Are these snails safe?

by **LizzieDee** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 5:05 pm

Hi, still cycling my tank and have found some snails - must have come in on the plants.

They started off absolutely minute with opaque shells but are growing like fury now and have pointed black shells which seem to have an iridescent sheen, two feelers at the front and a long pointed tail as they whizz round the tank - they really do move! When I first noticed them about 4/5 days ago they were practically invisible, now they are approaching quarter of an inch.

I can't identify them from pictures online so I'm not sure whether I should try to get rid of them or leave the fish to do the job in a couple of weeks time when I start stocking my tank.

by **pippoodle** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 5:11 pm

sound like pond snails hun they will over taqke the tank in no time
how are you cycling the tank - are you using food or ammonia

are you testing the water
if not i recommend getting an api master test kit

by **LizzieDee** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 5:23 pm

I'm using Ammonia, and I'm using the API Master Kit to test daily. Results have been a bit up and down but seem to have settled (the morning after adding the Ammonia) at Ammonia 0, Nitrite has fallen from 5 to 1 and Nitrate 20. I've been adding one drop of ammonia daily - do you think I should reduce that to every other day?

Not sure how I've got pond snails! The plants were definitely sold as aquarium plants. I do have a pond and have snails in there but they don't look the same as these. I'll hike them out anyway just in case.

by **jasminek** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 5:43 pm

I have about 10 of these little buggers because i found 2 in my goldie tank and put them in a random plastic tub with random plant cuttings and they must of bred in their now theres about 10of these! i dont have the heart tp kill them so they just live in a tub of water with loads of random plant trimmings!

by **LizzieDee** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:33 pm

I've found something else now! A couple of little white things wriggling about on the surface of the water. They are white, about 1/4" long and about the thickness of a human hair.

I've had a look in a couple of books I have but can't identify these either. This is turning into a nightmare and I haven't got my fish yet!

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:37 pm

i remember reading about them i cant think what there called but you get them if you over feed and they somethimes come out from the substance when you do water changes but im not sure its them it was just the first thing i thought off.

by **jasminek** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:39 pm

i read that to kizno1, are they like worms lizzie?

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:41 pm

yh that that what i was thinking off are they like this
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by **jasminek** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:43 pm

Thats what i was thinking to and i thought of them they look horribel! Are you trying to cycle the tank with food? Your probably adding too much if so. When you increase feeding they should vanish.

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:44 pm

or take the gravel out and wash it and use a gravel vac to suck them all up.

by **jasminek** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:47 pm

washing the gravel will start the whoel cycling again wont it? I know the filters the main part of matture media etc but the gravel holds all food particles etc, although no fish added yet so might be alright to do that. gravel vac seems like a better idea would work brilliantly good thinking Wink

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:50 pm

yh it will i forgot about that but you can still do it when yu have finished the cycle the worms will be fine till then.

by **jasminek** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:51 pm

Yep, makesure you dont add fish if the worms are still their. They wont harm the fish but you wouldnt want fish in with worms lol. Vac them up if you can.

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:52 pm

i think the fish eat them anyway.

by **jasminek** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 6:54 pm

yh they do ive heard but i wouldnt want to eat worms but there choice they eat anything fish!

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 7:01 pm

and if there is only one fish it would proberly be best not to leave them otherwise he wil proberly eat them all and get bloated.

by **LizzieDee** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 7:29 pm

So, where do they come from? In the water supply? Oh yuck! Please tell me they don't come out of the tap - I've been drinking that stuff.

They do look a bit like the photo but not so fat, and they don't really curl up into a circle, they sort of hang upright in the water and wriggle along really quickly.

I haven't put any food in the tank, I'm cycling with ammonia.

So, do the fish eat them or not - what are they called?

Now I've got snails and worms to get rid of - I suppose it's too much to hope that the snails will eat the worms!

I've only seen 3 or 4 of them, maybe half a dozen.

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 7:33 pm

they dont come from the water you can get them if you over feed so i dont know why you have tem. the ones in the pic where quite big. yh fish will eat them and i dont know what there called.

by **LizzieDee** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 7:46 pm

I don't think they are the same things then as these are really, really tiny.

by **kizno1** on Sun Aug 30, 2009 7:48 pm

yh they are really tiny but they grow the once in the pic where big once.

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