Best Snails For A Sand Bottomed Tank?

Jay-93 · Nov 1, 2011

I'm soon going to change the bottom of my tank to sand and was wondering what the best 2/3 species would be to help clean the sand.

I was thinking Gold Apple snails and someone else on the forum mentioned a type of trumpet snail? I'd like them to be active, rather than just burrowed under the sand all day.

Any recommendations?

the_lock_man · Nov 1, 2011

Jay-93 said:
I'm soon going to change the bottom of my tank to sand and was wondering what the best 2/3 species would be to help clean the sand.

I was thinking Gold Apple snails and someone else on the forum mentioned a type of trumpet snail? I'd like them to be active, rather than just burrowed under the sand all day.

Any recommendations?

What you're talking about is the Malaysian Trumpet Snail - they don't JUST bury themselves, you do see them, but they also keep the sand turned over, which stops pockets of stagnant gas building up. I don't know that they particularly keep the surface of the sand clean - the best thing to do that is you!

lilfishie · Nov 1, 2011

Trumpets dig, apples as far as i have seen don,t and are very active, they also come in different colours :good:

ps if you want apples, i'm selling blue/purple/white babies

there only small though so no big fish

Jay-93 · Nov 1, 2011

lilfishie said:
Trumpets dig, apples as far as i have seen don,t and are very active, they also come in different colours

ps if you want apples, i'm selling blue/purple/white babies there only small though so no big fish

Those sound really nice!! Lol, I just thought there was only the orange coloured variation. Unfortunately, I have a 5 inch pearl lace and a pretty big marbled angel, so it doesn't sound as though they'd last long

the_lock_man said:
Jay-93 said:

I'm soon going to change the bottom of my tank to sand and was wondering what the best 2/3 species would be to help clean the sand.

I was thinking Gold Apple snails and someone else on the forum mentioned a type of trumpet snail? I'd like them to be active, rather than just burrowed under the sand all day.

Any recommendations?

Click to expand...

What you're talking about is the Malaysian Trumpet Snail - they don't JUST bury themselves, you do see them, but they also keep the sand turned over, which stops pockets of stagnant gas building up. I don't know that they particularly keep the surface of the sand clean - the best thing to do that is you!

I see, thank you, and I will keep the surface mess cleared up with my siphon, it was simply a way to stop the toxins building up

lilfishie · Nov 1, 2011

i may be able to spare a few adults but only have the golds and browns in those

Jay-93 · Nov 1, 2011

I'd love to have some gold ones in my tank, my local supplier sells them at £1.50 each

Their shells are around 12-15mm long, I'm insure if that's fully grown..

KittyKat · Nov 1, 2011

Apple snails grow to have a 25 mm in diameter shell. If your water pH is 7.0 or lower, the snails' shells will disintegrate with time and will be fragile, so please only consider them if your pH is over 7.0

ZoddyZod · Nov 1, 2011

Nerite snails are another possibility - these do not dig. The harder the water the better for these.

Assasin snails do dig, but they will eat snails smaller than themselves.

Read an interesting article in PFK this month (by NMonks) stating that apple snails atually need a 'rest' period of some sort from the tropical temperatures of standard tanks, otherwise their lifespan and adult size are greatly reduced. First time I had heard of this though.

Inchworm · Nov 1, 2011

Malaysian Trumpet Snails will dig in the sand but on the down side, they do reproduce like crazy. If you get them, you might want to think about putting in some Assassin Snails at some time in the future. They are attractive snails and their small size and ongoing activity make them an interesting addition.

Dan-CR4 · Nov 1, 2011

I got Malaysian Trumpet Snails, I started with 10 MTS 18 months back and got over run but found out it was caused by overfeeding my fish, since learning not to overfeed I See a few snails on the sand and other parts of my tanks/decor but no where near I used to. I Like having them and they seem to do a good job without any pay :lol: