Algae Wafers

[Fawnleaf]

Hey!!

So recently I got a snail (long story, my mom bought it but decided she didn't want to keep it and gave it to me...) Anyway, long story short, I now have an algae eating snail in my insanely clean, algae free tank. (I will stop removing the algae, but until the time when algae will start growing again, he/she needs to eat SOMETHING) So naturally I bought algae wafers. Here's my problem:

my bettas (my 14g sorority) LOVE the algae wafers. I have never seen anything like it. I will drop it in with some pellets and they will go after the wafer!! And one girl, Heather, will eat it. ALL OF IT! I didn't realize until this morning, but she ate pretty much the whole thing. She has a severe bloat now... and I put another one in and she went for it! So i took it out.

My question is... how do I feel my snail until my algae starts growing again?

[GreenTea]

What I do is remove my snail, I have a golden mystery snail, and put it in a tupperware containers with about a quarter of a wafer for a few hours. I do this about once a week, so far he's doing good. This way I don't introduce algae into my tank and he gets to eat and be happy! Hope this helps.

[meeka]

I think GreenTea has an excellent idea coz that way you arent polluting your tank with any uneaten food. :)

[GreenTea]

Also, if this matters, the snail lives with one plakat in a 20 gal with live plants and no filter. Whatever the snail doesn't eat I toss and then plop him back into the tank =]

Thanks Meeka.

[GreenTea]

Here's a pic, just cause :3

[meeka]

How cute :)

[copperarabian]

My HM king would eat algae wafers O.O He would see it, dive after it and swim around with it in his mouth lol it looked so funny because the algae wafer was so big and I would have to reach in and take it from him. I also found that feeding in the middle of the night with no lights on doesn't help >.> he really love them....

I have to move my king into a fry container while my pleco eats, or while I feed my goby shrimp, or feed any other fish at all. By the time my king has gotten bored and jumped out of the container the food is gone.

When I don't want want him to jump out I just catch him in my big cichlid net and close the hood over it(So it doesn't slide into the tank) so he is still in the water but can't jump out.

[Fawnleaf]

thanks!! I will do the tupper ware thing. :D So the wafer actually GROWS algae??? ewwww! i thought the snail would just eat the thing... yeah, I think the tupper ware idea is much better. :)

[fishman12]

How long does it take for the algae to grow?

[GreenTea]

Well the wafers mostly just dissolve and I would imagine if not eaten they would grow into algae. They make the tupperware water quite green and funky smelling if I leave them in there for too long.w