true that it can get absorbed into the silicone, and if it does will it leech back out?
> ...


That's a great idea. Copper should be safe to use with an acrylic sump right? Not stain it either?

~Ed


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## Guest (May 18, 2008)

I used a VERY HIGH level of copper (~half a bottle of had-snail in a 25 gallon sump) and a lot of ammonia hydroxide in the sump with a VERY generous amount of salt. In the overflows I only used a lot of ammonia and so much salt it piled up 1" high (it wouldn't dissolve anymore). (Something kind of cool is large clouds of "dust" formed in the overflows, what I guessed was a massive bacteria bloom feeding on the ammonia).

And 24hours later it appears to have killed all of the snails! I just hope none were in the pipes...the way I see it I destroyed 99.999% of the population but there's still that chance that I may see more pop up again a few weeks from now...

Anyway thanks for the advice everyone,
~Ed


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## KoenEeckhoudt (Oct 28, 2007)

I've had snails in all of my tanks that have/had plants in them as well.

Never used chemicals. Just clown loaches. They really terminate those.

Too bad you took the chemical road  I saw somebody recommending the clown loaches a bit before in this thread. Those do it just fine.


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## sakie (Oct 22, 2009)

I don't know, I have snails in one of my malawi tank plus 2 clown loaches...my loaches disappointed me. Both only looking for pellet food and never ever even try to eat/kill the snails. There's so many in my tank right now that I can't control snail anymore. I'm thinking of chemical like Cupramine from Seachem. Had anyone use this product before? Any success? I'm thinking of taking out all my fish and put them in a new 30gallon tank for a day or two so I can use the chemical. Maybe dose to the extreme amount like half a bottle into the tank...hope the copper will kill the snails within 2 days.


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## jameswilliam (Nov 17, 2010)

You can protect snails disinfecting inanimate thing to add to your tank in a 1:20 bleach, and the development of new plants live in Alum.Snails or potassium permanganate, such as algae, can be helpful and harmful to a reservoir . Some species burrow into the gravel, air and prevent the compact, while others eat algae.


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## Camaro95 (Nov 11, 2010)

I need snails for my puffer. I can't seem to breed them fast enough. If anyone has such a problem in the future and a relatively slower moving current in their sump, try an Abei puffer somewhere. Needs about 30 gallons and you can turn your sump into a seperate tank! They are mostly nocturnal so lighting doesn't matter too much.


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## Lacey131 (Sep 26, 2010)

Also depending on the size of tank and your ammonia consistency Goldfish, fantail goldfish and loaches are the only ones that will eat those snails right up. If your tank is large enough goldfish will eat them all. Had a customer put two in her sump to de-snail her poor sump. It worked fab and she bought a ten gallon kit for her goldies lol


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## Camaro95 (Nov 11, 2010)

Two gold fish in a 10gallon? That's horrible. One won't even fit let alone two!


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## tracyk859 (Nov 25, 2010)

Thanks for the post. 
Hi guys, Im a newbie. Nice to join this forum.


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## juliocromus (Aug 1, 2010)

get ASSASIN SNAILS. got mine at that fish place


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## Teggy (Nov 5, 2010)

> get ASSASSIN SNAILS. got mine at that fish place


As julio said in another post



> All u gotta do is buy assassin snails, they eat up all unwanted snails and since they breed in saltwater, they wont infest your tank, they look pretty neat too, like a bumblbee snail, I put 3 in my 30 g and they were all gone, and I had thousands of those pests. you can get
> em at that fish place.


Thank you again for reminding me of those


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## beccam (Nov 16, 2010)

After many months of plastic plants, i just planted my first live plant ever in my baby tank. so of course there has been a snail out break, i have been following this thread looking to see the most effective way to treat this and i love the loach idea. Will a clown loach eat my baby fish? it's only been 4 days since the mother let the babies out of her mouth and they are really tiny. I'd rather not lose the babies, they aren't anything really fantasic, but they are the first batch i have ever really had or know about. so for sentimental reasons i'd like to keep them growing :roll:


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