Slak Kasteel (snail Castle) Newbie's Road To Greatness

[HyX]

So yeah! I'm a snail guy. A little background: My family inherited an abandoned 6.5 gallon semI hex plastic tank back in February. The tank had been left unpowered and unfed for who knows how long. This was less than a month after losing my Mother, a lady who loved fish, so you can see why we took it home. After we learned about overfeeding... responsibility fell on me to care for the creatures inside.

We had two Glofish Tetras, a handful of Bladder Snails and a heaping population of detritus worms in there. Daphnia were present at one point but we haven't seen them since the first big clean out. The family fell in love with the glofish and wanted everything else exterminated. I felt differently.

The snails became my wards. The worms my clean up crew (after a major population reduction) The glofish were recently rehomed to their current temporary tank. A glass 5 gallon fixed up to the best of my abilities and the snails were returned to the 6.5 semI hex. Backwards really but I try not to stress the fish out! They've had a big couple of months and we're not moving them again until things are perfect.

I've started from scratch with this stuff. Learning as we go mostly through googling which species is which from the worms to the glofish. My Father has significant experience in the hobby, albeit from thirty years ago. We've got different ideas on bioload/filtration and VERY different ideas when it comes to 'pests' in the tank lol. Still it's been great talking shop with him and picking up knowledge nuggets as we go!

Since then the fish are doing great. Partial water changes today and we've gotten two Marimo moss balls, one for each tank. Slak Kasteel (Snail Castle) has been rebuilt, received a new mechanical sponge filter and given all new decor. I intend to push these guys into spawning a large stable colony. Just love my little garbage disposals! As I master these snails and give them the best possible lives - I'm gaining confidence. Learning to trust myself more with the glofish.

The next 'big' project is setting up a ten or a twenty gallon for the fish. We happen to have both laying around as my Dad's been finding tanks here and there for years. Our goal is 4 Glofish/White skirt Tetras and we're looking at possible tank mates for those sizes? (10/20 long)

We've even got a beautiful 28 gallon round face tank around here somewhere... but I've got plans for that thing. Would a selfcloning Mamorkred crayfish fit? Along with some of my future snail army (only the strong survive) and MAYBE something that would eat crayfish fry? The snails and crayfish seem to line up carewise.

I'll add pictures tomorrow as it's currently night time in the tanks. Thanks for reading any and all tips suggestions comments and questions are welcome! Loving the forum

 

[goldfishexpert]

hex tanks good for snails, on 28 gallon tetras add heater an powerhead (maybe) . Keep up the hard work and do lots of research

 

[HyX]

The first picture is our Glofish setup and the second is 'Slak Kasteel' Snail Castle. The condensation is pretty powerful there!

The snails numbers are still pretty low but something special is happening! We saw two indivuals meet on the decor. Checking later we saw a brand new egg clutch! The first to be visually confirmed.

The old filter in the snail tank is being replaced. The new submerged filter is cycling.

Currently reading about egg shells and avoiding acidic water for the snails. We ordered some duckweed and javamoss for them last night. Hopefully we get a few hitch hikers

 

[HyX]

hex tanks good for snails, on 28 gallon tetras add heater an powerhead (maybe) . Keep up the hard work and do lots of research

Thanks for the tips! My family is leaning in that direction. They'd look great in the 28! I'd secretly like to free up the 5 anyway. We've got an empty 10 and twenty too but I'm hesitant to pickup too many projects

 

[HyX]

I Should Clarify That This Introduction Is No Longer Relevant! I've Spent MANY Hours Studying And Gaining Experience Through Sheer Volume.

My Wife And I Now Care For 4 True Aquariums:
A 5 gallon, 6.5, 10, And A 20 Gallon Tank.

Along With 10+ Jars Of Various Sizes And 4 Five Gallon Buckets Which Function As Outdoor Ponds.

We Now Keep Mosquitofish, Tramp Snails, Glofish, Guppy/Endlers, Bladder Snails And A Lone Mystery Snail.

Other Critters Include:
Ostracods, Planaria, Case-Carrying Worms, Dragon Fly Nymphs, A Couple Tadpoles, Other Unknown Nymphs, And An Unidentified Aquatic Beetle.

We Gave Up On Ordering Plants Online. Packages Arrived Smashed. Instead Focusing On Collecting And Reproducing Plants That I Personally Collected Near Our Home. All Of Our Tanks Are Now Heavy With Plant Matter. We Only Do Water Changes With The Glofish Tank (Overstocked)

Our Plants Include:
Duckweed, Guppy Grass, Pondweed, BabyTears, And Palm Beach Spike Rush (A Type Of HairGrass) We've Also Got Some Filamentous Algae Growing Quite Well.

I Like To Think That My Wild Strain Plants Are A Great Deal Healthier And Hardier Than Other Strains. Admittedly We Took Risks With Wild Plants! But Our Tanks Are Beautiful, Crystal Clear, And Require Zero Maintenance.

I Would Like To Thank goldfishexpert For Replying Here And Encouraging A Newbie Hobbyist. I Did Take Your Advice! Many Hours Were Spent Perusing Forums, Reading Articles, And Exploring Scientific Papers (My Favorite!)

I Have Included Some Photos As A Reward For Anyone That Happens To Read This