Temperature Requirements for Malaysian Trumpet Snails

I know this is an older thread but as a new member I just saw this. MTS snails are great but I was wondering what their temperature requirements are and if they would survive winters if I put them in my pond? I live in central Kentucky and we hear the pond during the winter. Usually it ices very little but if we have a hard wired there will be some icing. It's about three feet deep in the deepest part.

 

Just out of curiosity, why the pond? What do the water temps get to ( both winter and summer )

I don't have any experience with the cold temps but I do know they can survive a great deal and are pretty hardy with high temps.

I also know that I had a QT tank with them buried in the sand ( I emptied almost all of the water that I could ) and stored the tank in the garage ( gets up to 95 in the summer in there ) for several months. When I fired the QT tank back up, they were still alive.

 

Just out of curiosity, why the pond? What do the water temps get to ( both winter and summer )

I don't have any experience with the cold temps but I do know they can survive a great deal and are pretty hardy with high temps.

I also know that I had a QT tank with them buried in the sand ( I emptied almost all of the water that I could ) and stored the tank in the garage ( gets up to 95 in the summer in there ) for several months. When I fired the QT tank back up, they were still alive.

Wow! They are hardy! The pond is in full sun and I'd like to introduce snails to help control some of the algae. The nitrate & phosphates are super low so that isn't why it's growing so well; it's the 10+ hours of summer sun that is the culprit. It gets into single digits in the winter sometimes into the negative but doesn't stay there long. We heat the pond and ice is rarely a problem.

 

I'm unsure exactly what algae MTS will eat. They may not control many types including the green filamentous types commonly found in ponds.

 

I have both the flaky kind that settles on the bottom and the stringy stuff. I've gotten the stringy stuff to a manageable "infestation" but am looking to find better solutions than using chemicals.

 

In my old pond I used a uv light in the 2nd filter box and it kept the algae right down water starts to look better after a few days usually clear in a week, you can pick up an online uv light fairly cheap. Just an idea?

 

That is something I've thought about. I'm worried about it killing all my "good" bacteria. I guess it wouldn't hurt if I only did it in one filter and not both. I'm still considering it...

 

I think you are on the right track avoiding the use of chemicals.

A uv light will only kill organisms suspended in the water column including "green water" which is suspended unicellular algae. The "good" bacteria you mention occur principally on surfaces and remain unaffected if the uv light does not shine on them.

 

I think you are on the right track avoiding the use of chemicals.

A uv light will only kill organisms suspended in the water column including "green water" which is suspended unicellular algae. The "good" bacteria you mention occur principally on surfaces and remain unaffected if the uv light does not shine on them.

Thanks for explaining that way. That's the best explanation I've gotten on how they work! As soon as I've got the funds o think I'm going to invest in one of those!

 

Hey that's great to get thanks from you as it's tough for me communicating in your language.

 

Hey that's great to get thanks from you as it's tough for me communicating in your language.

I do appreciate your making the effort! You've explained it in one sentence better than I've had people do the same in two paragraphs!