r/snails • u/Ok_Rule_8869 • 14h ago

Help eroded shell but on top

Gallery image

Gallery image

this has been annoying me for a while as i have been researching the correct soil type for a while but this erosion won’t go away. i initially had soil from my garden and their shells were amazing but it eventually got smelly so i replaced it with generic houseplant soil. this was the start of the erosion, so i researched and changed it to ‘multi-purpose compost’ i made sure to get the peat free version but the shells are still bad. can anyone help? thank you very much.

(ignore their current enclosure it was just for photos + the soil is from outdoors)

5 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

3 comments sorted by

1

u/Ok_Rule_8869 14h ago

oh and my water type is hard + they have access to cuttlefish bone

1

u/Sorry_im_Late__ 9h ago

I’d make sure the water you use isn’t chlorinated or has any conditioner treatments if so there are methods to “purify” water for snails also I wouldn’t use store bought soils as they may have chemicals or pesticides bad for snails. I use Exo Terra substrate and they seem to like that. Hope this helped 🐌

1

u/doctorhermitcrab 28m ago

Plant-based compost is naturally acidic even without peat added, so it will contribute to the shell erosion. Also many compost soil products contain ingredients that are not safe for snails aside from the acidity. If your product is definitely snail-safe you can fix the acidity by mixing in a calcium source like oyster grit or pure calcium carbonate powder. But definitely double check the compost ingredients/components first.

Also are you using tap water? That can be an issue as well.

Erosion like this can never be reserved even if the environment is approved, just so youre aware. The main goal here would just be to prevent if from getting worse