Will Snails Clean My Fish Tank?


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All fish tanks require regular cleaning. The type of fish and other inhabitants you keep in your aquarium will inevitably create waste. Other issues in the tank, such as algae and plant debris, also need attention if you want to enjoy keeping a clean and well maintained tank.

Snails are a great addition to your aquarium and are valuable members of any tank clean up crew. They can take care of various types of debris and algae as part of their diet. Which means you have less cleaning to do yourself. 

Different types of snails help to maintain the tank’s cleanliness in different ways. As with most things that are involved in keeping an aquarium there are pros’ and cons’ to consider before choosing to buy snails to help out with the cleaning duties.

How Do Snails Keep A Tank Clean?

Snails are expert scavengers and clean up the fish tank by feeding on the waste food. Additionally, they also feed on decaying plant leaves and other debris in the fish tank. This all helps to keep the tank looking clean and also helps to keep the condition of the water healthy. Snails will also feed on the algae that is growing in the fish tank.

Algae can be detrimental to the health of the aquarium if it gets out of control. So the snails will help to ensure that the algae growth is kept in check.

Anyone that’s kept an aquarium, even for a short while, will have noticed that the majority of excess waste in the fish tank often comes from leftover food. Fish have a limit to how much they can eat. But getting the amount of food right every time can be difficult.

If the amount of food you give at meal times exceeds this limit, the excess food becomes debris in your tank. In addition to this the more a fish eats the more it will poop. And extra fish waste adds to the detritus in your aquarium.

Cleaning up all kinds of detritus is definitely what aquarium snails do best.

What Do Snails Eat? 

Snails will take advantage of, and eat, almost anything that falls to the bottom of the tank. Different types of snails have different eating habits but they will happily scavenge around and feed on:

  • Algae that has built up on the glass and other surfaces 
  • Decaying fish food and food that’s left uneaten by their tankmates
  • Decaying plant matter, if you’re growing live plants in your aquarium
  • Deceased tankmates – although the snails are being helpful it’s still best to remove dead tankmates as soon as possible to prevent an ammonia spike in the tank.

Which Snails Are The Best For Cleaning Tanks?

The best type of snail to have in your aquarium is one that is detritivorous by nature. Which means that these snails use organic waste as a food source. They will feed on the decaying waste from plants and other waste created by, or left by, your fish and their tankmates.

It’s best to avoid herbivorous snails if you are keeping live plants as they will chomp away at the plants. So your lovely planted tank will be devastated in no time. This won’t be a problem though if you use artificial plants and other manmade tank decorations.

Carnivorous snails are known to attack and eat the smaller and more vulnerable members of a community aquarium. Which is not something any community fish keeper wants to happen. The exception to this would be if you have an overpopulation of ‘pest’ snails that need culling and you prefer to do it by natural means. You have to be careful though, or you could find that your other snails, shrimp, fish fry, and even your Nano sized fish start to disappear.

Fortunately there is a wide variety of detritivorous snails that you can use as part of your tank clean up crew . It will depend on your personal preferences. Although some of them are far better scavengers compared to others.

Some of the snails you can use include:

The Nerite Snail

The Nerite Snail is known for its amazing ability to eat algae. And the Nerite will eat most kinds of algae that grow in an aquarium. It also known for its peaceful nature which is a bonus if you also keep fish, shrimp and other types of snail in your tank too.

The Nerite Snail has a lifespan of between 1-2 years and grows to approximately 1 inch (2.5 cm) in size. And when it comes to water conditions and water temperature the Nerite isn’t fussy.

Nerite snails thrive in a temperature between 70-81 Degrees Fahrenheit (21 – 27 Degrees Celsius), with a pH level of between 7 and 8. But they can easily tolerate, and do well, in, a broader temperature range. In fact, Nerites are happy to live in indoor unheated tanks (temperate tanks) and even in outdoor ponds as long the winter months are not too harsh.

My Nerite Snails live in an indoor unheated community tank and are doing really well.

