SK_Reefer
New Member
I'm setting up a new tank, and am running across an issue I've never dealt with in the years I've been in this hobby. I'm at about the 10 week mark in cycling a 100gal stock tank lagoon with dry rock and live sand and have started the diatom stage. PH is 8.2 Alk-11.2, Ca-390, NO3-20ppm, PO4-.02ppm, Mg-1330ppm, SG-1.025. The issue I'm running into is that I can't seem to keep any snails other than a single Nassarius that is motoring around and eating normally. I have a few dwarf blue legs, a pair of Oscillaris Clowns, a 2" Sail Fin and I had added a few Cerith snails to try and help combat some of the diatoms until whatever silicates that are present are eventually consumed. Prior to any other livestock going in the tank I had tried a pair of Mexican Turbos which after 1.5hr drip acclimation cruised around the tank for about 12 hours before both of them retreated into their shells at about the same time and never came back out....at least alive. I contributed this to the tank still being too young and possibly having some amount of ammonia or nitrite in the system still that just wasn't showing up on my test kit. So I waited another couple of weeks and continued my ghost feedings etc to keep building bacteria levels. When Nitrates continued to increase to about 10ppm with still no ammonia or nitrite detected I added a single dwarf blue leg, the Nassarius and two spiny astreas. Again, the astreas cruised around the tank for about 24 hours and then retreated into their shells and never came back out. The nassarius and hermit were fine though. I had a bulkhead leak the day I added the snails and I had to drain the tank most of the way and stir things up, etc so I contributed the two astreas dying to stress from the temp/parameter changes. I still decided to wait another two weeks before adding anything else just to be sure and did a number of water changes to keep nutrients in check since I was still feeding regularly. The single hermit and Nassarius did fine over the two week period so I finally pulled the trigger on a few fish and some more CUC. I picked up the clowns and the tang along with nine more hermits and six Cerith snails. Again, the Cerith snails cruised around the rock work and sides of the tank for about 24 hours and have clammed up again. The only thing I can think of that would affect only the snails and not the crabs or the single small star polyp frag thats in there and doing very well would be Mg posioning? I know I'm just a little outside the 3:1 Ca to Mg ratio, but is it enough to cause the issues I'm having? Or is there another trace mineral or metal that will have the same effect on just snails? I use RODI water, but our water is notoriously bad here in Saskatchewan so I wouldn't be at all surprised if something was making it past the membrane. Anyone have any ideas at all what might be going on?
