How to get rid of snails in an aquarium?

Snails are rightfully considered aquarium orderlies. After all, they eat up almost all food debris, clearing the space. But at the same time, they can completely destroy algae and do many more irreparable things. It is because of this that many want to get rid of these shellfish, but this is not as easy and easy as it seems at first glance. In some cases, an integrated approach will be required, which includes, among other things, mechanical cleaning.

The most common molluscs among snails are melania. It is impossible to give a definite answer to the question of whether they are useful or harmful. If we talk about the merits, then such snails are considered excellent bottom cleaners from food debris, fish that decomposes, as well as dead eggs. Some experts even call them aquarium orderlies. But this is only if their number is not too large.

However, their population is almost impossible to control. These molluscs multiply rapidly, especially in a substrate dominated by sand. When there are too many of them, then the newly-made colony of snails quickly straightens out the plants in the aquarium.

There are several ways to help you get rid of these "good-bad" shellfish. Moreover, it is quite possible to do this without harm to fish. There are many sparing ways of fighting with them, which are always aimed at the natural reduction of their population. However, if they do not help, then you can apply more radical and time consuming methods to destroy snails.

If there are very few small mollusks in the aquarium, then it is enough just to remove them by hand. But it is completely impossible to catch them: after all, they are very small, at least a few pieces will still remain. Moreover, such a collection takes too long. However, with a little patience, you can still significantly reduce their number.

In some cases use bait... You can make them with your own hands using things that are completely unnecessary in the household. For example, almost every home has an ordinary plastic bottle. To make a trap out of it, you need to put food on its bottom, which can very quickly attract these mollusks.

Foods such as cucumbers, apples or lettuce, or any other food used to feed aquarium inhabitants are great. After that, the bottle must be placed in water and wait for the snails to completely fill it. If there are still shellfish in the aquarium, you will need to put in another bottle. This tool is not used very often because the collection takes too long. However, after that, the number of snails decreases significantly.

Besides, to collect snails, you can use an ordinary cabbage leaf scalded with boiling water. It should be put on the bottom of the aquarium at night, by the morning it should have collected a large number of mollusks. It will be enough to pull it out.

Today a large number of traps are sold in stores, which can be either placed in the substrate or attached to the walls of the aquarium. To some extent, they are considered much more effective than homemade baits, because snails cannot get out of them on their own.

You can fight snails in other ways, for example, you can use electrolysis against them. This will require only copper wire and battery. It is enough to connect them together, and simply strip the other ends. After that, the battery must be lowered into the water and started up. During this procedure, not only snails can die, but also fish or plants. Therefore, during this procedure it is best to move other inhabitants into a separate container... After that, the current can be applied. Then it is necessary collect all the remains, so that they do not decompose after this procedure.

You can also remove shellfish using special preparations. But at the same time it is imperative to take those that will not harm the fish living with them under the "one roof". Basically, all such preparations contain copper, and it is very harmful to aquarium inhabitants.

At the time of such harmful procedures, it is best plant the fish in a separate container. And after all the snails are destroyed, the aquarium must be doused with boiled water in order to remove all residues of chemical attack. You can also use a saline solution, which shellfish simply cannot digest. But at the same time, other plants that are in the aquarium can also die along with the shellfish.

The most humane and harmless way is the option using other marine life, only predatory. You can use some types of fish, for example, tetradons, gourami with a red rim on the tail, macropods or bots will cope with this task perfectly. It is best if such fish are hungry, otherwise they simply will not be interested in snails. However, you still need to watch for eating snails.After all, if the snails are not enough for a meal, then it can come to the point that the fish will eat the fins of those relatives that are smaller in size.

You can also use other predatory snails, shellfish such as helena will do. They are able to eat other types of molluscs. You can buy them at any specialty store. They look very beautiful and immediately attract the eye. Their body is gray in color, and their shell is amber yellow with black and brown stripes. With their help, you can significantly reduce the number of snails or even completely exterminate them.

If there is a lot of food in the aquarium, the snails will multiply too quickly. After all, they do not need to worry about finding food at all. Therefore, care must be taken to ensure that no food remains in the aquarium. Reducing food will immediately stop the population as well as the activity of the snails.... Of course, it will be difficult to completely remove them from the aquarium, but the number of individuals can still be controlled.

This option is a drastic measure. For its implementation, it is required to resettle all the fish that live in the aquarium into another container. The entire substrate in the aquarium must be carefully sieved and boiled. This is to ensure that no food debris remains in it. After that, the bottom and walls in the aquarium must be cleaned of dirt and well disinfected. Next, you need to completely replace all the plants and algae. If there are intact, then they need to be washed and treated with special preparations.

You can use the following solution: one liter of water will require 15 milligrams of manganese powder. First, you need to stir it well, and then place damaged plants in it for 10-15 minutes. After that, they need to be rinsed well under clean running water. In addition, you can use another, no less useful, option. In one liter of water, you need to pour 50 grams of salt and do the same manipulations with the plants.

However, it is not necessary to fight with aquarium snails, their numbers must simply be controlled. After all, it is much easier to prevent the appearance of mollusks than to wage a hard fight with them later. Therefore, first of all, it is necessary to carry out preventive measures both with the substrate and with only purchased plants or algae. Here is some of them.

• Many people buy aquariums in which there are already fish and sea plants. On some of them, snails can lay eggs, and there may be too many of them. If the owner does not notice even a small clutch of eggs, then after 60-70 days a large number of small mollusks will appear in the aquarium. From the very first days they will begin to devour the leaves of plants. Therefore, you need to carefully examine them.
• All plants that are bought in stores must be treated with a manganese solution, and also inspected for the presence of eggs. If there are any, then they must be destroyed and done manually.
• Care must be taken that the fish are fed correctly, that is, they should never be overfed.
• Every day it is necessary to control the condition of the water, especially you need to pay attention to its temperature. This is very important if chemicals have been used.
• You can buy or make your own bait or trap for harmful shellfish.
• It is also important that there are always fish in the aquarium, which, in the case of a huge offspring of snails, could easily deal with them.
• Cleanliness in the aquarium is very important. It is necessary to monitor not only the ground, but also the decor that is in it.

Summing up, we can say that a small amount of such small molluscs as aquarium snails is not harmful at all, but to some extent useful... But in the event that their number exceeds all the permitted norms, they just need to be fought against.

For information on how to get rid of snails in an aquarium, see the next video.