A bit of a flat worm infestation?

keihi20 · 05/24/2012, 09:36 PM

So I saw these in my tank a few weeks ago and I didn't think anything of it, until now. do I need a 6 line?

wrimda · 05/24/2012, 09:44 PM

We bought a Leopard and a Choris wrasse and they got rid of our problem.

RickReef28 · 05/25/2012, 09:05 AM

i have the same issue. I have been manually siphoning them out with a makeshift siphon i made that is really thin and can get the little MFers. I am in the same boat. i syphon them out and 2 weeks later they are back. I am about to pick up a Blue Velvet Nudibranch. that is all they eat. a bit of a moral dellema as mostly they eat the faltworms then starve. My will be a hero and i will honor him..lol i was also thinking of a six line but there is no for sure thing with them

bid2ask · 05/25/2012, 09:08 AM

Salifert Flatworm exit..works great! Follow instructions and your flatworms dont stand a chance.

James77 · 05/25/2012, 09:45 AM

Yick, I've had them worse though.

Siphon them out, remove rocks and dunk them in water....they wash off easily. Get them under control that way and then try one of the natural predators above.

FWE is crap IME. Yes, it will kill off every flatworm in your tank. But since doing so I have seen no pods nor any of the many asterina stars I would get on my glass.

aleonn · 05/25/2012, 11:19 AM

Besides manual siphoning and FWE, a yellow coris or melanarus wrasse would help with pest control.

Rjukan · 05/25/2012, 12:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RickReef28

i have the same issue. I have been manually siphoning them out with a makeshift siphon i made that is really thin and can get the little MFers. I am in the same boat. i syphon them out and 2 weeks later they are back. I am about to pick up a Blue Velvet Nudibranch. that is all they eat. a bit of a moral dellema as mostly they eat the faltworms then starve. My will be a hero and i will honor him..lol i was also thinking of a six line but there is no for sure thing with them

Don't do it. The nudi will not get them all, and will starve or just disappear. I know this from first hand experience. Go the flatworm exit route, its your best chance at total eradication.

keihi20 · 05/28/2012, 12:09 AM

Well the drama continues, I went to the LFS and picked up a surprisingly cheap 6 line. Got him in the tank and left for a while. Came back when the lights were off and he was no where in sight. I looked high and low, even turned the lights back on. They failed to mention that he can fit in the smallest rock crevices. Every night its like a where's waldo of the 6 line. Pretty entertaining but, it gave me a scare the first night when I couldn't find him. Here is a picture of his craftiness. If he can take care of my problem he is cool as in my book. I'll let you know how it goes.

pledosophy · 05/28/2012, 12:21 AM

IME I had a huge infestation, went through 3 six lines, they all died in the first week. I did a series of water changes, freakin lot of work.

Then I got smart. I started a syphon but put the end of the hose in my filter sock. I vacuumed them all up for a long while, and they all went into the filter sock. Which I then promptly washed. Picked up a coris wrasse and have not seen a FW since.

JME

TinyBarrier · 05/28/2012, 12:23 AM

It's common for many fish species to hide in the rockwork or corals at night.

PietschBR · 05/28/2012, 07:18 AM

IME flatworm exit is a good way to get rid of these creatures. I have a sixline in my tank for more than a year and he never touched any flatworm. Just follow the instructions very carefully and you'll be fine, also keep in mind that you maybe need to dose it more than once. In my case i needed 3 treatments.

PietschBR · 05/28/2012, 07:20 AM

Oh and my sixline also hides in the rockwork, several times I thought he was dead but he was just asleep. Lol.

alexrex20 · 05/28/2012, 08:06 AM

most wrasses are diurnal which means they're active by day and sleep at night. some will bury in the sand some will hide in the rocks. regardless, the night time is probably the worst time to try and find your wrasse lol.

idk if i ever had any flatworms in my tank, but i did have plenty of bristleworms and my "reef-safe" mystery wrasse got 'em all, as well as several hundred peppermint shrimp, several dozen porcelain crabs, and even an emerald crab and baby rock and blue crabs (all locally caught except the emerald). surprisingly, it left my coral banded shrimp alone, and of course never messed with the cleaner.

i've seen lots of people try yellow coris or 6-line wrasses to eradicate their worm problems, but IME it seems people have more luck with other types of wrasses. it's hit-and-miss really. if you can't commit to a fish long term, even after it's done its cleanup duty, then you should not add it to your tank.

05/25/2012, 09:45 AM	#5
James77 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 8,158	Yick, I've had them worse though. Siphon them out, remove rocks and dunk them in water....they wash off easily. Get them under control that way and then try one of the natural predators above. FWE is crap IME. Yes, it will kill off every flatworm in your tank. But since doing so I have seen no pods nor any of the many asterina stars I would get on my glass. __________________ Jim Current Tank Info: 120g Mixed Reef and 75g Freshwater

05/28/2012, 12:21 AM	#9
pledosophy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Beaverton Posts: 5,290	IME I had a huge infestation, went through 3 six lines, they all died in the first week. I did a series of water changes, freakin lot of work. Then I got smart. I started a syphon but put the end of the hose in my filter sock. I vacuumed them all up for a long while, and they all went into the filter sock. Which I then promptly washed. Picked up a coris wrasse and have not seen a FW since. JME __________________ 120g mixed reef 90g QT

05/28/2012, 12:23 AM	#10
TinyBarrier Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 40	It's common for many fish species to hide in the rockwork or corals at night. __________________ 43 gallon skimmerless setup with Eheim 1250 canister filter (running carbon, GFO, Purigen) and two Tunze 6105 on a Tunze 7096 controller, lit by 4x24W T5, topped of by Tunze Osmolator.

05/28/2012, 07:18 AM	#11
PietschBR Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 227	IME flatworm exit is a good way to get rid of these creatures. I have a sixline in my tank for more than a year and he never touched any flatworm. Just follow the instructions very carefully and you'll be fine, also keep in mind that you maybe need to dose it more than once. In my case i needed 3 treatments. __________________ 120G mixed reef setup with 30g sump. 300w Razor LED light. 2x Vortech MP40W. Reef Octopus SSS3000 skimmer. Korallin C1502 Ca reactor.

05/28/2012, 07:20 AM	#12
PietschBR Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 227	Oh and my sixline also hides in the rockwork, several times I thought he was dead but he was just asleep. Lol. __________________ 120G mixed reef setup with 30g sump. 300w Razor LED light. 2x Vortech MP40W. Reef Octopus SSS3000 skimmer. Korallin C1502 Ca reactor.

05/24/2012, 09:44 PM	#2
wrimda Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Tehachapi CA Posts: 374	We bought a Leopard and a Choris wrasse and they got rid of our problem.

05/25/2012, 09:05 AM	#3
RickReef28 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Palatine, IL Posts: 147	i have the same issue. I have been manually siphoning them out with a makeshift siphon i made that is really thin and can get the little MFers. I am in the same boat. i syphon them out and 2 weeks later they are back. I am about to pick up a Blue Velvet Nudibranch. that is all they eat. a bit of a moral dellema as mostly they eat the faltworms then starve. My will be a hero and i will honor him..lol i was also thinking of a six line but there is no for sure thing with them

05/25/2012, 09:08 AM	#4
bid2ask Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Port Jefferson NY Posts: 171	Salifert Flatworm exit..works great! Follow instructions and your flatworms dont stand a chance.

05/25/2012, 11:19 AM	#6
aleonn Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 4,041	Besides manual siphoning and FWE, a yellow coris or melanarus wrasse would help with pest control.

05/28/2012, 08:06 AM	#13
alexrex20 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Spring TX Posts: 145	most wrasses are diurnal which means they're active by day and sleep at night. some will bury in the sand some will hide in the rocks. regardless, the night time is probably the worst time to try and find your wrasse lol. idk if i ever had any flatworms in my tank, but i did have plenty of bristleworms and my "reef-safe" mystery wrasse got 'em all, as well as several hundred peppermint shrimp, several dozen porcelain crabs, and even an emerald crab and baby rock and blue crabs (all locally caught except the emerald). surprisingly, it left my coral banded shrimp alone, and of course never messed with the cleaner. i've seen lots of people try yellow coris or 6-line wrasses to eradicate their worm problems, but IME it seems people have more luck with other types of wrasses. it's hit-and-miss really. if you can't commit to a fish long term, even after it's done its cleanup duty, then you should not add it to your tank.