Vermetid snails taking over

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#1
It’s getting a little out of control now and the more I look at the tank the more it bothers me seeing them. Their webs are hitting my acros and I can tell it’s bothering them. Need some input on a mass destruction of these guys. (Hundreds) I bought Calcium Carbonate but does this actually work? Bumblebee snails are $5 for 1 from my LFS.
 
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Discotu

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#2
My electric blue hermit destroyed most of my vermetids. My guess is that its generally a larger hermit with a larger stronger claws that can crush the snail tubes.
 
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#3
I lost a battle to them before. Had to acid bath my rocks when I relocated the tank. I tried everything, bumble bee snails are supposed to eat them I think.
 
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#4
I saw a bumblebee eating one. It’s a little hard to tell if they kill them because they leave the tube, but I saw it in the act once.
I’ve used calcium carbonate powder but really not sure if it works. Cheap and easy though so worth a shot.
 
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#5
I saw a bumblebee eating one. It’s a little hard to tell if they kill them because they leave the tube, but I saw it in the act once.
I’ve used calcium carbonate powder but really not sure if it works. Cheap and easy though so worth a shot.
I was looking at the bumblebee snails today at the store and they barely move lol I was like are they dead or they just move that slow? I didn’t buy any but I just might have to. Do you know how much calcium carbonate to use for a 220g tank?
 
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#6
I was looking at the bumblebee snails today at the store and they barely move lol I was like are they dead or they just move that slow? I didn’t buy any but I just might have to. Do you know how much calcium carbonate to use for a 220g tank?
I don’t think you can really overdose it. 1 tsp per 50 gallons seems like a good ratio. If I do it in the evening it’s clear by morning.
 

drexel

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#10
Also, use a polishing filter to remove particulates from the water column, this is where vermitids get most of their food, so anything you can do to remove as much detritus and particulates will help. Someone just talked about a fish or invert that might eat them, but I can't remember what it was? BB's can work, but they are opportunistic eaters, so if they go after the vermitids, don't keep them much longer if you value your other snails. Hopefully a combo of things will help.
I've always found their numbers come and go, but when I was diligent with keep the water clear and using calcium carbonate, it really helped reduce their numbers. Good luck!
 

Discotu

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#11
Managing vermetids in a 220g tank would likely require a multi pronged approach. Personally ive tried BB snails and cant say for sure if they made an impact. 100% my electric blue hermit feasted on them. Ive read mixed results with the CaCo but at a minimum youd have to be diligent about application like John mentioned in order for it to be effective.
 
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#12
If going with calcium carbonate powder, have good mechanical filtration handy. My protein skimmer usually goes crazy following a dosing.

I've had good luck with BBs, they just so quite slow and don't quite go after the thick/large vermetids. It will take time to see results.
 
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#13
I echo what @DiscoStu said - a multi-pronged approach is the most likely path to success in such a large tank with a reasonably advanced infestation.

I can't say that I've personally observed a bumble bee snail prey upon a vermetid, but anecdotally they do seem to help reduce the population over time. You probably need at least a couple dozen in a tank that large to outpace vermetid reproduction. I would try an electric blue hermit as others have suggested.

As a second prong, I would try to physically remove or destroy any that you see, using bone cutters. It's very satisfying to remove huge vermetids that reside in nooks and crannies previously unbeknownst to you. Be sure to destroy/detach their bases and not just the spires, as the vermetid resides in the base and can reconstruct a busted spiral pretty quickly. Note that they will pop up everywhere, including in your sump, overflow boxes, etc., as they spawn regularly and have absolutely no need for light.

As a third prong, I use coral snow, which can actually help identify larger vermetids for physical removal, as sometimes you can see mucus nets emerge from unexpected spots, and they're easy to see when chalked up. I think the idea behind treating with coral snow is essentially that you fill the vermetids' stomachs with nutritionally useless chalk and slowly starve them to death. However, for this strategy to be effective, I think you'd need to (a) consistently dose the coral snow once or twice a week for several weeks and (b) cease any broadcast feeding you're doing (reef roids, phyto, etc) for the duration of the coral snow treatments for this purpose.

One tip I would offer for coral snow treatments for purposes of vermetid removal is to do what you can to stimulate a feeding response a few minutes before adding the coral snow. Something like polyp booster or feeding the fish can stimulate the vermetids to cast wide mucous nets, and then they gobble up the coral snow just as you want them to do.
 

Fon

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#14
Partially destroy the vermetids' shells and /or cut the spiral tubes down to the base would definitely entice bumble bee snails to finish them off. I've found this method is more effective when using bumble bee snails as a "controller."
 

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Definitely go for multi prong approach. DIY coral snow to find them. Manual remove big ones. BB to take care of small ones.
 
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#18
Thank you all for the responses! Sounds like a slow and steady approach with calcium carbonate and bumble bee snails overtime will hopefully get rid of them. I’ll pick up some bumble bees this weekend and let them do their thing… Just did the first coral snow last night which I’ll do twice a week for now on. Hopefully all goes well
 
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#19
Thank you all for the responses! Sounds like a slow and steady approach with calcium carbonate and bumble bee snails overtime will hopefully get rid of them. I’ll pick up some bumble bees this weekend and let them do their thing… Just did the first coral snow last night which I’ll do twice a week for now on. Hopefully all goes well
SoCaliReefer Meetup has an opportunity to buy inverts wholesale.. details at tomorrow's meet at Brewheim in Anaheim...

Just sayin
 
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