Huh? saw something at the fish store

[Sorceress]

First of all Happy New Year

2nd all my fish including the loach is happy when and if ic the loach (he's got his own house) lmao

ok i have been having a problem with one of my filters seems it don't like to stay put when i change the filter medium and carbon and floats to the top fixed it by getting a filter that usually goes in a one gallon for my carbon and ammonia filtration and will be replacing the liter that will not stay put with a sponge filter

so while my friend goes into the guy store (auto parts) i decide to check out the pet store next to it for sponge filters to replace the filter that will not stay put and i just had to peek at the fish well in the betta section with the to tiny tanks there was a small tank with clams in it pet store guy claims they are a natural filter for the to small for a betta tanks

ok your opinion do you think this clam can do as they claim or is it a gimmick

my betta will also be happy with the new floating log i spotted which i am getting with the filter next month hopefully that will keep him out of the white clouds feeding ring as it has a feeding hole in it as well

[Noto]

In short, yes, they are a gimmick.

Clams are filter feeders, but they feed on plankton and detritus. Fish poop will not sustain them, and they do nothing for ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites. If you want to keep clams successfully, you will need to feed them and provide appropriate conditions for them. Otherwise, you are likely to just end up with a dead clam. Nothing smells worse than a dead clam (trust me on this), and a moderate-sized clam corpse can rapidly pollute your tank and kill your fish.

If you want a natural filter, get live plants. They consume nitrogenous wastes (rather than converting them, like bacterial filters, or temporarily trapping them, like chemical filters).

[starsplitter7]

I agree. The clams will quickly starve and die in the tank and then pollute the tank. I have tried clams, and I fed them, and I still couldn't keep them.

[Sorceress]

thats what i thought when i saw em just wanted an opinion on the matter
i think alot of newbie betta keepers are going to buy those things and find out the hard way and lose a very expensive fish in the process

[Diana]

To hold the filter down, is there room in the filter to add a rock? Rubber band a rock to the outside?

[Sorceress]

currently i got a useless mag algae cleaner holding it down and if the car had not broke down would be replacing both sponge filters as one is a wee bit to big for the tank and the one i am looking at is smaller so will be getting just the one replacement and the algae sponge to clean the glass off as that is all i can afford at the moment

[Diana]

Skip the algae sponge. A single edge razor works really well (keep it away from the silicone) and is a lot cheaper.
Do not use a razor on an acrylic tank. If your tank is acrylic, then get only acrylic approved tools.

[starsplitter7]

I bought a couple gorgeous horned nerites for less than $1 each and they keep the tank spic and span.

[Sorceress]

diana will go to the hardware store once i get new on my car and if i am mobile on tue and try the razor method

starsplitter i have not seen those snails in my three local fish stores all i got from one of the fish stores is a massive and annoying mystery snail problem which they do little if anything except breed (i feed once a week and the suckers si=till crop up) for the algae problem

[starsplitter7]

Are you sure they are Mystery snails breeding? I couldn't get mine to breed. If they are mysteries, you could resell them at a local fish store. You need two mysteries to breed, and then they need to cooperate, and they need to be able to exit the water to lay their eggs. All you ahve to do is make sure there's no gap between the water and the lid, and the mysteries can't breed. But if you have fish that need air, that is not ideal.

I am a huge fan of snails, so I am never unhappy with snails.

Here's what Horned Nerites look like. http://www.planetinverts.com/horned_nerite_snail.html

Mystery Snails http://www.petfish.net/articles/Inverte ... ystery.php

[Sorceress]

well some of the mystery snails i been take out of the tank to mash some got not the apple snail look but broader shells and they don't do a thing for the algae

and i have found a few outside the tank which is a bad idea if i spot them as i do have a betta that needs the space when i changed the filter there where these clear masses on the filter i washed off with very hot water and sometime there are these red spots that disappear and more wee little snails show up after said red spot disappears am hoping on of these days to upgrade 5 more gallons so i can get an bn pleco and better lighting for plants which should keep the algae down