Best snails for reef tank.

96gts · 11/24/2009, 03:05 PM

I'm getting tired of flipping over the Astraea in my tank when they got knocked over. I have about 15 Astraea (maybe 6-7 left), 15 Cerith and 5 Nassarius Snail in my 90gal, along with about 20 red and blue legs hermits. What will be a good snails to replace those Astraea? I would prefer something that will right on itself when got knocked over?

Lightsluvr · 11/24/2009, 03:11 PM

Personally I like white and black nasarrius for sandbed; Margarite and Turbos for algae on rock and glass. Margarites will need to be flipped if they land upside down, turbos are bulldozers, so have everything glued down...

JMO

LL

pIankton · 11/24/2009, 03:17 PM

Trochus snails are good. They can get good size and eat quite a bit - best of all, they can right themselves if they fall. Long lived too IMO - I have a couple that are probably 4 - 5 years old.

romsoccer12 · 11/24/2009, 03:17 PM

i dont have a problem with the two huge turbos in my nano nocking stuff over, i dont glue stuff either

Ganzel · 11/24/2009, 03:57 PM

I can't keep my urbos alive for more than 1 month for some reason... Turban Snail ( Tectus fenestratus) FTW !

milkman55 · 11/24/2009, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pIankton

Trochus snails are good. They can get good size and eat quite a bit - best of all, they can right themselves if they fall. Long lived too IMO - I have a couple that are probably 4 - 5 years old.

I have a Trochus that is over a year old. All other snails seem to go fast, with Mexican Turbos having the highest mortality and the most damage.

The problem with Trochus is our LFS in the area do not get them very often. Anybody have a good online source for Trochus snails?

pIankton · 11/24/2009, 04:01 PM

Hit or miss, but Live Aquaria has them more often than anyone else from what I've seen.

tkeracer619 · 11/24/2009, 04:12 PM

Trochus is the "best" reef snail for rockwork. Nassarius Vibex (not the ebay ones) for the sand and ceriths for the edges where the rock, sand, and glass meet.

Margarita snails are NOT reef snails. Do not put them in your tank and do not support the hoards of wholesalers who stop by the California beaches on the way to work and scoop up a $1000 in temperate snails to sell to the unsuspecting hobbyist. Do not buy them.

Do not buy the nassarius obsoleta snails or any nassarius that is cheaper then the rest on ebay. The are collected in NC, are also temperate snails, and these happen to come with mites that can live in your skin for a few days causing rashes and itches.

96gts · 11/24/2009, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ganzel

I can't keep my urbos alive for more than 1 month for some reason... Turban Snail ( Tectus fenestratus) FTW !

I think I might have a couple of those that I thought they are bigger Astraea. Will they right themselves when knocked over?

96gts · 11/24/2009, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkman55

I have a Trochus that is over a year old. All other snails seem to go fast, with Mexican Turbos having the highest mortality and the most damage.

The problem with Trochus is our LFS in the area do not get them very often. Anybody have a good online source for Trochus snails?

Look like reefs2go sells them. I'll like to find them locally as it's not worth it to ship just a few snails.

http://www.reefs2go.com/product/INV_...us_Snails.html

sc reefer · 11/24/2009, 04:32 PM

I like the Trochus for the rock, with onyx nassarius and a few dove snails mixed in to help clean out the sand. If you have a mandarin skip the onyx because they will wipe out the copepods on the sand.

tkeracer619 · 11/24/2009, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sc reefer

I like the Trochus for the rock, with onyx nassarius and a few dove snails mixed in to help clean out the sand. If you have a mandarin skip the onyx because they will wipe out the copepods on the sand.

Onyx nassarius are Nassarius Obsoleta and the ones you DO NOT WANT. Do not buy any cheap nassarius. They are all the same thing with different names.

Don't take my word for it take Mike's... http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-11/mg/index.php

A quote from linked article.

