What to do about flatworms

[artistreefer]

I know this has been talked about before but I need help with a flatworm problem and what to do to get rid of them

 

[Anonymous]

Saliferts Flatworm eXit 8)

 

[artistreefer]

Thanks Ill try it

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Ill try it

Follow ALL the instructions! I've heard horror stories about tanks crashing after using that stuff when people didn't follow the recommended procedures.

 

[Anonymous]

I thought a big issue with the flatworm exit was the huge spike in ammonia when a bunch die (in the case of heavily infested tanks)

 

[Anonymous]

If you have lots of flatworms, siphon as many as you can out over a week or two. Then, dose with FE, following all the directions including running carbon actively instead of passively (in a canister filter is best). Problems occur from the toxins in the dead flatworms poisoning your tank, so it is best to do everything you can to avoid that.

 

[Anonymous]

:lol: what Thales said!

 

[Anonymous]

I've had flatworms for years, and they come and go. I never see them as a nusience...

Peace,

Chip

 

[Unarce]

I did that, too. I siphoned out as many as I could over a two week period, using Melev's method: http://www.melevsreef.com/flatworms.html

I doubled the dosage of treatment, to ensure that I got them all. What some people find out, is that sometimes a single dose won't kill them all. The survivors than develop somewhat of an immunity to FE, making it even more difficult to get rid of.

Once you see them floating around after dosage, starting siphoning them out or better yet, comb the water column with a brine shrimp net. Than have your carbon and water change ready.

My ruby serpent star was the only one to show ill-effects. He became lethargic, and didn't eat for a week. If you have starfish, you may want to keep them in a separate container during treatment.

Good luck!

 

[artistreefer]

Thanks a lot you guys have been helpful

 

[Anonymous]

I can't believe you guys are recommending adding an unknown poison whose lasting effects are unclear to a reef tank. 8O

They wax and wane but never really become much of a problem IME. Chromis viridis will eat them like popcorn. I would try these before adding FE to your tank.

 

[Anonymous]

IMO your not tackling the problem, just a symptom. Typically, FW's are associated with higher nutrients, so I'd look at how to get them down, rather then adding a chemical fix.

 

[Unarce]

Well, I tried to live with them for a year (thanks to Mr. Wandell :lol: ), but once you have them, they never really go away. The numbers can die down to a point where you don't see them, but they're there. Even at super low nutrients, they'll just live off of photosynthesis.

I tried the natural method for a few months, as I was terrified with going the chemical route. The two C. varians and school of C. viridis helped out a bit, but never enough to get the ones hiding deep within crevices. The C. varians could only consume some much at a time, and the C. viridis will only eat them when they're in the water column.

I felt I had no other choice

 

[Anonymous]

Well, I tried to live with them for a year (thanks to Mr. Wandell :lol: ), but once you have them, they never really go away. The numbers can die down to a point where you don't see them, but they're there. Even at super low nutrients, they'll just live off of photosynthesis.

I tried the natural method for a few months, as I was terrified with going the chemical route. The two C. varians and school of C. viridis helped out a bit, but never enough to get the ones hiding deep within crevices. The C. varians could only consume some much at a time, and the C. viridis will only eat them when they're in the water column.

I felt I had no other choice

 

[Anonymous]

Well, I tried to live with them for a year (thanks to Mr. Wandell :lol: )

On that teardrop Maxima, huh? :lol:

I guess my experience was different. The two Chromis I had cleaned that entire tank in a matter of days. Off the rocks, glass, everything.

 

[Anonymous]

I can't believe you guys are recommending adding an unknown poison whose lasting effects are unclear to a reef tank. 8O

They wax and wane but never really become much of a problem IME. Chromis viridis will eat them like popcorn. I would try these before adding FE to your tank.

FW's can become a problem. I had them literally cover the entire sandbed and a bunch of corals. They made me hate my tank for a while. IME, there was no negative effects at all from the FE treatment. I did a ton of research on it, and let a whole lot of other people be test subjects before I decided to add FE. Now that it has been around a couple years, it seems pretty clear that it works and that there aren't lasting effects, and that any problems actually comes from the toxins in the dying fw's, not the FE itself.

