Feeding RCS, but not snails

[jonathan03]

I have been feeding my RCS algae pellets that sink to the bottom. They love them, but so do the snails! The snails completely cover the algae wafers so the RCS can't eat them. The RCS get there first, but the snails eventually cut in and kick out most of the RCS.

So here are a few questions:
1) How can I lower the snails without hurting the shrimp or my plants? I don't need to elimate them, just reduce them.
2) What will RCS eat that snails won't? The problem with the algae wafers is that they don't have a large surface area and are very thick. This doesn't allow for many shrimp to eat at once and it makes it easier for the snails to smother it.

The snail population is really going crazy since they are hogging the algae wafers. Any help would be appreciated.

[Janis]

Hi Jonathan,

If you break up the algae wafer the shrimp will drag the pieces around the tank and the snails can't keep up. Simple solution, but it works! Another option is to feed flake food or pellets, same concept.

If you just have those little brown pond snails then I would recommend just squishing them on the glass. Every few days my shrimp get squished snails along with their dinner and they love it! Manual removal is pretty much your only option because any chemicals that kill snails will also kill your shrimp and any fish that eat snails will also eat baby shrimp. I hope that helps!

Janis

[Lotus]

For snail control I usually put an algae wafer in a shot glass when I turn the lights out at night. First thing in the morning, before turning tank lights on, I take out the shot glass, which is then full of snails, and dispose of them. It's hard to eliminate them completely, but easy to keep the population under control. Too much food in the tank will make the population explode, by the way.