So you have recently set up your first tank and as per the latest trend you add lots of plants and now you are quite happy with your work...But then you notice something weird you see a little guest that probably you didn't add to your tank ad it's a- Snail.
For many hobbyists, snails are pests of the aquarium, and yes they are right. But not all, the snails available at the pet stores which you intentionally add are a different thing, what we are talking is about snails that you don't add, but get into the tank mistakenly. And actually having some of them is great, but when their population explodes, the problem starts.
So I will tell you all about these pest snails, how to prevent them, and lastly, if you already have them in the tank how to get rid of them.
- Then Snail types.
Talking about the types of snails you may have in your tank. The first ones are the snails which you add intentionally You may have bought them from a pet store, these snails are actually made for aquariums and are one of the pets. So nothing to bother about them, they don't grow fast and don't breed like crazy. These include Apple and Mystery snails available at the stores.
Now the snails which we can actually call Pests. These snails are not introduced by you are come mistakenly to your tank, the problem with them is that they grow way too fast. If in case you saw a small snail that is hardly visible, that one will grow double it's size the next week! And one individual snail can give birth to 4-5 batches of snails each with 50-100 individuals. They will soon invade your tank and destroy your plantation.
- Prevention
So, as prevention is better than cure, we will see how to prevent them from coming into your tank.
Snails don't simply pop in your tank, they have ways through which they sneak into your tank.
The first source is the Aquarium substrate, Aquarium substrate is the most sneaky way to get into your tank. You will never know that the substrate has snails, as they look alike. So best is to take the substrate in a tub and keep it under a running tap. This will overflow the tub and as snails are much lighter, they will get out of the substrate. It will also remove any derbies and other contaminants from the substrate. But, remember substrate will have snails only if the store has an unhygienic tank ( which will help the snails to grow.) and when they will put that substrate into your tank, that's when snails get into the tank. So, check if the store has good maintenance.
You can find an amazing range of quality Aquarium substrates from my favorite Hooked on fishes aquarium store.
- Plants.
Plants are yet another way of entry of snails in the tank. Many times snails will be in living near the roots of the plants. Also, snails will lay their eggs on the plant leaves, and then this way they can get in. The best way to prevent this is to quarantine your plants, keep them in bleach solution for 10 minutes and then rinse them well. Then keep them in quarantine for a day. This way snail eggs will be destroyed and adult snails will be thrown off.
- Decorations.
Snails can be anywhere and also on the decorations. If they are kept on a shelf that's fine. But, when you add something that was in another tank earlier then bleach and rinse them well.
Getting rid of them.
So, if in case snails have already got into your tank, or maybe invaded your tank then here's how to get rid of them
First of all, keep the tank clean, unhygienic tank conditions snails to grow. So, when you have a snail problem try to keep the tank clean. Lots of algae, poor water conditions are ideal for their reproduction.
Then try a deep clean of the tank, wash everything thoroughly. I have tried it many times and it does works, a deep clean destroys their habitat and very few or no one is left. While cleaning use vinegar for better and efficient cleaning.
If still no use, you can set up snail traps. Like you can keep some vegetable leaves like spinach or cabbage for some days. Many of the snails will come over to eat that leaf and that time you can remove them.
Also, some handful fishes like bettas and goldfish will eat snails. Also, Corey catfishes will help you to get rid of snail eggs and thus keeping the population under control.
And also, to help with all this you can remove them manually. Whenever you see a snail that is near to the surface you can simply remove it. This also helps a lot to keep them in control.
Conclusion.
Having some snails in the tank can be a little helpful, but when they are out of your control then you must act to prevent the loss of your aquarium. Hope this article helped you to some extent and support AquaNation by sharing this article with your fellow hobbyists.
Also, in case you need any aquarium equipment you can find the best quality products only at Hooked on fishes. So do visit their store and you can read about them here: Hooked on Fishes.