My snails keep dying.

[crypt keeper]

Can anybody help. I have a 12 gallon nano. I have put 5 snails in. With Hermits. They do fine for about a week then they just start dying off. My water is fine. Everything else is living inlcuding my Emerald crab. My Peppermint Shrimp. All ther inverts. So what gives?

 

[bang guy]

"My water is fine"
I need a lot more information about your water than "fine".
Have you ever used tap water?
How long has the tank been set up?
How did you acclimate the snails?

 

[crypt keeper]

Water tests fine. No Ammonia. Trates. trites. Ph is fine as well. Since it in a nano tank I use pre made water from my fish store. They sell it by the gallon there. Much easier.
I drip acclimated them for about an hour. I put them in and they just went on the move starting eating all my algae. Then about a week later my first one died and the rest have died off slowly since. Yes there is food. They are not starving. I even have corals like xenia and zoo's growing.
Tank has been up for over a month.

 

[markeo99]

possible reasons but not all
hermits yanking them out for fun
temp swings
salinity swings
I have found that those 3 are tough on snails in my old tank

 

[bang guy]

How did you acclimate the snails?
Do they die in the shell or does the shell just show up empty in the morning?
What is the water Salinity?
What species of Snails?
What is the water temperature?
What's the Alkalinity?

 

[crypt keeper]

I have found 3 of the 5 intact and just smelled badly when I pulled them out as if they had been rotting away. Temp stays the same so says my thermometer.
How do you keep salinity to stop fluctuating? What causes it?

 

[crypt keeper]

Originally Posted by Bang Guy
http:///forum/post/2821615
How did you acclimate the snails?
Do they die in the shell or does the shell just show up empty in the morning?
What is the water Salinity?
What species of Snails?
What is the water temperature?
What's the Alkalinity?
water temp is 78.
I just tested salinity. .023
Drip accilmate for an hour. I have an extra heater that I use while drip acclimate to control water temp when I do it.
Alkalinity no idea.

 

[bang guy]

I can't think of anything wrong then. If it were the Hermits, which is very common, then the shells would be empty.
All I can suggest is that they might have been mistreated before you purchased them.
Are you the first owner of the tank and the live rock?
"Salinity Swing" as mentioned above can only happen during a water change or if you topoff with a lot of water all at once.

 

[crypt keeper]

Tank no. But he was a coral guy. He switched all the corals he had in the tank to another and sold the tank a few days later. I washed it out about 10 times with clean water. No soaps, as he told me all he did was let it air dry after making the switch.
Rock was new from LFS store. Its quality rock. Lots of coraline growth. I didnt add anything to the tank for a few weeks while it cycled so rock was curred.
I saw one dead the other day and before I could get to it my hermits grabbed it so i just let it go. Now its an empty shell. But like I stated earlier. They were just dead. Smelled bad. Mad my water smell thast how I knew one had died. I have 1 left and I have algae growing. This will be week 3 that I have made the original purchase.They were different sizes. Two were very big the other 3 were smaller to medium size.
I have a Yasha Goby and Six line Wrasse. Both very small. Goby an inch and half. The six line maybe 2 inches. Thats it for fish.
Rest of stock list.
1 Emerald Crab
2 Peppermint Shrimp which have actually both molted and doing great.
Yasha Goby
Six line
6 Blue leg hermits.
Now 1 turbo Snail.
Had all inverts for over 3 weeks now. Only thing dying are my snails. Everything else including Corals are healthy happy and growing.

 

[mr.clownfish]

blue leg hermit crabs are the most aggressive hermit crab. i have 2 in my tank that killed over 10 of my snails. scarlet hermit crabs are much less aggressive

 

[crypt keeper]

Then I should find empty shells correct?