Snail Bio-Load Question

[Hippoherder]

My snails are a bit out of control...more malasian trumpet snails that I can count, 6-8 golf ball sized apple snails, and 60 (estimate) 3 week old applle snails all in a 50 gallon. I didn't think snails posed much of a bio load. Is there a certain # per gallon that is acceptable or is the general # neglible? I have a 40 gallon and 50 gallon HOB filter on the tank with zerocarb media. How many snails are too many? If nothing else the multis are getting a workout picking snails up and dropping them on the other side of the tank.

[BettaFishMommy]

IMO the zeocarb media isn't good - it basically steals the ammonia from the biological bacteria, resulting in a tank that doesn't have enough bacteria to sustain the bioload. i'd remove the zeocarb and just have sponge, biomax, and polyester batting (if you care about fine particle filtration).

apple snails are pretty darn messy when they are cared for properly and are fed properly, and do add a substantial amount to the bioload. are you making calcium enriched snail jello for them?

from my research and experience (raised 7 generations of apple snails), about 2 gallons per snail is good for smaller tanks, and once you hit the 40 gallon and up range you can get away with a few more apples in the tank. i had about 30 adult apples in a standard 55 gallon at one point, with a fairly good fish load in there too. all were perfectly healthy, although my nitrate level on that tank was constantly higher.

[Hippoherder]

I think I have a catch-22 for the zerocarb. If it will have the effect you say it will when i remove it, then I will have a massaive tank crash. I have 25 multiis, 12 endlers, 4 BN plecos (babies), 2 rainbows, and 2 cyps....not to mention a ridiculous amount of snails. I think I might be married to the zerocarb now.

I don't make snail jello, but the variety of things these things get to snack on is pretty diverse - golden pearl, spirulina flakes, blood worms, left over brine shrimp and daphnia, NLS... I think that is why the snails are going nuts breeding.

So far everything is healthy in the tank (except for what the multis killed). I am trying to decrease the bioload.

I wasn't worried about the apple snails as much as the trumpet snails...but a I did a rough head count and I should have well over a 100 babies. Not sure how many really. When the hatch happened it just looked like someone dumped tapiocca in the tank. But they are tiny for now.

IMO the zeocarb media isn't good - it basically steals the ammonia from the biological bacteria, resulting in a tank that doesn't have enough bacteria to sustain the bioload. i'd remove the zeocarb and just have sponge, biomax, and polyester batting (if you care about fine particle filtration).

apple snails are pretty darn messy when they are cared for properly and are fed properly, and do add a substantial amount to the bioload. are you making calcium enriched snail jello for them?

from my research and experience (raised 7 generations of apple snails), about 2 gallons per snail is good for smaller tanks, and once you hit the 40 gallon and up range you can get away with a few more apples in the tank. i had about 30 adult apples in a standard 55 gallon at one point, with a fairly good fish load in there too. all were perfectly healthy, although my nitrate level on that tank was constantly higher.

[BettaFishMommy]

you could remove the zeocarb bit by bit, and that should avoid your tank crashing. or move some mature media from another tank to replace it?

for proper shell growth, you should be supplementing calcium to the snails. i just use crushed up Tums when making snail jello and it works well (and is cheap! lol). if you want the recipe, it's floating around on AA here in a couple places. just search 'snail jello'.