Fresh water Snail Recommendations?

[Z Fish Man]

I am thinking about getting a couple snails for my 10g. I have a planted tank so I am looking for snails that won't eat plants but would preferably eat plant debris and algae. I have hard water with a high pH so I think my tank should be suitable for most species. I also would prefer ones that don't tank over the tank.

So far apple snails seem to be the only ones that fit the profile but even then some species of them eat plant. Has anyone had any luck with apple snails or other species?

[candice&jeff]

I was wondering the same thing! lol, sorry I don't have an answer for you, but I'll be checking back to see what eveyone else says. thumbs2:

[troy]

I've never kept them but zebra nerites can't breed in freshwater.

[Z Fish Man]

Wow zebra neritas actually seem like just what I need. I just did a quick google for information and I appears they eat only algae and are great tank cleaners. As you said the eggs won't survive in freshwater conditions so breeding won't be a concern. I think they also look very interesting so I'm going to try to pick a couple up tonight maybe. Not sure if I can find them at a petsmart though but I'll see. Thanks for the lead.

[DrNic]

Apple snails are pretty common for that type of thing. I've had good luck with Ramshorns as well but they can get a little crazy if you don't keep them in check.

[Wiggs]

I would second the Zebra Nerites, they almost seem perfect for most situations seeing as they cant overpopulate a tank.

[Z Fish Man]

Yeah I checked petsmart for the zebra's this evening but no luck. A friend of mine from work is going to check another LFS on his way home and there is 1 more place around me I need to call some hopefully 1 of them has them.

[Eileen]

If you need something to control algae try a Bushy nosed Pleco. They do a amazing job on cleaning a tank. They only get 4-4 1/2" max for an adult. Every tank should have one of these little cleaners It's like Merry Maids for your tank. Since getting 2 for my 55 gal. tank I have 1 in each of my 5 and 6 gal. tank and told my sister about them because she had a algae problem and in less then 2 days it is all clear on decor and glass. I have a planted tank they only messed up 1 plant because I was not feeding them enough. Just drop an algae waffer in a night . They are also called Bristlenose plecos. They all stay small in size. Nerite snails are the best if you do not want an over population.

[Z Fish Man]

Hmm thanks for the idea. I'll definitely consider a bristlenose pleco.

[Eileen]

I noticed you were from San Diego. I have a friend that has bushy nose plecos and they just had babies. I got 6 of them the other day. I need to rehome a baby pleco that I got from her that was born last summer. It is a male albino gold. I will let you have one for free. I'm in the Scripps Ranch area of San Diego.

[Jacko]

I wouldn't put in a bristlenose, a 10 gallon tank is far too small for an adult bn and they're major poop machines.

I'd recomend either going with a brig of some color (tons of colors out there) or a nerite snail or two, I know a couple sellers in cali that have zebras as well as other interesting species if you're interested, shipping wouldn't be too bad either since they're close, plus there's less of a worry of DOA.thumbs2:

[Z Fish Man]

I wouldn't put in a bristlenose, a 10 gallon tank is far too small for an adult bn and they're major poop machines.

I'd recomend either going with a brig of some color (tons of colors out there) or a nerite snail or two, I know a couple sellers in cali that have zebras as well as other interesting species if you're interested, shipping wouldn't be too bad either since they're close, plus there's less of a worry of DOA.thumbs2:


Yeah I wasn't sure if a pleco of any kind would fit so I would prefer snails. I would be interested if the price is ok including shipping. I wouldn't want to pay much more than 5 bucks for 2 of them.

I just visited a LFS and they didn't have them in stock b/c their FW tanks were being overhauled so he said hopefully in a few weeks it might be up and running again.

I'll do some research on brigs though, I haven't heard of them.

edit: Oh brig snails=mystery snails lol. Could be a back up plan cause i think i like the zebras more

[Wild Turkey]

Nerite or Apple snails are going to be a lot more care intensive than say ramshorns or mts, those would be my choice.

Nothing will take over the take unless you overfeed, BUT the apple and nerite snails will need to be fed a high calcium diet among other things

this article is somewhat helpful for getting an idea of how to maintain shell health (a big issue with nerites and mysterys, not so much with ramshorns and mts)
http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/aquariumforum/showthread.php?t=38661

[Eileen]

I've had this baby pleco for some time and he is still small. The friend that I got him from told me that if they get to big they are easy to find homes. I had a adult female the mom of this baby and she was no bigger then 3" full grown. Anyways I do have 6 tiny pleco babies that are 1/2" and they will take awhile to grow.So if you would like to raise them and rehome them if they get to big for you rehome them on craigslist.I have 1 albino gold, 3 brown shortfin bushy nose pleco. And I will give you 1 or 2 for free to raise. I will leave it up to you. Does a better job then a Octo cat.

[Jacko]

otocinclus are fairly decent algae eaters in their own right...

what I'm worried about for Z Fish Man's tank is the amount of bioload a pleco produces, not the size of the fish itself... a small school of otos are a couple of snails would produce less waste than the bn

nerites and apple snails will need a calcium supplement but that's easily enough accomplished with a peice of cuttlebone weighted down out of sight or in the filter.

You won't find zebra nerites at 2.50 each, my olives cost me 3 a peice, I think zebras are about 4 or 5 each, plus 6-8 dollars shipping... they're not the easiest to get a hold of (difficult to breed)

[Eileen]

I do 25% water change a week and check the water quality with a dropper test kit everyweek. I have never had a water issue in my smaller tanks and I put Cycle water treatment in all my tanks for weekly maintenance.
But everyone has their opinion. I have had bad luck with Octo's, Everyone that I got seems to die they seem to be a sensitive fish for tanks. My tank is all planted and that also helps with the water quality also. My 55gal. has a uv sanitizer/Clarifyer in it also besides a 75 gal. bio canister filter system.

[Wild Turkey]

You can make the ph as high and water as hard as you want, but poor diet will still lead to shell damage in the long term; Which is why the ones at the petstore usually have poor shell health.

When people ask me whats the most important I usually tell them get their PH high and stable, and feed high calcium foods, after that adding calcium to the water (there are several ways) is really only needed if you notice problems.