snail shell deterioration

fish_freak · Jul 16, 2006

My apple snail looks like it has a couple smaller holes in its shell. It is very active and is growing like crazy but I just noticed these holes. Anyone know what might be causeing this and if there is something like maybe calcium that I should add to help out? Hes in a tank with a crayfish and the cray fish shell looks good.

YuccaPatrol · Jul 16, 2006

What is your pH? Snail shells dissolve in acidic water.

Keep your pH well above 7 and your snail shells will stay in better shape.

fish_freak · Jul 16, 2006

PH is 7.0-7.2 out of the tap so I never adjust it. Maybe I will bring it up to 7.8? There are tons of snails in my local waterways though.

tmtpowers · Jul 16, 2006

I would bring my ph up a little and you do need to add calcium to the water. There are several ways of doing this. Either add liquid calcium or add crushed coral or aragonite sand to your filter in a media bag. Also add a cuttle bone to your tank for your snails to craze on. Feed high calcium foods to your snails as well. This should help a lot. If the holes seem to go all the way through the shell, you need to patch it up. Google patching a snail shell and you should run across several sites explaining how to do it. I have yet to have to patch a shell so I don't have the instructions on me...

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snail shell deterioration

fish_freak

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YuccaPatrol

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fish_freak

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tmtpowers

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