Quote:

Ilyanassa is an intermediate host for at least nine species of trematode fluke. In most populations, over 50% of the adult snails have at least one species of this parasite, and in some populations the rate of infection is as high as 94% (Curtis and Hubbard, 1990; Curtis, 1997)! While none of these flukes actually targets humans as hosts, they do sometimes mistakenly burrow into human skin and cause what is known as "swimmers' itch," or more properly, cercarial dermatitis (Sindermann, 1960). This condition creates an extremely itchy rash similar to poison ivy that can last for up to a week. Affected snails will continue to release the infective stage of these flukes into a tank for up to a decade (assuming the snails live that long), and any exposure to the tank's water puts the aquarist at risk of infection (Curtis et al., 2000).

96gts · 11/24/2009, 04:48 PM

I'm getting confused which is which for the Nassarius Snail. What are these?

cloak · 11/24/2009, 05:01 PM

The top picture is a nassarius vibex. The bottom picture is the larger Tongan variety, nassarius distortus. Both are reef safe.

Pylon · 11/24/2009, 05:11 PM

This has been a concern of mine too. Reading up on them while waiting for my tank.
Subscribing!
100th post!

romsoccer12 · 11/24/2009, 07:08 PM

no snail has never really helped me with algae... i may just seem some bites marks now and than. Ive had severe param changes earlier on with my tank yet ive stilled had my turbo for 6 months now. Funny thing is, he stays right under my anemone all day until lights off and than at night roams the tank, maybe its for protection or something.

Agu · 11/24/2009, 07:31 PM

I have a large Mexican turbo snail that eats everything but valonia. It gets rotated between three nano tanks depending on which one needs the help. Been around about three years and it's an algae eating machine.

If you can't keep one alive I suspect it's because it starves to death.

Patroklos · 11/24/2009, 08:14 PM

For the sand bed and lower live rock a single conch will do wonders (I have a fighting conch).

redfishsc · 11/24/2009, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pIankton

Trochus snails are good. They can get good size and eat quite a bit - best of all, they can right themselves if they fall. Long lived too IMO - I have a couple that are probably 4 - 5 years old.

100% agreed on that.

Redbanded trochus snails are by far my favorite, and they can reproduce in your system (the skimmer may remove all the veligers though).

I've considered setting up a "swamp tank" to allow the trochus to reproduce--- basically a huge fuge with no display tank, lol. I have a spare 5.5g I may try this with.

somdinwong · 11/24/2009, 08:50 PM

my blue leg hermits keep killing my mexican snails. i love them, best workers you can find in my experience.

11/24/2009, 03:05 PM	#1
96gts Registered Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Allen, TX Posts: 286	Best snails for reef tank. I'm getting tired of flipping over the Astraea in my tank when they got knocked over. I have about 15 Astraea (maybe 6-7 left), 15 Cerith and 5 Nassarius Snail in my 90gal, along with about 20 red and blue legs hermits. What will be a good snails to replace those Astraea? I would prefer something that will right on itself when got knocked over?

11/24/2009, 03:11 PM	#2
Lightsluvr Tangaroa to 500 gallons Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Edmond, OK Posts: 5,855	Personally I like white and black nasarrius for sandbed; Margarite and Turbos for algae on rock and glass. Margarites will need to be flipped if they land upside down, turbos are bulldozers, so have everything glued down... JMO LL __________________ Click on my username and select "Lightsluvr's Home Page" for a recap of our build thread - AGE Hybrid Tank in a 500G system with dedicated fish room. (Takes a few minutes for photos to load) Leave a note if you stop by... Current Tank Info: 350G AGE Hybrid reef tank. 500G+ total water volume. Three sumps for filtration. Barracuda Gold return and Hammerhead Gold closed loop pumps. DIY T5 light system on rails. MP40W x3 to supplement closed loop. 130G Water management system.

