As the pandemic continues into 2021, people have turned to keeping pets as their company indoors. From working at a major chain pet store, I noticed that puppies and fish seem to be the new classmates for Zoom. Obviously, we cannot keep puppies in our dorms, so I started thinking about getting my own fish. 

My family did not have much luck keeping fish in my early years, but I was determined to at least and keep one alive. In the fall, my roommate wanted a betta fish to replace our third roommate so our triple didn’t seem so small. We also got a pair of snails to help clean the tank. The trend of dying fish continued into my roommate’s fish tank with the snails dying. My theory is that our betta did not want to share his territory and did his worst. Anyway, I wanted to take care of a pair of mystery snails. By themselves, snails seemed easy to care for when they don’t have any nippy tank mates.

Snails need a lot more than you think, requiring at least five gallons to work with. It not only gives them space to slide around, but the extra space lets algae grow. Snails eat the algae, keeping the tank nice and clear.

Despite being algae vacuums, they still require a filter. They clear any snail waste and add oxygen to the tank. I have a simple filter that hangs over the tank and has a fine sponge on the intake in case someone has kids in the tank.

Another must is a heater to keep the tank between 68-80 degrees Fahrenheit. The wattage of the heater depends on the size of the tank. The bigger the tank, the higher the wattage. For my five gallon tank, I am using a 10 watt heater, but it’s barely at 70 degrees. Don’t do what I did; I would go with a 50 watt heater and monitor the temperature so that it does not get too hot.

Substrate is another important element to a snail tank. I started with simple colored gravel as it was the cheapest option. However, snails might be more comfortable with sand.  With gravel, a snail’s shell can get stuck on a pile of rocks by mistake. I’m moving towards a finer type of substrate that will help keep live plants healthy and encourage growth.

Lastly, snails need a little hideaway to sleep the day away. Snails prefer to sleep during the day and crawl around at night. Any size decoration will do as long as they can hide away from the public view as they nap for some rest.  

That’s it for now, but stay tuned for more aquarium tips!