Reducing snails becoming annoying

[Stephan1973]

I have been fighting with reducing my snail population in my 65G tank. I had 3 nerites since I didn’t want many but some how I got bladder snails and the are going crazy. I have tried reducing feeding and snail traps and even added a pea puffer. Unfortunately it does not appear that the pea puffer isn’t making a dent. Should I add more or is there another fish I could add. I have currently harlequins, neons, glass catfish, Siamese algae eaters, corys, endlers, a couple shrimp and the pea puffer in it. The tank is well planted. 

[Tommy Vercetti]

It took me over a year to become "snail free" in my planted tank. I put "snail-free" in quotations because yesterday, I found another one in there after not seeing any for over 3 months. 

Not a big deal to have snails. They are harmless. I just don't like the look of having dozens of them. 

I just remove them when I see them. Then put them in my fountain outside. It can get frustrating at times but I have come to accept that "snail-free" for me only means that I can't see them right now. 

[Stephan1973]

I don’t mind snails but when they are the first thing you see versus the fish it’s frustrating. 

[Lennie]

On 3/12/2023 at 11:48 PM, Stephan1973 said:

is there another fish I could add.

 

Generally for snails, probably pointy face loaches are the way to go. But loaches can be a lil fussy. Something to keep in mind. Also they need a big group like cories and they are super active.

Zebra, yoyo, clown and dwarf chain loaches are all good. Probably zebra, dwarf chains and yoyos are considerable for your tank size. I don't know how good dwarf chain loaches are good at eating snails.

 

 

Keep in mind besides normal tank feeding, algae, decaying plant matter, dead fish, etc are all snail food. So when considering snail food in the tank, you should consider these all as a potential food source. So balancing a tank and keeping up with maintenance plays a big role. As well as adding competition of food sources, which u have nerites, SAE and shrimp as well as corys

[lefty o]

a few assassin snails can also help keep the pest snail population in check.

[Cinnebuns]

I literally just 5 min ago got myself 3 yoyo loaches for this reason!  They would also work in your setup. It still helps to do multiple approaches. Continue to manage feedings and pull out big ones that you find is my advice. I have entirely eradicated ramshorn snails from many tanks purely by manual removal.

The ones I'm dealing with right now are MINI ramshorns and are too small for that. Bladder snails are somewhere between on that spectrum.  They are easier than minis but harder than reg ramshorns. They are larger so are easier to catch before they are sexually mature but they also breed faster than the regular ramshorns.

If you can, try to check as often as possible and pull out any you find. Check all around decor and wipe off eggs. Keep in mind even just removing 1 prevent dozens from even being born!

On 3/12/2023 at 4:29 PM, lefty o said:

a few assassin snails can also help keep the pest snail population in check.

Assassins can come with their own issues as well. If you get more than 1 they have a chance of reproducing and taking over as well. Also, they are more difficult to do with cories. They will eat the pellets you feed the cories which means they aren't eating as many snails if at all. 

[Theplatymaster]

On 3/12/2023 at 5:24 PM, Lennie said:

Generally for snails, probably pointy face loaches are the way to go. But loaches can be a lil fussy. Something to keep in mind. Also they need a big group like cories and they are super active.

Zebra, yoyo, clown and dwarf chain loaches are all good. Probably zebra, dwarf chains and yoyos are considerable for your tank size. I don't know how good dwarf chain loaches are good at eating snails.

these will eat the nerites too though.

before doing anything anti snail @Stephan1973i reccomend you remove your nerites, so they dont become casualties.

[Stephan1973]

Thanks so much for all the info guys. I will definitely go to LFS and see what they have in terms of the Loaches. And yes I have been picking them out as fast as they appear lol.  Even the snail trap gets full fast lol

[Odd Duck]

I put a single assassin into my 100 G angel tank before I added any other snails.  Between the assassin and manual removal and minimal feeding at that stage, I cleared both bladders and ramshorns.  I have since removed the assassin and added some Brazilian nerites that I fairly recently found. I’d like to get more of the Brazilian nerites.   What I got are pretty but very small.  I’ll probably add a few mysteries to the tank again now that the assassin is gone.  I’m trying to keep it South American as much as possible although I did put some Amano shrimp in (they're nearly clear shrimp with some brown markings that I rarely see, I’m OK with them for breaking the “rules”).  I might even put some rams back in.  I’m still debating with myself on that one.