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04/12/2007, 09:44 AM
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#1 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: New York
Posts: 131
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Phosphates spawn flatworms?
I had a flatworm problem about a month and a half ago. This was mainly due to a lack of water changes and topping off. I started doing weekly water changes(about 1/3rd of the water), topping off daily and I took out as many worms as i could with a syringe. After a few weeks they pretty much just went away. I stopped syringing them out and they stayed away. I just recently started noticing A LOT of them again.
I think they are killing off one of my zoanthid colonies and I really wanted to avoid using a flatworm treatment. Someone mentioned that mineral buildup will promote their growth. According to my LFS my membrane is letting out .4 ppm of phosphate, and I am starting to notice red and green hair algae which I haven't seen in about 9 months. Saves my zoos!!! |
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04/12/2007, 09:49 AM
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#2 |
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Premium Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Ft. Lauderdale
Posts: 10,598
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The flatworms get all of their energy from symbiotic algae that live in their tissues. The same nutrients that allow algae to do well will allow the worms to do well since algae is what's feeding them.
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Some say the sun rises in the East. Some say it rises in the West. The truth must be somewhere in the middle. Current Tank Info: tore them down to move and haven't had the time or money to set them back up |
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04/12/2007, 09:59 AM
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#3 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: New York
Posts: 131
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So essentially, the phosphates promote flatworm growth in some way? As soon as I started doing regular water changes with the then untainted RO water, they started clearing up significantly.
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"I don't mean to sound bitter, cold, or cruel, but I am, so that's how it comes out." Current Tank Info: Little bit of everything |
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