Malaysian trumpet snails changing water chemistry

[jaysee]

Looking at all the broken mts shells in my crayfish tanks has made me wonder

Mts die, like everything else, and their shells remain in the gravel as part of the gravel. Will this alter the water chemistry in any way? Doing large weekly water changes will obviously keep this in check, if it is in fact the case, but what if you were to not change the water (hypothetical for educational purposes)?

Also, if for some reason I wanted to remove them from a sand tanks, could I just sift through the sand and get them out? I think this would be a good idea, except for the smallest snails.

At what point (size) do they start makig more snails?

[Northernguy]

I think all the empty shells that are deteriorating will raise your ph a bit.
The Malaysian Trumpet Snail reproduces live young and does not lay eggs. They can reproduce rapidly however. Rapid reproduction is a sign that you either need to feed your inhabitants less or vacuum the gravel extensively. . High temperatures can also result in rapid reproduction if coupled with overfeeding.

If you shut off your filter they will climb up the glass and out of the water for easy pickin's.Not recomended for the fish though!
I have a metal strainer for kitchen use the is great for sifting the sand.Its just a handheld strainer with a metal mesh.

[jaysee]

I think all the empty shells that are deteriorating will raise your ph a bit.
The Malaysian Trumpet Snail reproduces live young and does not lay eggs. They can reproduce rapidly however. Rapid reproduction is a sign that you either need to feed your inhabitants less or vacuum the gravel extensively. . High temperatures can also result in rapid reproduction if coupled with overfeeding.

If you shut off your filter they will climb up the glass and out of the water for easy pickin's.Not recomended for the fish though!
I have a metal strainer for kitchen use the is great for sifting the sand.Its just a handheld strainer with a metal mesh.

I'm not trying to get rid of them, just wondering if I should scoup out all the little bits of shells. I'm rather surprised that the crayfish can break them apart like that.

The metal kitchen strainer is EXACTLY what I had in mind.