Good or Bad Idea?

[Baccus]

So I was at the pet shop earlier (went in for one thing walked out with 4 including a pair of ruddy finches LOL), but while checking through their aquatic pet supplies I saw Turtle Health Blocks and it got me wondering if these would be good for nerite snails and nonharmful to shrimp. Generally I don't have any moulting issues in my shrimp but I do notice that my nerites and notopalas tend to suffer in the shell department over time A shame the MTS don't suffer the same fate but apparently they are the cockroaches of the aquatic world and would survive a nuclear holocaust. The turtle blocks are made by Blue Planet/ Serenity Aquatics (made in Australia too), and boasts that it "releases calcium with vitamin D and other minerals slowly into the water. The minerals are ideal for preventing shell softening". They also state that it "has pH buffering ingredients to prevent acid and neutralise ammonia". I am also wondering would these blocks be a safe idea for certain aquatic plants that  are calcium or iron hungry?

I know some people add ground up cuttlefish shell to their tanks for shrimp, which I have always been dubious about.

I also got to thinking what about the iodine or charcoal calcium blocks people give birds would they also be good for shrimp and snails or harmful?

I already have mineral balls in my tanks and aside from when they first went into the tanks and the shrimp and snails where all over them now the shrimp and snails tend to ignore the mineral blocks.

 

[jayc]

They can be useful but it depends on what you are using them for?

To remedy a low pH? - I use crushed coral or shells for that, much cheaper.

To add calcium? - it is uncontrolled, and there are better ways of adding calcium.

As food? - shrimps won't eat it.

 

If your snail's shells are getting brittle, than try a handful of shell grit or crushed coral pieces in the tank. It will maintain a higher pH and dissolve slowly to release calcium.

[Zoidburg]

I think it might help to understand what water parameters you already have and what substrate.

As far as the bird mineral blocks go? They should, in theory, be okay, however I'd be concerned about the metal that's in many of them. The metal that's meant to be tied to the bird cages. Wouldn't personally use it, because if extra calcium was required, I'd just add it from a remineralizer or get some form of calcium in another form to add to the tank.

[sdlTBfanUK]

If these are the blocks that look like chalk blocks, I bought some off ebay once (many years ago) which they recommended for shrimp/turtle shells. I put them in with cherry shrimp and although it didn't kill any that I saw, the TDS rapidly increased so I stopped using them immediately and discarded them!