Live BlackWorms: Best Fish and LPS Food Ever?
- Thread starter Ycore
- Start date
I ordered a pound of worms a few weeks ago. I put them into a 20long filled half way with water and an airstone. I have a 55 planted tank so I when I change the water in it I use that water for the worm culture. I throw 20 pellets or so in, sometimes flake food, every couple of days. The water temp is 65-67, cool basement and no heater in the tank.
I am not sure about the sustainability of this culture just yet, time will tell. I feed 70-80 worms a day, I really can not determine if the number of worms in the tank have decreased or not, but there were a lot of worms in a pound. I'll need to post back later on whether I have something sustainable or not.
My fish, most of them are really happy to see the tube put into the water. ( I use a rigid airline to feed the worms) They were not like that initially, and there are a few that still will not eat them, but I think that is only because they have not tried them. It seems that the fish are a little put off by the worms initially, but if they can work up the courage to take a bite they are hooked, even my mandarins.
I have been feeding worms once a day, every day.
I am not sure about the sustainability of this culture just yet, time will tell. I feed 70-80 worms a day, I really can not determine if the number of worms in the tank have decreased or not, but there were a lot of worms in a pound. I'll need to post back later on whether I have something sustainable or not.
My fish, most of them are really happy to see the tube put into the water. ( I use a rigid airline to feed the worms) They were not like that initially, and there are a few that still will not eat them, but I think that is only because they have not tried them. It seems that the fish are a little put off by the worms initially, but if they can work up the courage to take a bite they are hooked, even my mandarins.
I have been feeding worms once a day, every day.
Oh, I forgot to tell you. LPS enjoy them (if you keep corals).
DeathWish302
Clown Hoarder
My fireworms love them....funny sort of in a sadistic, caniballistic way...:fun2:
I have not picked any dead worms out. I am not saying that there are not any, I just have not picked them out. Not sure if that is the right answer or not, but I have had them for over a month and the colony is doing fine. I do about 75% water change once a week.
I can tell now that I am depleting my pound of worms. They will last me a few more weeks though.
I can tell now that I am depleting my pound of worms. They will last me a few more weeks though.
jlinzmaier
Premium Member
When kept in a fridge you must rinse them daily to keep them healthy and keep ammonia levels down. As you rinse the worms each day, the dead ones will float to the top and are easily poured off with the rinse water. The vibrant healthy worms will quickly squirm back together and won't easily be washed out when you dump out the rinse water.
If kept in a keeper like what Paul B has created, then you should rarely see dead worms as long as the keeper is properly maintained.
Jeremy
Tracey2
New member
When I pick mine up from the lfs, 25% of them are dead, I bring them home and try and rinse them thru a strainer to remove them but that just seems to mix them in more and I loose good ones down the drain, also alot of waste using a turkey baster. When I pu they are in a bag on and ice pack.
I used to keep them in a fridge but after reading about Paul's worm keeper I tried to design my own, I have a kitty litter box with a lid and a pump in the bottom that feeds water up to a small tuperware dish on a cup in the box, so the worms have constant flow but I have never been able to keep this clean without daily water changes, I can't achieve a cycle.
I used to keep them in a fridge but after reading about Paul's worm keeper I tried to design my own, I have a kitty litter box with a lid and a pump in the bottom that feeds water up to a small tuperware dish on a cup in the box, so the worms have constant flow but I have never been able to keep this clean without daily water changes, I can't achieve a cycle.
jlinzmaier
Premium Member
I can't think of any improvement over Paul's design. You should give it a try. All it takes is a short piece of platic rain gutter (with the ends glued on) a few buckets (or tupperware containers) and an aqualifter pump. Quite simple and cheap.
I was able to keep worms healthy for a long time feeding them pieces of paper bag and cardboard and a simple weekly water change. My goal was to get them to reproduce but they don't reproduce fast enough for the amount that I feed to my tank (I'd need a 25 foot rain gutter and 12 pounds of worms to get them to reproduce enough to keep up with how much I feed - LOL!!). For me rinsing them daily and keeping them in the fridge is more convenient.
Jeremy
Paul B
Premium Member
The thing needs a couple of weeks to cycle with out cleaning. Never clean the thing but you can change the water. I also have some plastic egg crate in the tank to provide extra surface area. I never find a dead worm and they seem to live forever.
Now as an improvement I added a DIY chiller that keeps it at about 56 degrees. This will help in the summer and I will be able to add a lot of worms at one time so I don't have to buy them. If I get ambitious (and that does not look like it will happen until after boating season) I will build a much larger worm keeper so I can breed them and grow them to adults. They breed now but I don't have enough to let them mature long enough.
Now as an improvement I added a DIY chiller that keeps it at about 56 degrees. This will help in the summer and I will be able to add a lot of worms at one time so I don't have to buy them. If I get ambitious (and that does not look like it will happen until after boating season) I will build a much larger worm keeper so I can breed them and grow them to adults. They breed now but I don't have enough to let them mature long enough.
I seeded mine with bacteria when I started. Does fine now. Partial water changes once a week.
jlinzmaier
Premium Member
Once cycled, it seems like a great idea to me. That's what I plan to do with mine when I get around to it. I guess as long as your RO waste line isn't putting out water with an extremely high TDS that could contain lots of trace elements which could be harmful.
Jeremy
