Snails are fine. Infant snails are nearly microscopic, and snail eggs on plants are transparent and do their best to be invisible. They only really become a problem aesthetically if the snail population has a boom, usually due to overfeeding. Are Snails Good Or Bad For Fish Tank? Some snails are good, some are bad, and some are just a nuisance. Algae eaters eventually become aggressive and pleco's grow to up to two feet long! But don’t worry. Freshwater Aquarium / Fish Tank Forums > Freshwater Aquariums - General Discussion > Snails in fry tank? They don't reproduce as readily as other types of snails. Whether or not it's a good idea depends on a couple of things, sucha s your point of view and the type of fish tank. The Good. I actually acquired snails in my fish tank by accident when I bought plants to decorate my tank with. The good news is that the snails eat algae. So how on earth did he get into your aquarium? And without good bacteria to consume the by-products of fish waste and rotting detritus, bad ones will take over. If freshwater snails are on live aquarium plants or in the plastic bag of store display tank water when adding purchased fish, they make their way into the tank that way. I didn't buy any snails for my tank, they came on the weeds. Algae eaters eventually become aggressive and pleco's grow to up to two feet long! A well-maintained aquarium that is not overfed has nothing to fear from a few snails. Yet, here he is…with hundreds of his friends and family. The snails then feed off excess algae in the tank or leftover food at the bottom of the tank. I did not want to wipe out the snail population, just control it. In these cases, freshwater snails are often considered to be undesired pests. Share. A friend told me that there is a good kind of snail that will wipe out the bad snails. Snails are actually probably a better idea than getting algae eaters or a plecostomus. I wore gloves the whole time and I put all the contaminated snail infested and worn infested items inside a trash bag and put them outside in the bin. Snails have quite a few natural predators, including some fish and other snails. I was wandering if the small brown snails are a good or bad thing in my tank. The snails first enter your fish tank from live plants, or are scooped up with new fish. Snails usually arrive on plants in the tank, either as grown snails or as packets of eggs on the plant. Personally, I only have one tank with assassins and there are only a couple. Believe it or not, there are creatures out there who’d be happy to see your snail-infested fish tank. It's not a bad idea to get snails. Many people decide to get freshwater aquarium snails to accompany their fish, and there is a good reason for it. They can be a good cleanup crew since they eat most types of algae and leftover food.