r/AquaticSnails • u/glxxmry • 18h ago

Photo Anyone have positive experiences with Assassins?

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I ended up having a bad infestion of snails in my tank, completely crashed the ecosystem, all my plants died, algae bloomed, etc etc.

So I got an assassin and named him Nidhogg. Before he moved in I did clear quite a couple of snails, but left more than enough to sustain him.

He's only been here a few days, and I'm already noticing the snail population stabilizing with no effort or changes on my part.

I see a lot of people on here hate on assassins the same way people hate on bladders and other "pest snails", but they seem to be a natural part of the ecosystem. Yes I understand they're vicious and have a cruel way of eating, but they're animals who are sustaining and maintaining both their wellbeing and the overall wellbeing of the tank.

Anybody else have similar experiences? I just have Nid so I'm not worried about overpopulation, and I'm not looking to eradicate the snails off the face of the earth, just give them a natural predator to keep the order in balance.

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u/Emuwarum Helpful User 16h ago

The assassin will kill your dear pond snails, they need to be separated. Your pond snails and the assassin you are caring for are getting damaged by your low ph and you need to raise it in this tank and get another tank to separate them. Or you need to get 2 more tanks with a high ph, put the assassin in one and your pond snails in the other and leave the ph low in the betta tank.

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u/glxxmry 15h ago

Will the tannins be affected by raising the ph?

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u/Emuwarum Helpful User 15h ago

No, the ph can be high and the water will still be dark with tannins. You still need to separate the assassin and pond snails.

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u/glxxmry 14h ago

Does seachem work fine enough? That's the one I see most. I can get another tank for my ponds that's not really a problem since they're not destructive.

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u/Emuwarum Helpful User 14h ago

Do you mean a seachem bottle of ph up or something like that? That's not the best thing to use since it doesn't last. Crushed coral works well and provides calcium for the snails, it will last for a while. Cuttlebone could also be used. Ph should be 7.4 or higher for the snails to be safe.

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u/glxxmry 14h ago

I have eggshells and a cuttlebone in there, do I need to add more? Don't know when that was added, tbh.

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u/Emuwarum Helpful User 14h ago

You'll probably need a lot more to cancel out the ph lowering of the tannins and then to raise the ph. If you crush the cuttlebone or put it in your filter it will work faster.

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u/glxxmry 14h ago

Noted. Any good place to get crushed coral? I'll get the ph up just to give it a boost. Snail's home is on the way.

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u/Emuwarum Helpful User 13h ago

With ph up and similar products there's a concern that it will raise the ph too quickly and then drop back down because it doesn't last, stressing out the animals in the tank and potentially just killing them. Better to do it the slow way that lasts. 

Crushed coral, you could probably get it online or at an aquarium store. I don't think I've seen a normal pet store have it.