[carroll]

Hi I have learned alot from this forum already. I wish I would have found it before I set up my tank but...

I have a 29 gallon with abou 13 pounds of live rock and about 3 inches of live sand on the bottom. My water temp stays about 77-78 degrees in a stable area of the home. ( no window or heater or air vent)
My water has been tested and is shown to be in the proper ranges for nitrates nitrites, ph a little low, no phosphate or copper problem, salinity is fine.

The tank is now about a month old now and I have added 5 blue legged hermit crabs 3 have jumped their shells to parts unknown. I have one scarlet reef crab that will not come out of his shell. I had 8 snails 3 are still alive but do not attach to my glass at all. Two sit in my substrate on their side and eat the other is attached to tonga rock and seems fine.

I am not putting fish in this tank yet because obviously something is wrong but I have gone to two different salt water stores and noone seems to be able to find the problem.

Any thoughts or things I could check as a new person to this hobby would be appreciated.

[Reefland]

Can you tell us how you acclimated the snails to the tank? Snails are sensitive to osmotic shock and therefore require a good, slow acclimation.

[carroll]

What is osmotic shock? Does it kill them? I floated the first bag which had the snails and hermit crabs together for about 15 minutes and then I placed them in the tank gently. I did not add the water to my tank. Two of the hermit crabs were stuck together on a snail and two of the snails were stuck together. I added a week later 3 snails which I floated the bag for a half and hour and added my water to the bag three times before I put them in again not adding the bag water to my tank. The red reef hermit crab I floated for a half an hour and added water. He is still alive but does not want to leave his shell and i Like him better than the blue legged hermit crabs that wonder around without their shell in the tank.

Also the snails three remaining do not get on the glass is this normal?

Thanks for any ideas you may have. I want to add my fish but I dont' want to kill them!

[leebca]

You actually have to acclimate snails slower than you acclimate fish. See this post to get an idea of how to acclimate fish. It Was Acclimation, I know. . .

You will actually acclimate snails and invertebrates slower than a fish.

I'd guess it was the lack of optimal acclimation mostly responsible for the losses. I would try it again with the proper acclimation process. In addition take note: You want snails that specifically come from tropical waters that nearly match the temperature of your tank. If you are getting cooler water snails, they will 'cook' to death in the tropical aquarium. Unfortunately, you end up having to trust the supplier on this one, although snails from parts of the USA waters are usually cooler water snails.

There are a few dozen different snails suitable for a home aquarium. Without knowing which ones you actually have, it is hard to say what their habits are. If you want info on snails, here's A LOT
Snails:
The Grazing Snails, Part I - Turbo, Trochus, Astraea, and Kin by Ronald L. Shimek, Ph.D. - Reefkeeping.com
The Grazing Snails, Part II - Abalones, Limpets and Nerites by Ronald L. Shimek, Ph.D. - Reefkeeping.com
The Grazing Snails, Part III: Conchs, Ceriths, Cowries, and Columbellids by Ronald L. Shimek, Ph.D. - Reefkeeping.com
Aquarium Frontiers Library

I would rethink your choice of putting hermit crabs in the home aquarium. There are some good reasons not to use them:
Aquarium Frontiers Library
http://www.reefland.com/rho/0305/medprod3.php

I would suggest you try to figure out where you are at in this recommended procedure and then pick up the process from there:
Setting Up a FOWLR Aquarium

[carroll]

Thank you Lee

I am learning that I probably should not have hermits in the tank. Is there a way I can know if my snails are behaving properly (that I am caring for them properly)? I always thought they stayed on the glass. I will check out the links you suggested
I sure have alot to learn
Thanks
Carroll

[leebca]

Snail care and behavior is very much related to the type/kind of snail. Some of those links should help you out with that.

Some snails prefer rocks, some don't like it on substrate, others take to the glass. Some crawl out of the aquarium (those are the ones we try to avoid). Some can't right themselves if they fall over (they die). We try to avoid those, too. There's a lot to snails.

Some are herbivores, a few are carnivores. The herbivores need algae and plants; the carnivores require sea flesh/foods of some kind. Again, it all depends on the ones you have. The first goal is to identify what you have then read up on them in particular.