# What’s this white stuff on my snails



## Raws69 (11 Nov 2020)

Hi

bought a few nerties and noticed these white patches on a few of them.  Anything to be concerned with? There’s two in the picture.


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## dw1305 (11 Nov 2020)

Hi all,


Raws69 said:


> noticed these white patches on a few of them. Anything to be concerned with?


It is shell erosion. Snails can only make <"new shell material at the mantle">, once new whorls have grown in front of that shell portion the snail can't repair it. If you have soft water (or your pH drops below pH7 during CO2 injection) then it will get worse and eventually kill the snail. 

If you have hard water, where the pH <"never drops below pH7">, then it will remain the same and not get any worse.

cheers Darrel


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## not called Bob (12 Nov 2020)

don’t know if these ones do it, but its not uncommon to steal CaCO3 from other snails shells when they come across them, if it is deficient itself. People keeping giant land snails stick in things like cuttle bone to try and stop it


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## Raws69 (12 Nov 2020)

dw1305 said:


> Hi all,
> 
> It is shell erosion. Snails can only make <"new shell material at the mantle">, once new whorls have grown in front of that shell portion the snail can't repair it. If you have soft water (or your pH drops below pH7 during CO2 injection) then it will get worse and eventually kill the snail.
> 
> ...


So how do people keep snails and run high tech tanks with co2?  I’m in Essex with hard water, but recent co2 profile in my other tank shows drop to 6.7 (achieving the 1 point drop from 7.7)


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## dw1305 (12 Nov 2020)

Hi all,


Raws69 said:


> So how do people keep snails and run high tech tanks with co2?


I'm not a CO2 user, but the linked thread <"Nerite Snails in high tech"> has some discussion.

cheers Darrel


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