11/24/2009, 03:17 PM	#4
romsoccer12 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: ohio Posts: 2,625	i dont have a problem with the two huge turbos in my nano nocking stuff over, i dont glue stuff either __________________ Colin R Current Tank Info: 3rd tank working fine!(29gal oceanic biocube) 5-6months old

11/24/2009, 03:57 PM	#5
Ganzel Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Montreal, Qc, Canada Posts: 67	I can't keep my urbos alive for more than 1 month for some reason... Turban Snail ( Tectus fenestratus) FTW ! __________________ Reefer Current Tank Info: 6 ft, 130g display, 70g sump, 3x MH 400W 20 000 K XM

11/24/2009, 04:12 PM	#8
tkeracer619 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Westminster, CO Posts: 17,289	Trochus is the "best" reef snail for rockwork. Nassarius Vibex (not the ebay ones) for the sand and ceriths for the edges where the rock, sand, and glass meet. Margarita snails are NOT reef snails. Do not put them in your tank and do not support the hoards of wholesalers who stop by the California beaches on the way to work and scoop up a $1000 in temperate snails to sell to the unsuspecting hobbyist. Do not buy them. Do not buy the nassarius obsoleta snails or any nassarius that is cheaper then the rest on ebay. The are collected in NC, are also temperate snails, and these happen to come with mites that can live in your skin for a few days causing rashes and itches. __________________ Hobby Experience: 9200ish gallons, 26 skimmers, and a handful of Kent Scrapers. Current Tank: Vortech Powered 600G SPS Tank w/ 100gal frag tank & 100g Sump. RK2-RK10 Skimmer. ReefAngel. Radium 20k.

11/24/2009, 03:17 PM	#3
pIankton Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Virginia Beach, VA Posts: 556	Trochus snails are good. They can get good size and eat quite a bit - best of all, they can right themselves if they fall. Long lived too IMO - I have a couple that are probably 4 - 5 years old.

11/24/2009, 04:01 PM	#7
pIankton Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Virginia Beach, VA Posts: 556	Hit or miss, but Live Aquaria has them more often than anyone else from what I've seen.

11/24/2009, 04:32 PM	#11
sc reefer Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 99	I like the Trochus for the rock, with onyx nassarius and a few dove snails mixed in to help clean out the sand. If you have a mandarin skip the onyx because they will wipe out the copepods on the sand.

11/24/2009, 04:48 PM	#13
96gts Registered Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Allen, TX Posts: 286	I'm getting confused which is which for the Nassarius Snail. What are these?

11/24/2009, 05:01 PM	#14
cloak Moved On Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: Stockton, CA Posts: 14,854	The top picture is a nassarius vibex. The bottom picture is the larger Tongan variety, nassarius distortus. Both are reef safe.

11/24/2009, 05:11 PM	#15
Pylon Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: West Jefferson, NC Posts: 493	This has been a concern of mine too. Reading up on them while waiting for my tank. Subscribing! 100th post!

11/24/2009, 07:08 PM	#16
romsoccer12 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: ohio Posts: 2,625	no snail has never really helped me with algae... i may just seem some bites marks now and than. Ive had severe param changes earlier on with my tank yet ive stilled had my turbo for 6 months now. Funny thing is, he stays right under my anemone all day until lights off and than at night roams the tank, maybe its for protection or something. __________________ Colin R Current Tank Info: 3rd tank working fine!(29gal oceanic biocube) 5-6months old

11/24/2009, 07:31 PM	#17
Agu Registered Member Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Sarasota, Florida Posts: 30,279	I have a large Mexican turbo snail that eats everything but valonia. It gets rotated between three nano tanks depending on which one needs the help. Been around about three years and it's an algae eating machine. If you can't keep one alive I suspect it's because it starves to death. __________________ Less technology , more biology . Current Tank Info: 30 gallon half cube and 5.5, both reef tanks

11/24/2009, 08:14 PM	#18
Patroklos Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 272	For the sand bed and lower live rock a single conch will do wonders (I have a fighting conch).

11/24/2009, 08:50 PM	#20
somdinwong Moved On Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: venice Posts: 593	my blue leg hermits keep killing my mexican snails. i love them, best workers you can find in my experience.