Another reason why a lot of people prefer the Nerite Snail is that it doesn’t reproduce in a freshwater aquarium. However, be warned that the females will still lay their eggs everywhere. Which means that you’ll need to scrape the eggs off as part of your tank maintenance routine. 

They are fantastic algae eaters though. And will happily munch away on pretty much any type of waste found on the bottom of the tank too. So despite having to get rid of the eggs now and again the Nerite Snail definitely earns its keep.

There are different types of Nerite Snail but the ones I have a personal experience with are the Zebra and Onion Nerites. The markings on the shell give away which one is which.

Nerite Zebra Snail
Nerite Onion Snail

I bought my first Nerite Onion Snails when I discovered I had an algae problem in one of my tanks. They were so effective that they cleared a large patch of hair algae from the back of the tank in less than 3 days.

Watch the time lapse video below. I know the algae patch doesn’t look that big from this angle. But viewing it from the front of the tank it covered about a quarter of the glass surface before my Nerites got to work on it.

The Apple Snail 

The Apple Snail is a nocturnal, tropical snail that is distinctly characterized by its bright yellow colour and its rounded ‘apple shape’. These snails have a lifespan of between 2-5 years. And the optimal temperature for keeping the Apple Snail is between 64 -82 Degrees Fahrenheit (18- 28 Degrees Celsius).

When it comes to size the Apple Snail is on the larger side as far as aquarium snails go. At approximately 5.9 inches (15 cm) in diameter this particular snail is a fair size.

Apple Snails mainly feed on live plants and algae. So if you don’t want to have to replace your plants frequently then they might not be the right type of snail for your tank.

However, Mystery Snails, a type of Apple Snail, aren’t too keen on eating healthy plants. So these would be a good alternative if you have live plants growing in your aquarium.

If you only have artificial plants in your tank then any of the Apple Snails are a great choice.

Unfortunately, Apple Snails tend to have an overpopulation problem. They are a hermaphroditic snail. Which means that any two Onion Snails can reproduce together because they both have the male/female reproductive capacity necessary for breeding.

So only keeping one Apple Snail at time is an option. Although it seems that some aquarists believe that the Apple Snail can reproduce all on its own.

The Trumpet Snail 

The Trumpet Snail is also known as the Red-rimmed Melania Snail. It’s a popular snail for live planted aquariums because it doesn’t feed on live plants. The Trumpet Snail prefers to feed on dead fish, dead plants, algae, and leftover fish food. So it’s going to be a great help in keeping your tank clean.

Trumpet Snails happily dig around in the substrate looking for food. This is good news for the health of your tank. It helps to stop the build-up of toxic gases under the substrate (e.g. gravel) which are dangerous if they are disturbed and released into the water.

The only downside to this species of snail is that it tends to multiply very quickly if there is a lot of food available. So to solve the problem of overpopulation make sure that you don’t overfeed your tank.

Trumpet Snails generally live for about 1 year and grow to about 1 inch (2.5 cm) in length. Their optimal temperature is 65-86 Degrees Fahrenheit (18.3 – 30 Degrees Celsius). And they prefer a water pH of between 7 and 8.

Ramshorn Snails

Ramshorn Snails will feed on soft algae, decaying plant matter and leftover fish food. They’re also not squeamish when it comes to eating the remains of their deceased tank mates.

The Ramshorn grows to about to ½ to 1 inch (1.27-2.5 cm) in size which makes them ideal for a smaller aquarium setup. They prefer temperatures of between 65-78 Degrees Fahrenheit (18.3 – 25.5 Celsius). But a little either way is tolerated. And they generally live for about 1 year but have been know to live for up to 3 years.

One of the major drawbacks to keeping this type of snail is keeping control of the population. They are known to be hermaphrodites. So even if you have 2 snails that you think are the same sex, and that breeding isn’t possible, you may be in for a shock.

Some sources say Ramshorn snails are asexual and will reproduce by themselves. But this hasn’t been conclusively proven as far as I’m aware.

Just like the Ramshorn, and also some other types of snail, by not overfeeding the tank you can help to keep the population under control.

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