Are you worried about high nitrate levels poisoning your snails? Will nitrate spikes kill your snails? In this article, we’ll find out if snails are sensitive to nitrates.
Are Snails Sensitive To Nitrates? Yes. Snails are sensitive to sudden spikes of nitrates just like your fish and other invertebrates.
Are Nitrates Toxic For Snails?
Yes. As aquarists, we tend to focus more on keeping ammonia and nitrate levels very low or at 0 ppm. We allow some nitrates, but we may not be putting enough attention of nitrate poisoning or nitrate shock which can kill snails and aquarium marine life.
- Nitrate Poisoning is a chronic condition that slowly takes over your tank.
- Nitrate Shock occurs rapidly and suddenly.
If your snails are overstocked or overcrowded along with your fish, the nitrate levels will rise dramatically.
Are My Snails In Nitrate Shock?
The sudden exposure to a spike in nitrates will shock your snails. Common symptoms include:
- loss of appetite
- no movement
- disoriented
- climbing above the water line
- trying to get out of the tank
- burrowing under the substrate
- refusal to come out of its shell
Loos Of Appetite
Your snails should be constantly eating, sucking, cleaning your tank of algae, dead plant matter, leftover debris and food that is uneaten or intended for them. If they stop altogether, there could be a nitrate issue.
No Movement
There are plenty of references to the slow movement of snails, but when they stop moving for hours on end, something is off with the water quality.
Disoriented
A snail enjoys hanging on the glass or scouring the substrate for bits of food. If you notice your snail in the corner or seemingly unaware of its location, it may be experiencing nitrate shock.
Above the Water Line
If the water is reading a high level of nitrites, ammonia or nitrates, your snail will stay above the water line and refuse to go back in until something is done to restore optimal levels.
Escape
Some snails would rather climb out if they can before nitrate shock takes over and makes it impossible for them to move.
Burrowing
A snail could dig or burrow its way into the substrate to hide from poor water levels which may include nitrate shock.
Staying In The Shell
More often than not, you will see your snail hiding out in their natural hiding spot. The shell creates a level of protection that most fish cannot afford. If you see your snail in the shell all day long, the water quality is the usual suspect.
Will My Snails Die In High Nitrate Water?
You may not be able to keep your snails alive in water that has spiked in nitrates. It may take as little as 24 hours to kill your snail in nitrate shock. You can try to remove the snails and place them in a separate tank while you work to restore levels back to acceptable numbers.
If you have introduced new snails and find them dying while others remain alive, there is trouble with acclimation to your tank’s conditions. Your new snail isn’t able to adjust well to higher nitrates that your other snails have grown accustomed to.
How Do I Bring Down Nitrate Levels To Keep My Snails Alive?
In order to restore nitrate levels to safe conditions for your snails to remain hardy, you will have to perform small water changes. 25% at a time water changes 3 times a week will help bring down nitrate levels.
Try a slower method if you can with 5% water changes every hour for added safety. Continue to test your water for accurate readings. Rapid water changes may also cause shock. Your goal is to keep nitrates below 20 ppm or as high as 30 ppm.
You don’t need to eradicate nitrates with massive water changes. The adverse reaction may occur to a snail that has adjusted to current nitrates and without it, there might be another acclimation issue.
Will Snails Die Under High Nitrates?
Your snails can get stressed and die if they are not accustomed to your tank’s nitrates compared to the conditions they were originally in when you got them. You should try to keep the nitrate readings the same as their water of origin.
Test your water at the local fish shop and compare it to the water where the snail in the shop is residing before you decide to bring it home. If the nitrate readings are not within 20 ppm of your tank’s reading, then come back another day after you can better match it to their current environment.
Make sure the filter’s media can absorb nitrates. There are specific sponges that do so. Live plants will increase oxygenation and reduce nitrate levels. The more you feed your marine life, the more waste they will produce. Overstocking your tank will also do the same thing.
Conclusion
High nitrates will kill your snails. Keep nitrates between 20-30 ppm if you can. Ammonia and nitrite readings should also remain under 1 ppm.
Your tank might be overstocked or your marine life could be producing too much waste which is spiking your nitrates. Perform water changes at smaller amounts more often. Your snails will continue to do their work when nitrate levels are restored to optimal conditions.
Thank you for stopping by at HelpUsFish.com for all your informational needs concerning the fish you wish to keep in your aquarium. We have plenty of articles on a wide variety of aquarium life that may also pique your interest. See you again soon!
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