Snails taking over...

[every detail]

I started with about 25 snails in my 75reef.... and over the past few months they've multiplied, quite rapidly
I started counting last week and gave up after 300 having only finished a 1/4 of the tank. I see almost microsopic snails everwhere, they cover the rocks, they cover my 300 bioballs, EVERYTHING. I estimate the count to be well over 600 and growing everyday. My question is: will too many snails to have a detrimental effect on my tank?
Is this bad? Is this good? It seems kinda out of hand
Also, how do they reproduce?

 

[stupid_naso]

If they are really snails then I'd say it's good thing. I'm not really sure how they reproduce but I've seen one of my snails laying eggs on the glass. I don't think it will have detrimental effect on your tank.

 

[dreeves]

Too many snails are not a good thing...they will quickly eat themselves out of food, then die. The ones that will die will decompose...some you wont find and you will have amonia, and so on.

 

[birdy]

Are you positive that they are snails? sounds more like pods to me. They are very small look like little bugs running around the tank. There are snails that will reproduce in a saltwater tank, but they don't reproduce that rapidly.

 

[elfdoctors]

Snails that reproduce in saltwater aquariums tend to regulate their own population.
Besides pods, perhaps what you are seeing is spirorbidae worms.

 

[every detail]

thanks for the info
they're definitely snails, I know the pods you refer to. These are baby snails, they have striped shells and move around cleaning like it's their job. I'm gonna try to give some away before they run out of food
And these really do reproduce that rapidly, or I just have a few really horny snails! I have hundreds in the tank

 

[dreeves]

Try selling them to your LFS or getting a store credit for them.

 

[marvida]

If the ones you have are the same as the ones I have then they only get as big as a match head. I've got 100's of them in my 29. In Sprung's book he identifies them as a relative of stomatella & says they are a good thing.
The ones I have only come out at night.

 

[jedininja]

Everydetail, if you have to many, would you be wiling to ship some out? I'll pay for your shipping. I've seen those snails before and was told they are harmless algae eaters and reproduce quickly.

 

[007]

Originally posted by MarVida
If the ones you have are the same as the ones I have then they only get as big as a match head. I've got 100's of them in my 29. In Sprung's book he identifies them as a relative of stomatella & says they are a good thing.
The ones I have only come out at night.
this is exactly what I was thinking. Are the shells white with brown stripes? i am going to guess that this is what you have. If so, the size you are seeing is full grown. They will not get much bigger. The way i see it, by themselves they do nothing. but when they work together, they are almost as good as regular snails IMO because of the sheer speed at which the reproduce.