Snails.... How good are they?

[Rob Steer]

I'm thinking of getting some Tiger Nerite snails for a new tank. I currently have Amano shimps as part of my algae crew so I'm very keen to understand just how good these snails are at dealing with algae... Are they as good as shrimps? Also what stocking levels do you recommend?

Tank Dimensions: 36"L x 15"W x 18"H

Thanks
Rob

 

[nry]

They are EXCELLENT at keeping flat surfaces clean, I reckon 2 would be plenty in your tank, I had 3 in my 15-gallon and that was too many.

They do have a habit of laying little white eggs on wood though - they never hatch (they need salt water) but they look unsightly and are rock hard too making them hard to clean off.

 

[Rob Steer]

I reckon 2 would be plenty in your tank, I had 3 in my 15-gallon and that was too many.

That's very interesting, I've been looking at the Snailshop.co.uk and they recommend 1 per 1.5gal that would equal 15 based on a 30 gal tank....?

Rob

 

[nry]

That is loads...some of them are quite large at 1"+ in shell width, so one every 1.5g would be far far too many!

They are so efficient on the algae though - if you have too many there'll be nothing for them to eat after a short while.

 

[Rob Steer]

Crikey! I didn't realise they were that big. Thanks for the tip.

Cheers
Rob