Getting rid of baby snails!

[ckayb01]

My sister has a 30 gal aquarium and recently bought a LR at a lPS. Well after a few weeks she now has baby snails taken over her tank!! How can she safely remove them without killing them and having them fall to the bottom of her tank and dying? She is scared it will cause a spike if they dye and she doesnt remove all of them! They are alover the glass and LR.

 

[007]

what do they look like and how big are they?

 

[marvida]

If they are the little tiny turbo shaped snails, why does she want to get rid of them? They eat film algae & don't hurt anything.

 

[buzz]

Leave them until they start to get bigger. They don't grow all that fast, so she has time. I worked out a deal with my LFS that once mine reach the size of a pencil eraser, he'll take them in trade from me. I have probably 100 of them.
If some die, at that size, any hermits,etc. will have them as a midnight snack. I don't think they will affect any levels.

 

[ckayb01]

They are very small, some are just specs and others are about the size of a drop of water. She has hundreds just covering her LR and the glass.
Is their anything she can get that will eat them? Or should she try and siphon them off?

 

[elfdoctors]

I would also recommend letting them live. They will regulate their own population.
When I had a freshwater tank I would periodically smush some of them with a finger against the glass as a treat for the other fish.
Many of the non-reef-safe fish will eat snails.

 

[ckayb01]

I went and saw my sisters tank yeasterday and they look nothing like the strombus maculatus. They were white, flat and round, almost a clearish white. They were spiral shaped and and really don't move much. They are not copepods!

 

[jrpage]

Can you get a pic of them? I'd like to see!

 

[ckayb01]

I wish I could, I know it would help but she doesnt have a digital camera! Sorry.
I have been trying to find a pic of someone elses but all I have found so far is pic of the strombus maculatus.

 

[purity]

i had the same thing happen several times to my tank. they're not harmful and will probably go away after about a week. let em be dude.

 

[007]

are the shells white with brown patches?

 

[beaslbob]

Originally posted by ckayb01
I went and saw my sisters tank yeasterday and they look nothing like the strombus maculatus. They were white, flat and round, almost a clearish white. They were spiral shaped and and really don't move much. They are not copepods!
I now have hundreds of spiral shaped things since i added corals and other filter feeders. They do not move and look like coiled feather dusters. I suspect you do not have snales but something similiar. they do not seem to bother anything. I also suspect my feeding of the filter feeders was the reason i have them now.

 

[overanalyzer]

Originally posted by beaslbob
I now have hundreds of spiral shaped things since i added corals and other filter feeders. They do not move and look like coiled feather dusters. I suspect you do not have snales but something similiar. they do not seem to bother anything. I also suspect my feeding of the filter feeders was the reason i have them now.
I'd agree with Bob - I have them in my tank - they are hard and I have had to scrap them off hte glass ... but other than that they are a nice addition to your tank

 

[fender]

If they don't move at all I would say they aren't snails but a spiropod (I am sure that isn't the correct spelling :notsure: ) instead. Filter feeders and although hard to remove from glass, a good thing to have.

 

[ckayb01]

So I'm guessing it will be okay for her to scrap them off the front of the tank at least and it won't hurt anything.
She really doesn't mind them in the tank but was tired of seeing them on the font all the time, it was making it not so attractive to look at.
Thanks everyone!
ck