seashells in an african tank

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keiferd

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Nov 4, 2003
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Hello, I recently added a few shell dwellers in my african cichlid tank and I was wondering if I can add some seashells in my tank. I live on Long island, NY and I frequently find giant conch shells washed up on the beach. They seem to be perfect breeding shells for my cichlids and I was wondering if it would be safe to put in my tank. I know trace amounts of marine salt is overall good for the health of the fish, but should I take any precautions before adding these to my tank? thanx in advance.:headbang2:
 

jpappy789

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Feb 18, 2007
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Shell dwellers absoutely NEED shells for them to feel comfortable as that is where they reside a good deal of the time. They are also necessary for breeding. Be careful with hand picked shells though, any possible contaminants could be deadly. I would suggest heavy scrubing and possible boiling (but be careful). Also, make sure their is enough room for them. You do not want to have one end up getting stuck inside the shell. Personally, I would choose escargot shells over beach shells. They are still cheap (probably at your grocery store) and look great. Also the perfect size...

Any trace of marine salt is not going to do any FW fish any extra help though...

Just out of curiosity...what else is in the tank and what size???
 

wataugachicken

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i would probably run them through the dishwasher (if you have one) a couple times without using any soap. that would clean them pretty well and remove most if not all chemical contaminants.
 

keiferd

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I know it's bad, but It's a malawi/tang mix tank. I have 3 yellow labs, 3 P.Elongatus, 2 snow white socofili, 1 albino peacock, 1 Yellow Calvus, and the 2 shellies I just added are Neolamprologus cylindricus. It's a 55 gal tank and they're all juvies under 3" long.
 

jpappy789

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Feb 18, 2007
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Yikes, that is what I was afriad of...Tang/Malawi mix can sometimes work but only with larger tangs. Shell dwellers just dont have the means to defend themselves and would end up hiding in their shells the entire time. I would DEFINITELY keep an eye on ANY aggression especially since they are still juvies and as they mature aggression problems will most likely occur. I also recommend looking into a smaller tank (15-20 gallons) for the cylindricus to be safely housed in in the near future...
 

keiferd

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well I still I have my old 37 gallon tall I just upgraded from that I was going to keep for a breeder tank. If I see any problems I guess I'll throw em in there, thanx for the advice.
 

Punnet

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i would probably run them through the dishwasher (if you have one) a couple times without using any soap. that would clean them pretty well and remove most if not all chemical contaminants.
Marine seashells would be just fine for shellies. I've used them many times to raise colonys of N. Multifaciatus. A fresh water rinse is all they need.
 

wataugachicken

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Marine seashells would be just fine for shellies. I've used them many times to raise colonys of N. Multifaciatus. A fresh water rinse is all they need.
marine seashells are fine, yes. i'm more worried about them coming out of waters off NY/NJ. not very clean IME.
 

keiferd

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well they've been in my garage for like 15 years, but I'm going to boil them anyway just in case. I live about an hour from the city So the water is relatively clean out here.
 
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