# Help Pls



## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

I am assuming a snail infestation would be in this section of the forum.
My 20 gallon tank is INFESTED with snails and I've done all that I know. I have two goldfish and, I'm not sure if this is safe for the fish, add a grain of salt each time I feed the fish. I have some pictures that I just took, but I don't know how to get them on the post thingys.

*c/p*


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## markot (Aug 29, 2011)

I don't know about the salt, but you could get some assassin snails. They would take care of other snails in the tank (eat them).


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

Goldfish need larger than 20 gallons. Most likely snails are due to overfeeding. Slow down on that and they should die off.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

If they are Malaysian trumpet snails,you can cut down their number by setting up a snail trap with food inside and throw them away when it has collected enough snails. If they are softer shelled snails, you can just squish them against the glass when you see them and the fish will eat them... you could try to find some local puffer owners and they will pay for soft shelled snails to feed to their puffers. OR you could buy a snail eating fish like loaches.


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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

The tank isn't big enough for snail eating fish. Let alone 2 goldfish. Cut back on your feeding by a lot and the goldfish should eat the snails.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

susankat said:


> The tank isn't big enough for snail eating fish. Let alone 2 goldfish. Cut back on your feeding by a lot and the goldfish should eat the snails.


Somehow I skipped over the 2 goldfish in a 20 gal thing... yeah I don't suggest getting another fish, I second cutting back on the feeding and you might want to re-think your stock or tank size.


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

Well... I only had one goldfish... then I asked my mom to get me 4 rosy red minnows... She came back with 5 rosy red minnows and a goldfish. So... yeah... last time I'm letting her get me fish without me there.


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

Plus the snails are Ramshorns. Ugly little things.


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## Buerkletucson (Apr 8, 2014)

alhays31808 said:


> ... then I asked my mom to get me 4 rosy red minnows... She came back with 5 rosy red minnows and a goldfish. So... yeah... last time I'm letting her get me fish without me there.


*w3

Just be glad you didn't send your dad....
He'd come back with a big ole' Oscar or shark. *r2


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

ramshorns are easy to squish.Just do that and cut back on feeding and change more water(your 20 is over stocked with 2 goldfish).They may be small now and seem to fit but they will or want to grow and will not fit eventually.
The waterchanges will help remove the stuff the snails want.
What happened to the "rosy reds"?


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

coralbandit said:


> ramshorns are easy to squish.Just do that and cut back on feeding and change more water(your 20 is over stocked with 2 goldfish).They may be small now and seem to fit but they will or want to grow and will not fit eventually.
> The waterchanges will help remove the stuff the snails want.
> What happened to the "rosy reds"?


I understand that (first paragraph) The rosy reds are still there (second)


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

I originally had one goldfish, as said in a previous post... I was just gonna have that ONE goldfish and ten other one inch fish, since I read in a book that goldfish need at least ten gallons of space to swim around. I named the one I originally planned to keep Harpo (don't judge) and the newer one Au.


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

Common goldfish need ponds. Fancies need 30 gallons for the first and ten thereafter, and they are social so you need three at the very least to be happy. Meaning your tank is still too small for one goldfish of any variety.


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## Kehy (Apr 19, 2011)

alhays31808 said:


> I originally had one goldfish, as said in a previous post... I was just gonna have that ONE goldfish and ten other one inch fish, since I read in a book that goldfish need at least ten gallons of space to swim around. I named the one I originally planned to keep Harpo (don't judge) and the newer one Au.


1 goldfish per 10 gallons means that 10 gallons is filled. It means you should NOT add more fish. Yes, I know a tank seems empty with just 2 fish in it, but that's the cost of goldfish. 

They are big, messy, poop making machines that need the gallons and double or triple filtration to handle the ammonia and waste they produce. They get LARGE, I've personally 14" feeder goldfish, and that wasn't even a particularly large one in the goldfish world. Many fancies can get 9" or larger. 

I also have to point out that the 1" per gallon rule is an extremely unhelpful guide. Following that rule, you could have two 10" fish in a 20 gallon tank- a tank that is usually 12" wide. 

I don't mean to criticize, I just would have preferred you had done a bit more research online first, even if you didn't mean to get the second goldfish. There tends to be more recent information available online, rather than books that are usually decades old.


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

Kehy said:


> 1 goldfish per 10 gallons means that 10 gallons is filled. It means you should NOT add more fish. Yes, I know a tank seems empty with just 2 fish in it, but that's the cost of goldfish.
> 
> They are big, messy, poop making machines that need the gallons and double or triple filtration to handle the ammonia and waste they produce. They get LARGE, I've personally 14" feeder goldfish, and that wasn't even a particularly large one in the goldfish world. Many fancies can get 9" or larger.
> 
> ...


Yeah... I bought some aquarium bamboo to help get rid of the nitrates. Any snails I find on it will be terminated. >


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## vreugy (May 1, 2013)

Some one correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't Bamboo have to have it's leaves out of water and only the roots submerged???

have a blessed day


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

vreugy said:


> Some one correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't Bamboo have to have it's leaves out of water and only the roots submerged???
> 
> have a blessed day


Possibly... But it's not tall enough yet.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

Bamboo will not survive if it is fully submerged. It will slowly die... Putting plants in the tank to soak up nitrates is all good and such, but should never be used as a substitute for a properly sized tank... 

I would take the newer goldfish to the LFS if you can't even properly house 1... What is the point of keeping a fish in a tank it fits in NOW, but won't fit in a year from now? It's like buying a Red tailed catfish and putting it in a 55 gallon, putting pothos ivy in it and putting enough filtration on the tank... It might fit for about a year, but no amount of filtration can make up for improper tank size...


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

Manafel said:


> Bamboo will not survive if it is fully submerged. It will slowly die... Putting plants in the tank to soak up nitrates is all good and such, but should never be used as a substitute for a properly sized tank...
> 
> I would take the newer goldfish to the LFS if you can't even properly house 1... What is the point of keeping a fish in a tank it fits in NOW, but won't fit in a year from now? It's like buying a Red tailed catfish and putting it in a 55 gallon, putting pothos ivy in it and putting enough filtration on the tank... It might fit for about a year, but no amount of filtration can make up for improper tank size...


Should I keep it out of the tank with some fish water til it gets bigger... THEN put it in the tank?


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

Plus I've also been doing frequent water changes. Unfortunately... I seem to have misplaced my gravel vacuum and have been doing a 15-25% water change twice a week, summing up to a 30-50% water change every week and about a 120-200% water change a month. Phew!
I'm trying to save up money for a new gravel vacuum and aerator.


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## Kehy (Apr 19, 2011)

I do about 50% water changes per week, and my tanks are exactly heavily stocked. Pretty much the more you change water, the cleaner the water will be on average for your fish. Fish take work, as do any pet.


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

Kehy said:


> I do about 50% water changes per week, and my tanks are exactly heavily stocked. Pretty much the more you change water, the cleaner the water will be on average for your fish. Fish take work, as do any pet.


Yep.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

You can pull the bamboo out, or you can find some fixture in the tank to elevate the stem to make it break the water surface


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## alhays31808 (Aug 27, 2011)

Manafel said:


> You can pull the bamboo out, or you can find some fixture in the tank to elevate the stem to make it break the water surface


Hmmm.... The snails will be a problem if they find it in the tank...


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