where to get snails

[Dragynwing]

hello all!!! i'm new here...i maintain a 55 gallon saltwater reef tank...it's been a sad little tank...had a lot of nitrate problems in the past but i think we're over that now (2.5 years old, never overstocked or overfed!) but i digress. i would like to find some snails to keep my sand bed clean. any recommendations on a good place to buy online?? my sand bed is about 3 inches deep. current tank inhabitants are VERY well established. a Yellow Watchman goby (Trooper - the fish that will never die) and his friend Pistol Shrimp, a Yellow Banded Coral Shrimp (The Shrimp That Cannot Die) and a Serpent Starfish. i have lots of live rock and my coral right now consists of about 10 or so small/medium mushroom polyps. i've battled nitrate in the past and i'm pretty sure it's my near total lack of a clean up crew that's partially to blame...i'm on a budget so buying 25 snails at 4 bucks a pop is a little much for me...especially if i get hermet crabs as well and they eat the snails for their shells!! (had this happen a few times with Blue-Leg hermet crabs even though there were plenty of other shells)...well, sorry for the over long post! thanks in advance for the info!!
~Lisa and the Zoo

[dakar]

Welcome aboard!

I'll shoot you a PM with the name and email of a fella we just purchased a boatload of Nassarus snails from, dirt cheap <$.10 each with shipping. They're seem to be doing a great job for us so far. They tend to burrow into the sand but as soon as anything good to eat hits the water or the lights go down they pop right out and get to work. Should get you a good start on the clean up crew without beating your wallet.

Dave

[ewaitob]

Hey Dakar -- where did you get those snails from. I need some for the clowns tank.

Erik

[dakar]

YGM