[ringram]

I'm having a bit of an outbreak of these pond snails in my 90g. The thing is, I don't want to get anything that will uproot all the plants that have a hard time staying down. Especially the HC.
I already have a few cory cats and they do enough poking around that I have to replant a couple things every day.
I know that loaches eat snails, but I also know that Clown loaches get large and like to school. I'm also thinking that they will be more destructive due to their larger size. Any ideas? what about Dojo loaches, kuhlie loaches or something smaller like that? Mind you, I don't have sand for them. Just aquasoil. What's the deal with eating the snails anyway? Do they only eat the smaller ones and the eggs?

 

[Boz]

What other fish do you have other than the cories? You might, depending on inhabitants, be able to put a few dwarf puffers in there. They'll make short order of those pond snails. The problem is that they're aggressive with fast moving fish. If it's heavily planted, you might be able to get away with them ok. The problem then will be that you'll be picking pond snail shells out of your tank every day.

 

[dipan]

I had quite an outbreak (hundreds) at one time. Yoyo loaches make quick work of them (Botia almorhae, pakistani loach). Other loaches also eat them, but I'm not sure about Kuhli loaches. I had to crush some on the glass to give them the idea that they are edible, but after that, no more pond snails. I hear goldfish eat them also. An LFS puts a goldfish in each tank to keep the population under control.

 

[retoid]

Yoyo's and clowns will both get rid of them very quickly, I have both in separate tanks. I find the yoyo loaches to scavenge down in the substrate and want to squeeze into tight spots alot more often than my clowns. I would suggest clown loaches over yoyo's for a planted tank, but no matter what they will eventually uproot some plants just not so often.

 

[dzwags]

When I had snails, I crushed them on site. I watched the tank constantly and killed every one I saw. No species can survive that kind of annihilation in a closed environment. Within a month and a half or so, no more snails.

 

[gointomexico]

I have a zebra loach, and he has done a good job for me. He also takes care of all the eggs, and the smaller snails.

 

[mistergreen]

You'd want tostay away from clown loach if size is a concern. They grow to be 14"...

Yoyos, zebras, golden zebras stay faily small (4-5"). Get 5 of them. They're fun as a group.

 

[kevbshields]

If someone's got some skunks you could borrow for maybe two weeks (and return quickly), they're ideal. I hate the little fish, because of its nasty attitude, but they eliminated my outbreak a few years ago in a matter of days. I never had to 'teach" them, they knew what food was when it crawled by .. .

 

[crazie.eddie]

You could still go with clown loaches. They do get big, but they take a long time to grow. Maybe you're children or even grandchildren may seem them at full adult size. You would probably see them at about 4"-5". If you still think they are too big, then just sell them to another hobbyist.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

I had MTS in the 58. Before I found out that they're not a problem I got a Yo-Yo. It worked great for about a year, just keeping the snail population in check. Now I have no snails and a BIG Yo-Yo. LOL

Tommy

 

[Mauser101]

Dario Botia (queen loach) is also a proven snail eater. Bonus points, it looks a lot like a smaller clown along with Striata.

 

[JenThePlantGeek]

You want something in the genus Botia. Dojos and Kuhlis won't cut it, they lack the little switchblade structure along their jaw that Botias use to crack open the snail shells...

... As a note, if you work at a LFS and you bag up botias - ALWAYS double bag with one bag upside-down inside the other to eliminate corners. Otherwise the loach will stick it's little nose in the corner, flick out those switchblades and FOOOSH! I don't know how many times I've seen a loach shoot out of a bag in a big stream of water (at least twice). :hihi: Thankfully it was always in the fish department and not in the parking lot or someone's car!