Flatworm Exit Question

[kleach]

I dosed flatworm exit for the first time 2 days ago. I didn't have a lot of flatworms to begin with, but I wanted to get rid of them before their population potentially exploded. It got some, but not all.

First question: My tank has about 50-55 gallons of water total volume. Instructions say dose 4 drops per 5 gallons. That would be 40 to 44 drops. I put in 50 last time. If I bump it up to 60 this time, is that unsafe for everything in it?

Second Question: I did this 2 days ago and followed up with a 10 gallon water change (about 20%). is it too soon to do another round? I have 10 more gallons waiting to go. All I'd have to do is take out the carbon and dose, but would the chemicals stress any coral or livestock?

Please answer with your experience!

 

[Dmorty217]

The flat worm exit isn't what is toxic to the tank, the toxin is released by the dying worms and that's what will stress/kill your livestock and inverts. You would be ok to dose again if you have water made up for a water change.

 

[kleach]

Thanks! That's exactly the answer I was looking for! Going to do it tomorrow.

 

[ca1ore]

Yeah, take the warnings about flatworm toxins seriously. I cleverly managed to euthanize a pair if my fish last time I used it.

 

[Dmorty217]

Yeah, take the warnings about flatworm toxins seriously. I cleverly managed to euthanize a pair if my fish last time I used it.

Last time I used it my fish took a few days to recover... Thought I was going to lose a couple the first night after treatment

 

[ca1ore]

Last time I used it my fish took a few days to recover... Thought I was going to lose a couple the first night after treatment

I was very unhappy - felt like I made a real rookie mistake. Lost a peppermint basslet that I'd been nursing through QT and had just 'graduated' to the last stage. It's my invert QT tank, which infested with the red worms, has been useless as it's intended purpose so I've been using it as a last stage fish QT. Also lost a yellow watchman goby that had been in there for many months. Fortunately my black leopard wrasse was unaffected.

I think I need to get all the fish out of it, and then FWE bomb the tank three or four times.

 

[kleach]

I'm definitely concerned about the toxins, but I also dont have a terrible infestation as far as I can see. On all my glass surfaces I'm currently able to find 6 or so. When i put 50 drops I didn't have that many die off. Maybe 2 dozen if that.

BUT...I don't know what that means. i either have super worms who are resistant to it, or there arent that many in the tank. Thankfully everything in the tank was completely fine the first time but I'm still nervous to do it again.

 

[SecretiveFish]

My experience is that Flatworm Exit did not get rid of all of the flatworms in my tank (even after two treatments, the second treatment being 4x the recommended dosage) but did kill a lot of the micro fauna on the first treatment. My micro brittle stars did not appreciate the first treatment at all, and most died even though I grabbed them out and put them in other water as soon as I saw them struggling. My snails also made a dash for the surface but those did seem to recover.

In other words as another poster put it too, I had diminishing returns on using flatworm exit. Killed a lot at first, but a few survived that went on to produce more Flatworm Exit resistant flatworms.

I am not sure what the right answer is. 4 of 5 tanks have these pests now although I planning on tearing one down and the other is a quarantine that will be torn down at some point. In my big tank, when the sixline wrasse was in there he was doing a lovely job of eating these things. I want to move corals from the quarantine to the uninfested tank but am EXTREMELY nervous about how to kill off all the flatworms... I am going to try the Bayer insecticide dip suggestion I was given when the corals have settled down, but I am nervous still...

 

[small alien]

Yellow coris wrasse