I am leery of any biological control for anything in a reef tank. For every person that you can find that says 'x animal worked for me' you can find someone who says 'x animal didn't work for me'.

Matt, how do you feel about interceptor treatment for red bugs?

 

[Anonymous]

I am leery of any biological control for anything in a reef tank. For every person that you can find that says 'x animal worked for me' you can find someone who says 'x animal didn't work for me'.

Probably simplistic thinking but I often wonder if that has anything to do with there being different types of flatworms-something not apparent to the naked eye, i.e. maybe some types are tasty to "x animal" while other types of flatworms are not tasty. Maybe a developmental stage the flat worms go through. Never mind, carry on.


/coughs_self_conciously_and_backs_out_of_the_room

 

[Anonymous]

I can't believe you guys are recommending adding an unknown poison whose lasting effects are unclear to a reef tank. 8O

They wax and wane but never really become much of a problem IME. Chromis viridis will eat them like popcorn. I would try these before adding FE to your tank.

FW's can become a problem. I had them literally cover the entire sandbed and a bunch of corals. They made me hate my tank for a while. IME, there was no negative effects at all from the FE treatment. I did a ton of research on it, and let a whole lot of other people be test subjects before I decided to add FE. Now that it has been around a couple years, it seems pretty clear that it works and that there aren't lasting effects, and that any problems actually comes from the toxins in the dying fw's, not the FE itself.

I'm probably overly paranoid about the effects it might have on other organisms, particularly filter feeding ones. If I understand it right, you remove as many as you can and then nuke the remaining ones, and remove their bodies as well? Does anyone have any idea what kinds of toxins are released by the dying flatworms?

I am leery of any biological control for anything in a reef tank. For every person that you can find that says 'x animal worked for me' you can find someone who says 'x animal didn't work for me'.

Leery of any biological control for anything? What about an octopus to eradicate pistol shrimp Rich? Think that would work?

I take it case by case. Recommending someone go out and purchase a CBB to control Aiptasia for instance is, IMHO, a very bad idea. They're touchy fish that are hard to feed and they might not even eat the Aiptasia. Furthermore, they may decide to snack on other corals, polyps, and tubeworms, etc.

Chromis, OTOH are easy to keep and virtually entirely 'reef safe'. I believe they're worth a try or at least worth mentioning before taking (what I consider) a drastic and laborious step.

Matt, how do you feel about interceptor treatment for red bugs?

Had a feeling that would come up. I've had to use it before, and it didn't seem to affect much. Killed the bugs! That seems like a different scenario though because there aren't really any hardy fish or inverts that eat red bugs, at least not that I've heard of. There must be something that eats them in nature.

 

[Anonymous]

Not sure what happens to the bodies - I think they dissolve pretty quickly which is one of the reasons to run carbon and a water change after treatment.

An occy for a pistol shrimp would work, but then you are stuck with the occy - which is my major concern when it comes to biological controls. Many people don't actually want the animal they are buying for the control.

This is the first I have heard about chromis eating FW's. Maybe they do, but I have heard the same thing about mandarins, psycho mandarins, 6 lines, 8 lines, raccoon butterflies, yellow 'coris' wrasses, yellow tail damsels, assorted angel fish, and more. When a new one comes out, people rush to buy them and when the reports come back they don't seem to be positive. Either the control ignores the pest or pecks at them in a way that doesn't actually control the pest. A few people swear that they work, but there doesn't seem to be any consistency that would warrant recommending the control animal.

I had a feeling you had a feeling about interceptor coming up! :mrgreen:
There are tons of reports of fish eating red bugs. People swear by dragon pipes, pipes of all different kinds, and there are a couple of others that I can't recall right now. None of them seem to work for many people.

I think we have exactly the same amount of evidence that Interceptor and FE are safe long term, so I have no problem recommending both.

 

[Anonymous]

I dunno. I can see the problem you may have with recommending some of the fish you mentioned--dragon pipes, dragonets, etc. But these are Chromis Rich! People buy them in boatloads already, and they're easy to care for. It can't hurt to try it first.

http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t ... ms+chromis