# Snail Help Please!!!



## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

I would like to know a good way to rid my tank of snails. A way that would not kill my plants or my fauna-especially my red cherry shrimp. Any ideas?


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## thaerin (Dec 12, 2004)

get 2 long thin slices of zuccini or cucumber. put them in the tank at lights out. Either in the morning (first thing!) or in the middle of the night, remove the zuccini. should be covered in snails. repeat for a few days and you should be practically rid of the buggers. remove any stragglers by hand and any snail egg sacks


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## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

those sacks are hard to remove and see


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## Paul Higashikawa (Mar 18, 2004)

Go the extreme way and pour boiling water into the tank. Of course, you need to remove everything you want to keep first! Plants, fish, shrimps, etc... Once you pour the hot water, stir the gravels to distribute the scorching heat. This should kill most if not all the snails pestering in your tank. I used to do this, but now I don't. I've come to appreciate snails as an integral part of this whole mini-ecosystem. Plus, mine usually die off after a certain period of time, especially the ramhorn snails.


Paul


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## thaerin (Dec 12, 2004)

Maybe for you chia, they're all over for me =( q tips seem to work at removing them though


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## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

the zuccinni will float, yes? just place them and let them float? I wanted to try a method to not take my fish/shrimp out, plus the boiling water may kill my plants also.


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## Paul Higashikawa (Mar 18, 2004)

Wondering why people don't read the posts closely?! I said remove anything you don't want to get killed before pouring the hot water.

If you don't feel like taking anything out then I guess the baiting method is the next best thing.


Paul


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

I have read of people putting an algae wafer in a shot glass at lights out then removing the snails and remaining wafer the next morning. I haven't tried this method so I can't say if it works or not, though I would probably check on it mid way through the night. Let us know which method you decide to use and if it works!

Edit: I hope I didn't send you too many snail eggs with the Blyxa


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## thaerin (Dec 12, 2004)

good point chia, I forgot that part  I usually blanch it in the microwave quick. cover it in a bit of water and zap it for a minute, sinks like a rock. if your really worried about it, you can weight it down with something. Although the shot glass method is a good one too.


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## chiahead (Dec 18, 2004)

Matpat the Blyxa looks snail free-I saw a tiny bit of thread algea but I removed it-it could of been a moss also. I will try the bait method tonight as removing my fauna and plants would be a horrible adventure. Thanks again all.


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

Glad the Blyxa arrived safely. There might have been some algae on them, I didn't really check them out. I will have to give them a better look later this evening. I had figured on snails, but not algae. Let me know how the shot glass works.


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## arellanon (Jan 2, 2005)

SurWrathful said:


> Go the extreme way and pour boiling water into the tank. Of course, you need to remove everything you want to keep first! Plants, fish, shrimps, etc... Once you pour the hot water, stir the gravels to distribute the scorching heat. This should kill most if not all the snails pestering in your tank. I used to do this, but now I don't. I've come to appreciate snails as an integral part of this whole mini-ecosystem. Plus, mine usually die off after a certain period of time, especially the ramhorn snails.
> 
> Paul


Wouldn't the boiling water kill the bacteria in the tank as well? And yes, snails are cool.


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## Paul Higashikawa (Mar 18, 2004)

The bacteria are actually more resilient than you think. Heck, even after I poured the hot water 10 times in the end there were still some snail that survived the catastrophe. But back to the bacteria issue. You can always save some water from the tank and pour it back after you are finished with the snail cleansing. Just make sure it's snail-free. Even if you don't completely eradicate all the snails in the tank, it is still an effective way to reduce a large amount. But like I said, I don't even bother doing that now. I feed my fish all kinds of stuff; vegetable, fruits, to seafood. So whatever they couldn't finish the snails will do a marvelous job of consumption. 


Paul


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## 229oz (Mar 23, 2005)

*Killing Snails*

I have heard the cucumber method works great, but I know for a fact that one skunk loach will eat every snail and egg sack in your tank-one did in my tank. You probably wont even see the fish again, as they tend to only come out at night and stay buried to avoid light.


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