Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I am going to start my first aquaponics system. It is going to be small with only a 10-gallon fish tank and a planter to grow about 8 plants. I am thinking of trying something completely different. Instead of using fish, all I want to use is snails such as Ramshorn and Malaysian trumpet snails. I figured that the snails would be much hardier, breed proficiently, and they will eat just about anything. I am hoping that I could just feed them dead plant matter and the snails would be able to just break it down, allowing live the plants to absorb the nutrients. Has anyone else tried this or something similar?

Welcome to the forum

I haven't tried this but I do have Ramshorn snails and other aquatic snails in my Aquaponics system. Those that survive the Bluegills seem to die off before or during Winter but some make it through every year. Since it sounds like your system is inside temperature probably won't be a problem for you and I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work.

I doubt I'll get a response from the OP but just from what I've read I'm not sure it's all too great an idea. Snails will destroy the roots of plants and will need to be fed quite a bit to produce enough waste to grow anything in my opinion. Maybe you had better luck? I do like the idea though but maybe supplement with some goldfish or a betta.

that is pretty much the crux of it. same issue with things like crayfish/yabbies etc.
not really a feeding issue - they simply don't eat and cycle enough, even if you have a lot of them.

Fish work well because their growth rates are proportional to waste which are proportional to nutrients.
Goldfish as for most carp, are a 'dirty aquarium fish' so AP system filtering work very well with them.
Even typical small aquarium species don't really deliver a nutrient volume.
Food fish on other hand are ideal for AP because growth = waste, and both growth & waste are very desirable.


as a rule water snails are not very destructive. They tend to feed on algae and dead/decaying material.
There only real negative in an AP is that they tend to end up in pipes etc.

Thanks for the clarification! I didn't know they wouldn't eat the roots. I may look more heavily into them myself. Are the rams horns at all edible do you know? I've always wanted to try escargot.

I knew I was at least correct about the waste bit. I don't think there are too many things that can just compete with fish in this hobby. Just wish it was next year already so I could get some more fish so I'll actually be able to eat some!

to fish & crayfish/yabbies maybe. I have ramshorns in my AP but here they are quite small. They definitely travel the pipes and often see them washed into grow beds. Guess the eggs get moved around easily as well.

Normal escargot are land snails. I know some forms of common large garden snail can be prepared for eating (google what has to be done) and are OK for survival food.

here is couple for you from your neck of the planet http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-foo ... jztak.aspx
and http://www.grit.com/farm-and-garden/how ... 1zsch.aspx
Over in the UK even Gordon Ramsey has had a go https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ju7_ZORsZw
[I googled 'escargot from garden snails']

Yeah, fish foods good too. I read they were small right after I posted that but that they're prolific breeders. From the sound of it you have quite the knowledge of them, do they breed enough to provide quite a bit of food to fish (without the ones that get sucked through the pipes being included).?

not really. I don't really keep track to be honest. I have had had increases of Ramshorn in warm weather but the young ones have soft shells so they get eaten pretty easily. I have yabbies (type of crayfish) and goldfish.
I suspect both eat young ones.

A foraging fish (catfish, etc) would eat them in no time, so it would be hard to rely on them as a feed.

I also had some of the conical shell ones (not sure what type) appear once and was worried they would take over but they don't really seem to have increased noticeably.

I haven't seen any in my DWC but haven't checked in a while. I think the eggs are more likely to go through a system, so they will end up everywhere eventually. If you are OK with that then they are fine - guess you could stock in a sump tank or something. If you want to have them you probably need large pipe diameters (3/4"-1" plus) and not too many bends. I have timer F&D so guess they get into the pump feed when the pump is down.

Thanks for the info. Guess I could always grow a few as a supplemental food but I'm looking for a more productive way to feed my fish using almost all natural foods (a few pellets here and there couldn't hurt). I've already got a small mealworm farm going but nowhere near enough to feed about 25-50 fish (how much I plan on having next year). BSFL was originally an idea but I'm looking to cover all bases. Any thoughts?

It would come down to the nutrient value. Of which I have no idea.

Ramshorns certainly breed and do well in an aquarium when you control temperature.
But I doubt they would provide a sufficient food supply - more like a snack/treat.

if you burrow around the threads you will find references to home made pellets etc.
To get fish growth that is probably what you are stuck with.

you could try duckweed for some fish types. That grows well in a shallow grow bed of water.
It is great for fibre etc but it is low in protein - and you need protein for growth.

I tried duckweed a while back but it was delivered at a poor time (very hot weather and sat out for a while before I got home). So it struggled to survive. It probably could have come back but I just threw it in with my fish and it gobbled it up. I've heard it's high in protein once dried as the live plant is mostly water. Definitely planning on getting some next year.
Definitely stuck on fish growth as I haven't ordered any pellets but since I've only got two fish I just toss in some worms and other snacks here and there. So at this point I feel a small aquarium of rams horns couldn't hurt and would really benefit the fish. A treat is perfectly fine with me. All natural is better than any pellet in my opinion even if it's only every so often. And thanks for the reference. Will search through the forums for any thoughts on home made pellets. Sounds like it could be a good read.