dying snails

Question
QUESTION: Hello again!!!
I am still struggling with dying snails! I recently noticed a spike in my nitrate levels (40-80). And it appears that this was the level when my snails first started to die. I have a lot of substrate (too much) so I began today to take some out to assist in keeping my nitrate levels down. I have been struggling with the nitrate since I started the tank and can't seem to get it lower than 20. So I started to get rid of some of the substrate today.
I was told at the local saltwater store to just not buy snails but I would like to have an algae pack. I have one hermit crab and one snail left out of 5 snails and 3 hermits that I purchased on 11/25/08. I checked for stray voltage and there was none!!! I am trying to make sense out of this. Any ideas!!!

ANSWER: Hi dawn. I am not exactly sure why you are taking some of the substrate out of your tank? Nitrate is not created by the substrate. It is created as an end product of the nitrogen cycle which is all started with ammonia, the waste products of decay and the living creatures in your tank. Having really good biological filtration like a deep sand bed is a good thing! Some recommend a sand bed of up to 4-5 inches! Having a nitrate problem is very easy to fix! you have to do more frequent partial water changes using only reverse osmosis or distilled water to mix with your salt. Cutting back on feeding slightly, and utilizing macro algae in your tank will also help keep the nitrate down. I don't recommend taking out some of your substrate. You may lose some of your good bacteria and instead of having a nitrate problem you may end up with an ammonia problem. Nitrate at this level will start to kill off some of your more sensitive snails and other invertebrates but should be okay for most hardy, healthy, well acclimated fish species. Some tanks just tend to accumulate more nitrate then others. This is no fault entirely of yours it is simply from waste products building up and not enough skimming or filtration(like the use of a refugium) to compensate for the load of waste your creatures put off. I highly recommend for anyone who is struggling with nitrates and has tried just about everything else, to invest in a denitrating filter. Check out the aquaripure.com website. I have one of these on my one tank and I have not had a reading for nitrates since it has been on there. They are worth their weight in gold when it comes to saving livestock suffering from too much build up of nitrate in the water. It works using anaerobic bacteria(bacteria that live in areas lacking oxygen) and is so safe. These bacteria are the last step in the nitrogen cycle and most people overlook their usefulness and do not create a space for them to colonize. This filter is just that spot. I have recommended them to a few of the customers I deal with and every single one of them is happy with their purchase.
I agree with the guy at the store. Right now you do not want to purchase any more snails or hermit crabs until you figure all this out. The nitrate could definitely be the problem. The problem may also be the kind of snails and hermit crabs you are buying. Not all of these creatures eat algae nor do they at all kinds of algae. Some snails are just as much of a scavenger as your hermit crabs are. They will require enough food to keep them all alive. You may only have one hermit and one snail left because that is all that can be kept with the amount of food in your tank for them. Hermit crabs may from time to time kill snails to steal their shells. Be sure that this isn't what is going on with the one that you have left. This is just another possibility.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks! All I use is reverse osmosis water. How often should I do the partial water changes? I did them once for a week to get down the nitrate level and never got it under 20!!!!!

My anenome and my coral is doing just fine. So are my fish but the doggone snails are just struggling and I lost my last one today. But again there was a spike to 80 and I did an immediate water change.

I do have a protein skimmer. And will make the purchase that you recommend asap. I removed some of the nitrate because I was first told to have alot and then later told that I may have too much and that it may be adding to my increase in nitrate because in some areas of my tank I am unable to vacuum due to my live rock so there may be waste embedded. I had about 4-5 inches and now have about 3. I will not take out anymore. Any reason my anenome (a Condy) and my coral (polyp) is thriving?
Duh..I feel so stupid some times, the more I learn the more I don't know!!!!!!

Answer
Hi Dawn. Don't feel stupid! You are learning And when you have stopped learning is when you have stopped listening! 3 inches of substrate is good. You definitely do not want to take anymore out.  Your condy anemone is a very hardy species of anemone and can thrive in conditions most others can not. This is what makes them an excellent beginner anemone. I don't know what kind of coral polyp you have but there are several kinds of soft corals that will actually thrive in a tank with a slightly elevated nitrate. It is thought that some how the algae in certain coral's tissues actually have the ability to take up the phosphate and nitrate that accumulate in the same way that your hair algae do. It is not known to be true but there are studies that show growth rates increase in some corals in a "dirty" tank over one that is kept totally pristine. Not a fact just a known theory. Just out of curiosity, what kind of substrate are you using? There are some kinds that are made for saltwater that may contains silica which will tear up the snails as they move across the bottom and these scrapes eventually lead to their demise. This is just one more possibility but high nitrates are definitely going to cause snails to die.