Snail Farm

ZorroNet

ZorroNet

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Sep 21, 2013
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Paxton, FL
flfarmersmarket.com
Real Name
Dave
Snails are awesome little helpers for planted tanks. They aerate the substrate (burrowing snails like MTS), they eat algae, and they process organic wastes so they are easier for plants to use as fertilizer. If you have a planted tank there is no way (or reason) to avoid having snails present in your aquarium. I used to try to avoid snails, removing them from the tank when I could snag them with a net or my hand. I even introduced assassin snails in one tank to kill what I thought were pests. Well I was wrong!

So to make up for my transgressions, I have decided to start a snail farm of sorts. It's currently a 5 gallon bucket full of hair algae that I removed from one of my aquariums. I installed a small filter on the bucket to help keep the stench down (Hair algae smells putrid en mass!) As snails rise to the top for a morning snack, I pluck and sort them into different tanks. Pond snails and bladder snails go into the tank with the assassins, and MTS go into a tank of female guppies and plants on hold for shipment or planting in a show tank.

Before any commentary on the assassins, note that I am never short on pond/badder snails even in the assassin tank, and I am being responsible by feeding the assassins since I bought them and raised them. As many snails as I have, no one will go hungry, I assure you!

I intend to share snails with friends, use the MTS in my planted show tanks, and sell some if there is a need for them out there.

Check out my MTS Parade this morning...
[video=youtube;w_4-O49WMYw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_4-O49WMYw&feature=youtu.be[/video]
 
Maybe i should reconsider snails in the new tank im setting up... If i can find some that will fit into my little amazonian biotope nicely ill grab them. Since they break down wastes even more, i think itll help with the no tech low light tank.

More research for me, yay!

I never knew snails broke down waste so this thread was useful to me. Maybe ill add some to my 40 gallon too.

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I certainly agree on the value of the smaller snails in any fish tank; I'm not sure, but Dave may have got this idea from something I posted a while back...(?). Anyway, just be careful on "farming" them, generally. I tracked down a local fish store (the only one) that had Malaysian Livebearing Snails, and I bought two of them. That was five years ago. I put one in the 90g and one in the 70g. Today I have hundreds in all my six or seven tanks. For fun I counted the MLS I could see in the 115g tank one day, and lost count somewhere well over 300. Point is that in most cases, you will have snails without farming them. Now, if something is reducing them, as Dave mentioned with Assasin Snails, that is different. And in my case, there are fewer in the 90g which has loaches that seem to get some of them. Very soft water doesn't bother the MLS, but most other snails (I also have bladder or pond snails) will usually be kept at slightly lower numbers in very soft water.

Byron.
 
Kyle, I do much prefer the MTS/MLS (same thing?) to pond/bladder snails because they are live bearing. That means less population booms and no eggs. Not that eggs are a problem, but a single clutch of eggs can render more snails than a single live bearing snail can produce in the same amount of time. As Byron said, populations can grow steadily and quickly over time without "farming" as I'm doing.

Byron, though I have learned a lot from you, I actually have a keen history with snails that dates back before we met (virtually speaking). When I set up my first aquarium in 10 years (which is a follow up to a brief uneducated attempt back then complete with plastic plants and an under gravel filter), I sought out some information on planted tanks and their care. I decided upon and special ordered Japanese Trapdoor Snails (JTS), also a live-bearer. I really enjoy these, and I still have some today, but the MTS are better at aerating the substrate, so I prefer them for their utility functions over other snails.

JTS also burrow a bit, but they get larger than MTS and their shells are a rounder shape, so they sometimes uproot freshly planted plants for me (the big lugs!). However, I have a plan for them... They are cold hardy, so they will make an excellent addition to my outdoor pond! I am planning to move from my current location, so I'll just hold on to them until I relocate myself and set up a new pond :)
 
If i can find some locally, then ill put some in all my tanks. Any extras will either be used for food( for my breeding project... Not me!) or maybe given away or traded.

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Talking about snails, i just picked up a few along with the white clouds. All for free. They are Ramshorn snails. Not exactpy what i wantes but free! I probably have around 10

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I don't know how I feel about ramshorns. They are strange looking... almost not real looking. I have a few I have found as hitch-hikers, but I have so many other snails I don't think they have room to boom in population. They also are very small compared to the rest. If you want MTS, I can send you some, Kyle... I have PLENTY! It started with a few and grew, grew, grew!
 
I used to avoid snails but they are my friends now. I've had a bit of an algae outbreak in two tanks. The ramshorn does a good job eating brush algae and hair algae. I also have apple snails that are part of my algae cleanup crew too. I'm almost algae free in all my tanks thanks to snails.

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