Flatworm Crisis

[Greg61]

ok, so I knew I was having a flatworm issue in my tank, but I had no idea the extent of it. I got some new glasses and suddenly I can see everything and what I thought was mainly Coraline algae, turns about to be a massive flatworm infestation. I have treated the tank in the past with blue life flatworm treatment and had a big flatworm kill. But I also lost fish and everything in the tank just didn't seem right for several days afterward. So I was never willing to do a follow up treatment as often as recommended on all the flatworm posts here because I was afraid what it was doing to my fish and coral. Well now I know why it was bothering everything. The toxins from the huge number of flatworms was causing the problems, not the chemical. Anyway, I don't know what to do. I have a melanurus wrasse, a Christmas wrasse, a six line wrasse all seemingly doing nothing to the flatworms. I recently got 2 blue velvet nudibranchs, but they have disappeared in to the rock work so I have no idea what they are doing if anything or if they are still alive. I read about sapphire damsels eating flatworms, but have gone that way yet. These area a couple of pictures, sorry for the quality, but you can see just a little of what I am dealing with. Help! Am I going to have to take everything out? I understand about quarantine, and I have been quarantining everything I put in my tank, but obviously I dropped the ball somewhere. It honestly doesn't seem to be bothering anything in the tank, just mainly bothering me. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

I have used flatworm exit and does great job. Before you treat any thing. Siphon out as many as you can in about 3 to 5 days then follow directions on box and have at least 25% water change ready and have plenty of carbon ready this with take out toxins. It work's great just FOLLOW directions. I had no lose on nothing everything was great .

 

[ZoWhat]

melanurus wrasse would have that completely cleaned out eating them all in 3 days. Flatworms are like steak to melanarus wrasses

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

melanurus wrasse would have that completely cleaned out in 3 days

I have one and doesn't touch them that noticed . If he does I never seen him eat them.

 

[ZoWhat]

I have one and doesn't touch them that noticed . If he does I never seen him eat them.

Juvenile or Adult?

 

[fcmatt]

Fish sometimes work. Wrasses jump so have a cover.

Nudibrances disappear and got chopped by pumps. You need low flow. Expensive to boot.

I agree, use flatworm exit with preparation. Fresh water ready, ton of carbon in a reactor, remove fish if you can for 24 hours, siphon like crazy, etc.. it is that first treatment that releases all the toxins. Get past that and more treatments are easier.

You can beat this pest. It will take multiple treatments. Buy multiple bottles. Plan on doing it 4 times in a month.

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

Juvenile or Adult?

Juvi

 

[ZoWhat]

Juvi

Yeah it has to be an adult.

My adult ate 1000 flatworms in 72hrs

 

[Sumbub]

Definitely siphon as much as you can out of the tank before any treatment. Your photos basically shows a massive infestation. Put a filter sock at the end of a hose and run it into the sump to let the water drain there.


You need to have a follow up treatment 4-7 days after. And perhaps once more just to catch stragglers.

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

What ever you can see you probably have 5x that many. That's why take your time and siphon out as many as you can.

 

[SandJ]

Are these the red flatworms? If so I would caution you about syphoning them through a filter sock. I tried this (using a 5 gallon bucket and returning the water to the tank)...the water that came through the filter sock was orange. And the smell from rinsing out the filter sock was horrendous.

I instead used a small diameter rigid airline with flexible airline attached so I removed less water. You can heat up the end of the rigid airline and make the end slightly larger and the wall of it thinner/sharper so it is easier to scrape them from the tank. Also helps to cut the end at an angle.

 

[jsvand5]

Definitely a good idea to siphon into a filter sock. I’d spend a couple hours getting everything you can see. Then siphon again as you see them dying.

 

[Sumbub]

I actually just threw the sock away when I did it. I didn’t want to clean their dying bodies out. Nasty AF. Lol

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

I actually just threw the sock away when I did it. I didn’t want to clean their dying bodies out. Nasty AF. Lol

I just rinse it out with garden hose then soak in bleach water.

 

[Greg61]

I've got a melanurus wrasse, never seen him eat the first worm. He is an adult. Sounds like I will need to work on vacuuming them out and then using flatworm exit. I have a big canister filter from a freshwater build that I never used, I bet I could load that up with carbon and have it filtering soon after I put the medication in and help with the toxin. I think that I would just throw the filter sock or mesh bag away. I guess I could get a brush or something to knock the worms off the rock before I siphon them out. Any suggestions to get them off the rocks and siphon them out other than a brush. Thanks for all of y'alls great advice, Keep it coming.

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

When you treat the tank blow off with turkey baster or Small power head

 

[Greg61]

When you treat the tank blow off with turkey baster or Small power head

Didn't think of the powerhead, Great idea.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Lunare or melanurus wrasse adult

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

I've got a melanurus wrasse, never seen him eat the first worm. He is an adult. Sounds like I will need to work on vacuuming them out and then using flatworm exit. I have a big canister filter from a freshwater build that I never used, I bet I could load that up with carbon and have it filtering soon after I put the medication in and help with the toxin. I think that I would just throw the filter sock or mesh bag away. I guess I could get a brush or something to knock the worms off the rock before I siphon them out. Any suggestions to get them off the rocks and siphon them out other than a brush. Thanks for all of y'alls great advice, Keep it coming.

I takes a lot of carbon according to the directions
Just have new fresh carbon on hand and fresh 25% water change ready. And don't be in hurry take your time siphoning before hand.

 

[fcmatt]

I agree with sucking them out over a week period. When you do it once... 24 hours later unseen ones populate the same areas.

Also the flatworm exit works fast. You run that carbon like 15 minutes after dosing the tank. Dont wait an hour thinking you will let it do its magic... cause it already did in the first 5 to 15 minutes.