Christine.

Im setting up a 65g planted community tank, in my 25g i have a pleco which i plan on putting in the 65g tank once its all set up, but i am also thinking of getting a snail, but i dont know much about snales and i dont want to buy one and a month later have 200

aecw

I have had good luck with a gold inca snail in that he/she didn't over populate my tank in the many months she lived there. I myself have been thinking of trying to find a Malaysian trumpet snail for my sanded tank so that they will keep the sand stirred up - however I have read alot of threads about how one can turn to many so I'm a little scared.
bottom line - buy one snail (gold inca, mystery, etc....) if you see an egg clutch and don't want to breed them then just remove it from the tank (sorry snail lovers if that seems harsh) if you still get lots of little snails you can probably introduce a "snail eater" to the crowd to control the population.
Just for the record tho - I love my snails - i think they are so fun to watch and feed - they will even squooch along my fingers and hand if I keep them(my hands and fingers) in the tank for any period of time

Christine.

well i figured out im probably going to get snails in my tank no matter what, because my boyfriend bought plants and a month or so later we noticed a bunch of snails that must have just come on the plants, and im buying my plants from the same store (big als)

what is a snail eater? sorry i seem so inexperianced

aecw

loaches are snail eaters, puffers too but they come with some serious requirements and also I have heard gouramis have been known to snack on snails.

I've read that if you have a significant snail problem some people actually cut way back on the feeding of their fish and will actually crush some of the small snails and the fish will often take care of the rest. I guess the theory is in the wild they would hunt and forage for their meals - might be too barbaric for most people though.

Christine.

ya i think if i get a bunch of snails in my tank ill just buy a loach, any suggestions on the best kind?