# how to get rid of snails in a shrimp tank



## fishkid951 (Jan 4, 2008)

hi i hav cherries in a tank and hav heaps of snails around 3mm big...really small i know...but how can i get them all out?? i would prefer to hav no snails in there at all. could u please help. do i need to pluck them out one by one? or is there an easier way? thanx


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## Ebichua (May 13, 2008)

Manually remove the snails through bait and trap.

Throw in a clean piece of lettuce in there every night, then take it out when you wake up. It should be covered in snails if you have a large population. Reduce feeding on your RCS. If you're doing 2 pellets a day, then cut that in half. 1 pellet a day, then split it in half. Just basically cut your feedings in half and possibly more if the snails' numbers keep increasing. 
You won't be able to completely remove the snails out of your tank if it's already heavily overrun, which seems to be the case with the way you described it. However, you can reduce it to a size that will be barely noticeable. 

Squishing a few small snails isn't a bad thing either. Free shrimp food  Just don't do it way too much, as it may cause an ammonia spike if you have like a hundred dead snails in one go.


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## fishkid951 (Jan 4, 2008)

ok i will try your suggestion. will these tiny snails be attracted to the lettuce? i rarely see them on the algae wafers i put in. i dont have hundereds but i would hav around 50 or so and want them gone. thanx in this matter...any other bait ideas??


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## tison 30 (Apr 12, 2008)

What i do is i take an air line hose the one for the airstones and suck on one end to keep the water comming put it in the bucket and other end in tank and just move the end thats in the tank around and suck off all the snails you see. it doesnt get them all but it sure gets a lot.


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## volkracing99 (Nov 17, 2007)

I use to have this problem... then I read somewhere that spixi snail will take care of it.

and it DID...


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## Natty (Apr 2, 2008)

Assassin Snails!!!!!!

:icon_evil :icon_evil :icon_evil :icon_evil :icon_evil

I also opt on spixi snails too, they're a type of apple snail.

Assassin snails don't eat live shrimps from what I see.


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## Aquarist_Fist (Jul 22, 2008)

Natty said:


> Assassin Snails!!!!!!


Any input as to where one can get them? They are *really* useful.


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## customdrumfinishes (Apr 4, 2008)

spixi snails eat other snails?


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## Ebichua (May 13, 2008)

There have been reports of them eating other snails, usually smaller in size. Though I've never seen this myself. 
I do know they will eat snail eggs though. I have witnessed this behavior.


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## volkracing99 (Nov 17, 2007)

Pictures.... here we go.... 

MTS









Ramshon









Sorry I don't have the picture they are eating snail egg... but I'm sure they did.... (as like Ebichua, said)


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## Natty (Apr 2, 2008)

> Any input as to where one can get them? They are *really* useful


I'm currently breeding them, southern is as well. You can probably find a dealer on aquabid. IMO, they're like the elephants in my tank, not because they're big (they're slightly bigger than MTS) but because they have a tube like device in the front of themselves. It's pretty cute.



> spixi snails eat other snails?


Yeah, spixi snails do eat snails, but I think the way they effect the population the most is that they eat snail eggs and they sometimes eat smaller snails.

Even though they eat other snails, they are not super effective against them. They aren't built to eat snails as assassin snails are.

If and when I get babies, I'll hook you guys up, they sure aren't shy when it comes to it...it's very commonly seen and sometimes there's shaking action too!


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## Aquarist_Fist (Jul 22, 2008)

Cool.roud: Do let me know when you have bred enough to throw some on the market. I take it they can live without feeding on other snails if there are none?


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## Natty (Apr 2, 2008)

Aquarist_Fist said:


> Cool.roud: Do let me know when you have bred enough to throw some on the market. I take it they can live without feeding on other snails if there are none?


I heard they require snails in order to breed. Mines just ate a same sized ramshorn today.

And....guess what...back to mating. Living the California dream, baby!!


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## fishkid951 (Jan 4, 2008)

tried the lettuce idea last night...this morning there are no snails on the lettuce:icon_cry: 
will try other ideas...thanx all and any other ideas apreciated
i dont think the snails u suggested are in australia as i hav never heard of them. thanx and keep ideas comming:thumbsup:


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## dthb4438 (Nov 12, 2007)

I have Spixi "apple" snails available. Just posted in the swap and shop yesterday. I have witnessed myself their eating other snails. I have a couple of small ones and a breeding pair as well. Just PM me for more info.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/myfish/140-Zebra_Apple_Snail_Asolene_spixi_.html


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## Ebichua (May 13, 2008)

He lives in australia and you *need* a permit to ship those out of state lines.

As for your snail problem, just manually squish them. If the snails are ignoring your lettuce, then that may probably mean there's enough food in the tank for them to graze on, thus not taking your bait. That may also mean that your snail problem may not be as large as you think, since there must be enough food for them all to sustain their population without having to look for a supplemented feeding. All you can do right now is either squish them yourself manually or get something that will eat the snails. Either through Anentome Helena or Spixi. If you can't get either, then you're probably going to be stuck with manual squishing duty.


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## customdrumfinishes (Apr 4, 2008)

i have spixi snails in my tanks and hey arent eating the other snails that i can tell, maybe they will eat the egg sacks. or the spixis eating other snails are hybrid spixis.

i have some spixis for sale too lol all big,one ever wants them seems like.


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## Profound (Aug 29, 2014)

tison 30 said:


> What i do is i take an air line hose the one for the airstones and suck on one end to keep the water comming put it in the bucket and other end in tank and just move the end thats in the tank around and suck off all the snails you see. it doesnt get them all but it sure gets a lot.


You, sir, are a genius roud:

I tried this tonight and literally pulled about 60-80 of the little bugger's out of my planted tank within a few minutes!

I zip-tied one end of some airline hose to a bamboo skewer so I had a rigid wand that was easy to aim around without wetting my sleeves, and used an alligator clip at the other end to keep the hose in the bucket, and started siphoning the pests away! Best method yet for me!

I've tried everything, no joke, including traps, bait (blanched zucchini/lettuce/etc.), catching and squishing/removing by hand , even assassin snails (which attacked and killed 2 of my RCS btw, watch out). Nothing was depleting the escargatoire of mini terrorists efficiently enough...

Absolutely brilliant and so easy, I'm gonna do this every evening until the population is at least under control. I was sick of seeing my shrimp haven (bush of willow moss) looking like a flocked xmas tree!

The cool thing is that you won't lose water this way, the snails sink to the bottom of the bucket and you can pour the water right back in.

Thanks again! Freakin lifesaver!


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## highstakes (Sep 21, 2014)

I use the airline method also works well for me. then the snails go in my badis badis tank which then in turn eat the snails. so they have some use for me


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