snails snails snails

Keep in mind that copper will also kill shrimp and crayfish. There is some evidence that some types of copper will penetrate decorations in the tank, and then leach out in low levels for a long time. If you have ever considered adding invertebrates, do not use copper. If you ever plan on converting the tank to marine, do not use copper.

Copper is a toxin. Not fish friendly.
 
what we have is a 30 gal. and a 10 with fry (big and small)and around 1000 snails with all mollies.with no plans of ever changing that.
 
what we have is a 30 gal. and a 10 with fry (big and small)and around 1000 snails with all mollies.with no plans of ever changing that.
Click to expand...

reduce feeding increase vaccuming. Rmove as many snails as you can with lettuce, cucumber, zuchinni or even algea wafers as bait. Since mollies consume some algea, and will occasionally eat a baby snail. if you reduce feeding, the fish should outcompete the snails for food and bring the snail population under control. Snails really are a blessing in most tanks.


Honestly under no circumstances do I personally ever reccomend adding copper to a tank. AS Og pointed out it is a toxin, and it tends to stay in your tank. it will harm your fish long term, and has the potential to create serious long term issues. There are other methods so for me copper is not a consideration.
Dave
 
Copper can kill fish if not carefully dosed. Killing off massive numbers of snails can cause an ammonia spike. The point is that while copper does kill snails, it's really not the best way to control them. Without changing the reason they've overpopulated, it's likely to happen again. Kill all the snails, but still have too many nutrients in the system, and you're likely to see an overpopulation of hydra, or an algae bloom, or a bacteria bloom, etc. The point is that the snails are a symptom of a problem, not the problem itself. Removing the symptom won't help in the long run.
 
I agree 100% with OG as I said initially. Snails are not the problem. I keep snails in all my tanks because it's a perfect way to tell when I've been overfeeding the tank, or slacking on my maintenence, vacuuming, etc. Killing the snails won't solve the underlying issue at hand. It will only make is so you can further ignore the issue.

I also don't recommend copper at all. I'd be more apt to whipe the tank completely and recycle it then add your fish back after that's complete.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom