Tiny tube structures all over my tank?

[LesPoissons]

Hi guys,
Im suddenly seeing a TON of these little tube structures pop up all over my tank. Any thoughts?
they look like a spaghetti worm tube but they are only like 1/4” and brownish instead of white. Also I never see a duster type head come out.

 

[brandon429]

lil ’verms


vermitid snails is my call, mine have brown tubes too

 

[Ludders]

vermetid snails, absolute pains in the A

 

[fishface NJ]

Yep vermetid

 

[JGT]

Hi guys,
Im suddenly seeing a TON of these little tube structures pop up all over my tank. Any thoughts?
they look like a spaghetti worm tube but they are only like 1/4” and brownish instead of white. Also I never see a duster type head come out.

Vermetid. Break out your needle nose pliers and go hunting.

 

[Paul B]

They are fine, I got thousands of them for decades.

 

[bsr2430]

While very true these are Vermetid’s won’t hurt anything, they’re just ugly to look at!

 

[brandon429]

I wish I could get mine out but I can’t. So they get to stay, and honestly the scum nets only come out after a big water change, theyre not all that bad just poky, ugly, scummy when netting. They don’t seem to replicate forever, not like gha


something limits mine where they stay under control

 

[brandon429]

People who start reefs with white rock in hopes of controlling bad hitchhikers are really just controlling mantis shrimps lol.


all other members of a reef, these verms included, ride in on frags, shells and water drops as juveniles. The way to deal with bad hitchhikers is to be specific to them, and nobody has really found a cure for these guys. Removed, they’ll still come back in the numbers the tank would support for most reefers.

 

[bsr2430]

I wish I could get mine out but I can’t. So they get to stay, and honestly the scum nets only come out after a big water change, theyre not all that bad just poky, ugly, scummy when netting. They don’t seem to replicate forever, not like gha


something limits mine where they stay under control

So everyone talks about the Bumblebee snails eating them. It’s a toss up really?

I decided to try this, I bought six of Bumblebee snails. Before I either failed or passed, I took out reef tiles and a few small coral with Vermetid snails on them. I put them all in a small plastic cup that might hold four or five cups of water.
Then I put the snails in there, I wanted to introduce them to Vermetid for being the only food source. I left them in there for many many hours because the coral I placed in there you really can’t hurt.
I don’t know if it worked but I wanted to give it my all... we’ll see in a few weeks.

 

[Ludders]

I think they thrive on high nutrients. My friend gave me mine free of charge along with a branching hammer coral. Since adding a coral beauty to my reef there are very few visible, not sure if he pecks at them or just a coincidence. They certainly don't bother me anymore.

 

[brandon429]

certainly do try, if post patterns report bumblebee snails as controllers then they’re a great hedge to have


as with any matched grazer, astrea snails and gha tanks for example, some work some don’t. I had bumblebees once just because I liked them, didn’t know were vermitid grazers but they never grazed mine

verms have been in my reef since 2006

 

[LesPoissons]

ARGH. Thank you for the help. Im getting conflicting reviews of these being a massive pest to a tank to the point where people give up the hobby and no big deal/not dangerous?
Anything eat them?
Its a 31" tall 220gal 6 foot tank with 200 +#s of live rock. Im afraid needle nose pliers are not gonna help me here- I can reach about 1/2 way down the tank max. :/
Ive heard decreased feeding the tank helps diminish numbers?

 

[bsr2430]

I think they thrive on high nutrients. My friend gave me mine free of charge along with a branching hammer coral. Since adding a coral beauty to my reef there are very few visible, not sure if he pecks at them or just a coincidence. They certainly don't bother me anymore.

You’re right, they do thrive on nutrients!
More you feed, more these filter feeders produce.

 

[brandon429]

When something in reefing offends me, I simply burn it with 35% peroxide and turn the page. Verms cannot be killed by it, therefore I’m out of ideas


luckily, they self balance in numbers and if they didn’t I’d be in a pickle.

 

[TankCandy]

I got these when I used to broadcast feed my tank with coral food/frozen food. I started target feeding my corals and fed the fish with the pumps and fans off ensuring most of the food was eatin. It did take a couple months to start seeing less of them. Also you can get a small hose and siphon out as many as you can. Use the edge of the hose to break them off the rocks.

 

[bsr2430]

ARGH. Thank you for the help. Im getting conflicting reviews of these being a massive pest to a tank to the point where people give up the hobby and no big deal/not dangerous?
Anything eat them?
Its a 31" tall 220gal 6 foot tank with 200 +#s of live rock. Im afraid needle nose pliers are not gonna help me here- I can reach about 1/2 way down the tank max. :/
Ive heard decreased feeding the tank helps diminish numbers?

Here’s the real question.
Can you afford to not feed your tank? Can you cut back feeding?

My tank has zero fish, so I can almost go 100% no feeding for some time to kill them back. My clean up crew is great too, so my numbers in theory should be starting to die off.
No Coral in my tank has been fead in over a month. All coral look good too.

 

[Conchman]

Found my encrusting corals make cool shapes over them...

 

[brandon429]

My corals would not permit a reduction in feed, that remains no matter what, mine has no fish either. Being more directed with feed is a nice idea, mine is dumped in total broadcast, likely helps the snails. The whole dance has arrived in fair balance though, mine aren’t taking over, or causing problems.


one nice way to beat them is to have coral flesh adhered to every surface, blocking them out, they tend to take over unestablished areas of rock or even edges of corals not covered in growing tissue


my war coral simply overgrows them, and has little tents of flesh where below the tip of a sealed off vermetid tube exists

 

[LesPoissons]

I have about 30 fish- 2 are anthias and which require frequent small feedings- and 20-30 coral. I never feed the coral- I assume the broadcast feeding does it. Im sure I can cut back some and switch to non-broadcast feeding and just keep an eye on the corals and get some more encrusting varieties (yay!) lol. Might get some bumble bee snails just for the heck of it anyway.
Thanks guys!!!