Snail removal

[Whip's World]

I have not added anything to my 29g hospital/quarantine tank in years. Not plants. Not fish. Not decor. Yet, magically, a couple years ago, snails started showing up. Ar first, I didn't care so much because they do add waste to keep the nitrogen cycle going. However, now I'm thinking about trying my hand at plants and that tank is as good as a tank as any to start in. What I don't want is, to cause an infestation my other tanks... assuming I do okay at the plant project and start moving them around. No hitchhikers!

So, all that to ask, what's the best fish to get that will eliminate snails and their eggs? I hear loaches, but there are a great many types to chose from. Is one type better than another?

[RovingGinger]

I think dwarf chain loaches are the most common one recommended for this purpose? Yoyo loaches will also do this, but they get larger. Zebra loaches don’t get as big and I believe they also eat snails. 
 

Pea puffer is another popular choice that stays much smaller but may not always do well in a community. 
 

I am not sure about egg eating. I have a pea puffer in my 40 and yo-yos in my 75 and both are low on snails and I don’t see eggs, but I assume some make it through. 

[ange]

If you don't want snails at all, I'd suggest using a medication like fenbendazole (commonly used to kill planaria). It tends to "taint" the substrate long-term and can make it hard for snails to live in, but is safe for shrimp.

Personally I'd suggest giving snails a shot. I have snails in all of my tanks but have never had problems with infestation, they help a lot to eat decaying plant matter (like when my new plants melt back) as well as green spot algae. Infestation is usually a result of over-feeding the tank or another imbalance.

[ADMWNDSR83]

I have had several bladder snails come in recently on some plants, and today went to my lfs and picked up a couple Assassin snails.  We'll see what happens!

[Errk25]

I like to have some snails. Nerites are my favorite because they won't reproduce. The bladder snails I have aren't too bad. But the rams horn and MTS in my tanks are crazy over populated and breed so fast. I cut back on feeding and have been plucking them by hand.