While algae-eating snails can’t battle algae growth alone, they are a great tool to help you control overgrowth and keep your tank clean of unsightly algae. At Modern Aquarium, we have a great selection of aquarium snails for sale in a variety of shell colors and sizes. Browse our selection and discover how they can help keep your tank free of unwanted algae.
Some snails can clean fish tanks, specifically algae-eating snails. These are snails that eat invasive algae, so you don’t have to empty your tank for maintenance. There are a few other types of snails that clean fish tanks, including:
We recommend avoiding Malaysian and Ramshorn snails because, even though they can help maintain your tank, they reproduce very quickly when there’s excess food. Too many snails can actually strain your aquarium filter, and they’re difficult to remove.
The number of snails you need in your aquarium will vary due to the size of your tank. Typically, you should consider adding one snail per five gallons of water in your aquarium. However, if you have high levels of algae, you may want to add more snails than the average necessary.
When you add snails to your aquarium, it’s best to monitor their progress. If the recommended amount of snails reduces the algae in your tank, do not add any more. Too many snails can lead to overcrowding and food scarcity.
Certain snail species can reproduce on their own. However, most snail species do not.
Nerite and Mystery snails (algae-eating snails) require both a male and a female snail to reproduce. However, if you have a female snail, she may lay eggs in your tank. The eggs will not hatch unless they are fertilized. Importantly, Nerite snails will not reproduce in freshwater aquatic environments.
Please note that when you browse our aquarium snails for sale, you cannot choose the gender of the snail.