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	Small loach snail killer
mrwizerd Big Fish Posts: 360 Kudos: 197 Votes: 75 Registered: 24-Oct-2005	My little brother needs a small loach for his 27 gallon that will eat snails just the common egg laying kind.
Posted 25-Feb-2006 20:33
jasonpisani Ultimate Fish Guru Posts: 5553 Kudos: 7215 Votes: 1024 Registered: 24-Feb-2003	Clown Loaches will do a great job but Yoyo Loaches are also good & don't grow as big as Clown Loaches. What are the inhibitants of your brother's tank?. http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/s8xi5heh/my_photos http://www.geocities.com/s8xi5heh/classic_blue.html http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buzaqq/ http://www.deathbydyeing.org/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/corydoras/ Member of the Malta Aquarist Society - 1970. http://www.maltaaquarist.com
Posted 25-Feb-2006 21:09
bettachris Ultimate Fish Guru Posts: 3875 Kudos: 4173 Votes: 452 Registered: 13-Jun-2004	what about dwarf chain loaches? are they snail eatters? b/c i kinda have the same problem and need a snail eatter.
Posted 25-Feb-2006 21:15
sirbooks Moderator Sociopath Posts: 3875 Kudos: 5164 Votes: 932 Registered: 26-Jul-2004	Botia sidthimunki (the chain loach) is known to be a very good snail-eating fish, and stays quite small. The problem with them is that they are difficult to find for sale, and once located, cost more than a lot of people want to spend. You should have better luck finding B. striata or B. almorhae, the yoyo loach. Neither of these species exceeds five inches in length, and both are decent pest-snail eaters. And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."
Posted 26-Feb-2006 04:00
mlichty Small Fry Posts: 3 Kudos: 2 Votes: 0 Registered: 26-Feb-2006	I have apple snails which I like having. I want to get some fish for the bottom, and before getting the snails, I enjoyed clown loaches. Does anyone know to what size snail the loaches will eat? Or perhaps recommend some bottom dwelling fish that are snail friendly.
Posted 26-Feb-2006 16:35
BlackNeonFerret Enthusiast Posts: 281 Kudos: 137 Votes: 30 Registered: 18-Jan-2006	Clown Loaches eat most snails
Posted 26-Feb-2006 17:09
GirlieGirl8519 Fish Master Malawi Planter Posts: 1468 Kudos: 1029 Votes: 35 Registered: 25-Mar-2005	Yoyos are good snail eaters. Mine are about 4 inches long and I don't think they will get much bigger than that. A few should be ok in a 27g. What are the other inhabitants? *Kristin*
Posted 27-Feb-2006 02:06
mlichty Small Fry Posts: 3 Kudos: 2 Votes: 0 Registered: 26-Feb-2006	Actually I wanted to know if there was a size of snail the loaches wouldn't eat. Will they eat full grown about inch, inch 1/2 snails?
Posted 27-Feb-2006 03:01
mrwizerd Big Fish Posts: 360 Kudos: 197 Votes: 75 Registered: 24-Oct-2005	Edited by mrwizerd There are 4 molly and a pictus catfish. He doesnt have much room left realy. I will probably have to take a couple molly back from him so he can have a small school of loaches On another note I may get 3 dwarf chain loaches to use as the mobile snail unit. A lot of my tanks get snails and they are mostly kept at the same water settings. They are on live aquaria for 20 a piece and I think a school of 3 will suffice less I get a much larger tank.
Posted 27-Feb-2006 07:17
mrwizerd Big Fish Posts: 360 Kudos: 197 Votes: 75 Registered: 24-Oct-2005	Ok ok, get this, my mother informed me that my brother was taking the snails out of his tank whilst cleaning it. Now normally people would flush them or some other such thing well my brother worried that they would gum up the works in the septic tank (not sure that they would live but who knows those things are prolific)so instead he decided to boil them on the stove. I am not condoning this but the thought process is a little silly it proved to be quite amusing to me, so I thought I would share.
Posted 27-Feb-2006 18:28
Calilasseia Ultimate Fish Guru Panda Funster Posts: 5496 Kudos: 2828 Votes: 731 Registered: 10-Feb-2003	Poor snails ... !!! If that was me I'd look for an aquarist who wanted snails so I could arrange a swap - you know, "Swap you 200 of my small snails for some cuttings from that Bacopa of yours?" or something similar ... Even if the other aquarist wanted them as Puffer Fish food, at least it's the natural way to go. Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002
Posted 28-Feb-2006 13:29
mrwizerd Big Fish Posts: 360 Kudos: 197 Votes: 75 Registered: 24-Oct-2005	Yeah i later scolded him on it, but i couldn't help but to laugh at his logic i can just see the dream of the snails by the masses comming from the plumbing.they cover his glass so badly at times he cant see his fish its crazy. Poor kid, he doesnt know anyone else who does fish so... being 13 or something like that. I have been feeding them to my puffer but i cant keep up with my infestation.
Posted 28-Feb-2006 23:10
keithgh Ultimate Fish Guru Posts: 6371 Kudos: 6918 Votes: 1542 Registered: 26-Apr-2003	A small Clown Loach will get them inder control not only do they eat the snails they also eat their eggs. Get several and return them to the LFS as a well fed healthy CLs A small CL cleaned up a small snail problem in my Betta tank very quickly he is still too small to add to the 5ft tank. *Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info* Look here for my Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos Keith Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do. I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT? VOTE NOW VOTE NOW
Posted 04-Mar-2006 04:09
mrwizerd Big Fish Posts: 360 Kudos: 197 Votes: 75 Registered: 24-Oct-2005	How fast do the clown loaches get, because I was looking to put something in the cichlid tank and thought that clown loaches would be good and I could use them to control pests in other tanks if necissary. The only plus was I really like the yoyo loaches because of the markings. My brother got three yoyo's and his snail problem is starting to become more toleratable.
Posted 06-Mar-2006 02:08
keithgh Ultimate Fish Guru Posts: 6371 Kudos: 6918 Votes: 1542 Registered: 26-Apr-2003	Do you mean fast as in moving or fast in growing. They can move as fast as most fish and are very slow growers. As far as fast in cleaning up a tank it depends on the problem and the size of the clown. My big fella could clean up a tank very fast being huge he eats a lot. *Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info* Look here for my Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos Keith Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do. I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT? VOTE NOW VOTE NOW
Posted 06-Mar-2006 05:34
ClownyGirl Fish Addict Posts: 508 Kudos: 311 Votes: 5 Registered: 07-Oct-2004	I would go with Keith's advice, or get me a small school of yoyos. Yoyos are very aggressive feeders and will take care of the snails in no time. They are also relatively easier to find compared to the Chain loach. Another good option would be the Botia Striata, but they are probably 70% as aggressive as the yoyos and the snail cleaning may not be fast enough. My suggestion, go with yoyos, and they can stay in the tank as beautiful bottom feeders
Posted 06-Mar-2006 16:32


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