richms Posted April 23, 2006 Report Share Posted April 23, 2006 Ive got 3 of these in my goldfish tank, I really know nothing about them, they just came with some goldfish I bought. Anyway, there shells are looking all chipped up with little 1mm wide lines in them like they have being eroded or something. Any ideas what the problem could be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Posted April 23, 2006 Report Share Posted April 23, 2006 Yes, your pH is on the acid side and is dissolving the calcium that forms the shells. Raise your pH to above 7. Alan 104 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richms Posted April 25, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 I also got a PM suggesting that its lack of calcuim in the water and they need more light.. Ok, more light I can sort easily enough, but whats the solution for more calcium? I do major water changes in the tank because of the goldfish being such messy eaters so I dont think that it will be a ph issue as when I last checked the tap water on the shore (back when I had a fully functional test kit) it was always pretty much on 7. IM going to go wire another 4 foot light up and stick it on the tank to help with that issue. Just wondering if the low ph is a sure thing or not before I go buying another test kit etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted April 25, 2006 Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 Snail shells are made of calcium carbonate. They need an alkaline pH to stay in good condition as acidic water will erode them. People use shells to raise their tank pH. Do you just have the shells or are they live snails? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richms Posted April 25, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 They are live snails. They are looking fine other then the shells which are looking quite crappy. Looks like a trip to hollywood is in order tomorrow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted April 25, 2006 Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 What is your pH? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loopy Posted April 25, 2006 Report Share Posted April 25, 2006 i am experimenting with different ways to help build up my snails calcium supply. i have to wait for a while to see if it makes much differnce. i have got a couple of turtle conditioning blocks and chucked them in the tank with the snails. and have been feeding them up well with a variety of foods Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted April 26, 2006 Report Share Posted April 26, 2006 People with turtles throw cuttlefish bone in the water for them. Perhaps you can do this for the snails? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richms Posted April 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 30, 2006 borrowed a test kit and tested the pH and it was below 6 which is as low as the test would go... yowch.. Anyway, got a big bottle of ph up and have dosed it twice and its sitting on 7.2 at the moment. Still a mystery why it was so low because I do 40% water changes weekly. Put another light ontop but no reflector yet so not doing a hell of a lot. Still really have to get about to building a nice hood for the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted April 30, 2006 Report Share Posted April 30, 2006 Watch using that stuff as it often only works temporarily if there are buffers in the tank so you end up with major pH swings as the pH keeps going back to original. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharn Posted April 30, 2006 Report Share Posted April 30, 2006 i agree with caryl, they can be dangerous if your kh isnt high enough to stop everything swinging back down. you need to look at your kh (carbonate hardness) to see what your buffering is like and then you can work out what to do from there it might just be that your tap water is very soft, in te puke ours is quite soft with no buffering at all, ph is around 6.4 or something, test your tap water after youve let it sit for a day or so and that will give you your base reading so you can see if anything in your tank is making it drop etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Cuttlefish bone definitely works to help snails to grow their shells. I used it in my tank and the difference was dramatic. You could see the line on the shells to indicate when I started using it. Before, the shells were thin and eroded-looking. Afterward, the new shell was thick and strong and glossy, and held its colour much better. You can buy cuttlefish bone in the pet section of the supermarket. It's the stuff people hang in a bird cage for the bird to file its teeth on. (Oops I mean its beak) I have the same problem with soft, acidic water. It seems to be the driftwood in my tank that causes the pH to drop. Do you do a gravel syphon with each water change? Any rotting organic matter will drop the pH, including gunk under the gravel or decomposing driftwood. As people have said, the commercial products are likely to cause pH swings - stressing your pets more than a low, steady pH. So... 1) Identify the cause 2) Do a long-term fix (such as changing your maintenance routine or adding a small shell to the tank) Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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