flat worm

[dasnugs]

i saw a couple of flat worms i want them out of my tank how do i do this

 

[Blown 346]

I use a plastic water testing Turkey baster that came with my test kit. I simply just suck them out and out. Otherwise if you have alot of them you may have to get a trap for them.

 

[ReefGeekster]

If all else fails try http://www.mops.ca/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/skus/me/MESA-FWE.asp?E+scstore
I've used it in my 150g, 90g and 20g all contained clams, corals soft and hard, snails, shrimp and of course fish. I double dosed the tanks and did a 40%-50% water change after 45mins. Everything came through in flying colors except Flatworms, haven't seen any since.
Now if I add rocks or corals they get a flatworm Exit dip before going in the tank(s).

 

[graveyardworm]

Do you have the red ones or the white ones?

 

[Steffish]

flatworm exit worked well for me. Do it early, I had to really siphon a lot out before I did it. Once you see a few, they just multiply like crazy.

 

[BlackOnyx]

buy a big hungry 6-line and they'll disappear. Careful with flatworm exit it can take out your whole take.

 

[Fast Fred]

Go with the FWE. Read and follow the directions to the letter, and you'll be fine.

 

[DaveAngie79]

are thier bristol worms those suckers do multiple like crazy

 

[graveyardworm]

buy a big hungry 6-line and they'll disappear. Careful with flatworm exit it can take out your whole take.

From what I've read the sixline is hit or miss and you may have trouble keeping it alive. Their natural prey is fairly specific and can be difficult to provide. So far the only probs with the FWE seem to be the toxins in the red flatworms which gets released when they die.

Do you have the red ones or the white ones?

Havent seen an answer to this one yet. The reason I ask is because the white ones are okay and may even be beneficial, and generally their populations decline all on their own. The red ones on the other hand contain zooxanthalae within their tissues and can persist even reaching plague proportions. The biggest threat is two-fold you could have a mass die off realeasing toxins which can wipe out an entire tank the other is they can cover corals and essentially block out the light.

I had the red ones, and used FWE. I siphoned out all that I could see first, and as they came out of the rocks dieing I continued to siphon them. It's been quite a while now probably 6 mos anyway, and I just set up a new system , and moved a few peices of rock from that tank into my new one almost immediatly I noticed flatworms on the rock which is funny cause I hadnt seen them in the other tank. I also hadnt added any new livestock in a long time since prior to using FWE. So I redosed and now apparently I have resistant cause it just doesnt kill them all anymore. I've been looking for other methods but so far the only viable one I've found is manual removal. Hopefully if you use the FWE you get them all on the first shot. Good Luck

 

[Jack04]

Well dont worry about the flat worms...

I say this because of my own experience, I have a 29 gal reef with a 30 gal fuge with Thousands upon thousands of flat worms in the fuge. however i do not have them in my reef cause of my hungry mandarin (who is fat and happy) and my hungry sixline wrasse.

Also no worries to keep the sixline alive, mine eats cyclopsease (sp) brine, krill, squid, and mysis.

but those two fish keep the extra critters to a minimum in the reef

oh and by the way i have the red ones and some white ones.

just my own experience and input

 

[Rogger Castells]

My Six line is super big and extra fat, he keeps my 210gal free of flat worms, and he eats everything else I feed that tank. The only drawback is that they are very territorial with other wrasses, specially if they have a long nose too.