Think I got Flatworms

B

Bmgrocks

New member
Ok, well, after leaving my tank light out for two days, I turn it on today, and have noticed what look to be a couple flatworms, the common rust brown ones. I'm aware that if left unchecked, that can reach extraordinary proportions, but right now, there is less than 30...the beginning of the plague if left unchecked.


The tank 12 Gallon aquapod 150w MH
Zoanthid Dominate
RBTA
Crocea Clam

Black Ocellaris
African Flameback Angelfish
Orchid Dottyback

2 emrald crabs
2 peppermint shrimp
3 red leg hermits
3 turbo snails


Please share your experience with flat worm exit. If you have had flatworms, if you know someone with flatworms, if you've seen a flatworm!!!!!

Do Flatworms pose a threat to my Clam, or zoanthids? Whats the best way to eliminate them? I'm a big fan of natural means of controling problems that may arrise in the aquarium, and hate using harsh chemicals. My bioload is already high, i will not be able long term to support a natural predator, ie. six line wrasse, or velvet naudibranch.
 
Salifert Flatworm exit works and it is reef and invertebrate safe. Though still your best bet is a Six-Lined Wrasse. People have also been able to mechanically remove them by performing small water changes and using airline tubing to suck them up. (To for warn you, they smell really bad out of water.)

If you only have about 30 try mechanically removing them.
 
When I first saw flat worms in my tank 3 years ago I worried. I talkked to a fellow reefer and he said I could 1: Get flat worm exit or 2: Get 6 line wrasse and just let it do its job. He told me that at times the cure (flat worm exit) is worse then having the flat worms in the tank. While the 6 line has not gotten rid of all the flat worms they have never gotten out of hand and never have bothered any corals.

My 2 cents
Jim Mc
 
i had flatworms in my 34g and my 14g. I used the Flatworm Exit on both tanks. Stuff works great! dead flatworms floating around within minutes. My infestation wasn't too bad, so i just did a 30% water change on each tank and let the filtration do the rest. Ammonia never went up and all other levels were within safe ranges.

Now if you have hundreds/thousands of flatworms, i'd suggest siphoning off as many as you can before using flatworm exit as too many dead worms can/will cause spikes in your levels.

I have just consolidated everything into my 34g and the six line wrasse is #1 on my list to buy next week. IMO great fish to have regardless if you have flat worms or not. =)

Good Luck!
 
i had to forgot to mention the ONLY TIME i see these flatworms, is when I don't algae wipe the glass. Didn't wipe for like 4-5 days, and a green film is covering the glass.

Would that be the best time to use flatworm exit, when they leave the rockwork ect?
 
I had a bad infestation and I was able to get 2 nudis that each them and it was like magic. 3 weeks later the flats were gone and the nudis disappeared. I haven't seen one since and it's bee 6 months.
 
Ya, I forget what those nudi's are called but that is generally what they do. Once all flatworms are gone they just die off. I couldn't find any when I had my FW problem.
 
They don't sound like the dreaded red flatworms. I went crazy trying to suck them out for days on end, and they just kept coming back. I found that they came in a wave and eventually all died off and now haven't seen them for quite a while. Read my thread and experience here.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1035093

By the way, flatworm exit didn't phase them. I suctioned some into a cup and dosed them to hell and back with practically straight flatworm exit and they lived on.

I think the best suggestions I got were to do more water changes, and less feeding to keep nutrients down since that is the only way I explain how they eventually died in my tank.
 
If what you have are common flat worms then yes flatworm exit will work...but I have used it about 5 times and the flatworms keep coming back. I can see hundreds of flatworms dieing each time I dose but then they seem to come back. I think my problem is I let my water quality go and the nutrients keep feeding the few that remain. Now my fear is that the ones that are still around might build a tolerance. And I also have a six line that doesn't touch them. Now I'm trying to keep my water super clean, water change every 5 days, dose flatworm exit once again, and I just recently got an arrow crab because they are "supposed" to eat them. And the nudi I believe is the blue velvet nudi that eats the flat worms. To me flat worms are like herpes...they're not necessarily terrible for you but you don't want them and you don't want to tell someone you have them LOL
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13718190#post13718190 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by saleenpwr88
To me flat worms are like herpes...they're not necessarily terrible for you but you don't want them and you don't want to tell someone you have them LOL
Click to expand...
:lol:
 
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