Clown Loach for fry tank?

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gazat

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Hi folks,

I have a small snail problem in on of my fry tanks. The question is that i have 3 clown loaches in my main, two are a reasonable size but the third hasn't grown much at all in 6 months. Could i put the smaller fish into my fry tank to get rid of the snails and also help him put on some weight. Should i try moving him/her or should i leave the loach where it is?

The fry tank currently houses my Betta and 2 corys.

Bear in mind that i will be moving house in 3/4 weeks so the fish will be moved at this point anyway.

Failing putting the clown loach into the tank, how can i get rid of the pesky snails. I'm getting fed up with crushing them with my fingers. :D

Another quick question what do people do to stop getting snails within their plants. I tried soaking the plants in a salt solution for 2 days before putting the plants into the tank. this was on the advice of my LFS.

Cheers

Gaza t
 
I think that I would leave the loach where he is and get some Skunk Boitas for the fry tank. They will eat snails as well (at least that's the rumer.) I got some Skunks for my planted bow (I just have to get off my lazy arse and get them out of QT). I guess I'll find out soon enough if they work or not. Hummmm, maybe a trip to the Fish shop is in order so I can keep my QT/HT cycled. Won't the hubby love that :laugh: .

If you do move the clown I think after you do your move I would put him back with his buddies. He should have gotten rid of the snails by then. At least most of them.

For getting rid of the snails before they infest the tank you could use a weak bleach solution. I did that for a while then I found out that you can control the amount of snails in the tank by controling the nitrAtes, phosphates, and all that other stuff that goes with having a planted tank. Rose
 
Hi Rose,

Thanks for the quick response, i saw that you were online and knew a response was soon coming :) .

If i did move the clown loach i was always my intention to move him back with his buddies. :p

Skunk Boitas never come accross them before. I have seen other boitas though, some of which i really like.

I had heard that a weak bleach solution for the plants works but was a bit unsure at the time.

i will await some more replys before deciding on what to do.

Thanks again

Gaza t
 
I've never accually heard of Skunk Boitas, Rose do you know the latin name?
Gaza, I've used many a thing against snails, the best thing I found was to make the tank dead, leave it for a few weeks the die off cos theres nothing to keep them going. But I don't think this is best for you. I've used Molluzin, It worked really well on small snails, then I just crushed the big ones. Stopping the small ones is best, cos when you crush the big ones as there is no one to replace them. This stuff also had no effects on the plant live of the aquarium as a whole.
I also tried the snail trap, which has a one way door with a peace of algae wafer in it to attract the snails, but I caught more fish than snails. :what:
I'd leave the clown loach just now as there will be a lot of moving by the sounds of things.

The salt thing. I always thought that plant didn't like much salt :/
 
Skunk Loach (Botia morleti) Other names they go by are Horae's loach, Botia horae.

Here is a link with Skunk loach pictures. Hope this helps. Rose
 
Hi Davy,

I think i'll make the tank dead, a convienent time to do this is when i move house, so thanks for the suggestions. Clown loach will be happy as he can now stay with his friends. :p :D

gaza t
 
Just remember to remove anything you think they could live on, like plant and plants waste.
When you restart the tank just give it a good clean, you'll also find all the shells floating on the top :)
 
Hi Davy,

Thanks for the advice. I will give the tank a through clean when the time comes. With the plants that are already in the tank, could i put them into the weak bleach solution to get rid of the snails when i move. I dont really want to have to restart with my plants as i have only just them to start to grow. :D

gaza
 
Gazat, I just put in my Hora's loaches in my planted bow for snail duty and well low and behold I just saw one eat a snail. They do eat them it's just a matter of how quickly they will eat them. I guess time will tell. Rose 8)
 

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