polyclad flatworm problem

[billrob71]

Hey all

I have a bad problem with polyclad flatworms, I'm constantly loosing snails and lost all of my clams due to these things. I was told years ago that to have one or two of these was usually about the most a normal tank would see of them. I'm finding more and more of these. I'd like to get more clams but won't even consider them until I'm sure these things are gone. Just tonight I pulled a brain coral up and there was 2 under the coral and eggs attached so I know there breeding in the the tank. The rock I've had for more then 10 years and 2 years ago I got a bigger tank pulled all the rocks out thought I had dipped them enough in a super high PH solution and then to a high dose of revive. Now 2 years later and there going crazy.

Right now just about all the sps is out of the tank but in another tank linked to the main system. All of my fish,softies and LPS are in the main tank, short of pulling all the rock out and drying it and starting over , any ideas on what I can use to get rid of these?

The tank is a 300 so there's a lot of rock.

Also if I do pull the rock out is there a dip that will kill these but not the rock, I dipped the brain in coralRX tonight and that made short work of the adult worms but sure didn't kill the eggs, had to brush them off.

 

[pagojoe]

If it's that bad, you're likely going to have to either try to starve them by having no snails or clams for like six months (easier said than done, since you probably have a lot of snails in the tank that you don't see), or start a new tank if you want to keep clams. It's rare to have a lot of large polyclads in a tank, but I've heard of a couple of people that kept finding them. Good luck,



Don

 

[dread240]

I found one that was on a rock I got from another reefer with a big table acro. Nuked it before it ever became a problem, but if you're having them in proportions like that I can't help but think of starting over... bad deal man

 

[billrob71]

If it's that bad, you're likely going to have to either try to starve them by having no snails or clams for like six months (easier said than done, since you probably have a lot of snails in the tank that you don't see), or start a new tank if you want to keep clams. It's rare to have a lot of large polyclads in a tank, but I've heard of a couple of people that kept finding them. Good luck,



Don

Thanks yeah there's a lot of snails but mainly big turbos and stometella snails. If there's nothing I can really do to get them out probably gonna take all the rock out and dip it

Think I read prazipro kills them but will that kill the bacteria in the rock also ? I know the coral RX kills them but to get enough made up to dip all the rocks and the time frame is gonna be long.

 

[spieszak]

Thanks yeah there's a lot of snails but mainly big turbos and stometella snails. If there's nothing I can really do to get them out probably gonna take all the rock out and dip it

Think I read prazipro kills them but will that kill the bacteria in the rock also ? I know the coral RX kills them but to get enough made up to dip all the rocks and the time frame is gonna be long.

prazipro is reef safe

Have you considered flat worm exit? I don't know if if will take out the ones you have as it notes less than so many millimeters, but it is generally reef safe and works on small ones. If it were me, I'd likely give it a shot before tearing down, just on the chance that it might just happen to kill the ones you have, even though it doesn't claim it will.

 

[billrob71]

prazipro is reef safe

Have you considered flat worm exit? I don't know if if will take out the ones you have as it notes less than so many millimeters, but it is generally reef safe and works on small ones. If it were me, I'd likely give it a shot before tearing down, just on the chance that it might just happen to kill the ones you have, even though it doesn't claim it will.

Sadly flat worm exit will not kill them, I've experimented with one in a small cup and 4 times the recommended amount and still didnt touch it. Think I heard there a type of fluke not so much a worm similar to acro eating flat worms, Flat worm exit won't touch those either.

I've used prazipro as a dip but can it be added to the tank directly?

 

[dread240]

I've used prazi pro in a reef tank before. Takes out featherdusters and stuff if I remember correctly but if it kills your polyclads it's worth it

 

[billrob71]

I've used prazi pro in a reef tank before. Takes out featherdusters and stuff if I remember correctly but if it kills your polyclads it's worth it

I have more feather dusters then I could possibly count but they started to grow on there own.

Is the skimmer to stay on or shut all off? Will it mess with the snails or anything else?