Flatworms?????

spanglish · #1 09/01/2007, 06:04 PM

I have discovered what I fear are flatworms

Pics to follow;;lll................

Little reddish discs covering various corals looking
like something Dr. Bombay might treat on bewitched

HELP!

spanglish · #2 09/01/2007, 06:16 PM

wrott · #3 09/01/2007, 06:23 PM

I wish Dr. Bombay could cure our flatworm problems, but I think Maurice could do a better job.??
I have FWs in my fuge, but the flow is too high for them to survive in the main tank. I see you have an 8 line Wasse, does it not eat any FWs?
I want to get a 6 line for my friends tank that's currently overloaded w/ FWs---I don't know if it will help, but I've seen some smaller fish devour FWs---A Domino damsel did it once--bad choice of fish though..

wrott · #4 09/01/2007, 06:26 PM

yeah, those look like flatworms. You should be able to siphon out quite a few--then use flatworm exit ??? I never have used it, so I don't want to steer you wrong.

spanglish · #5 09/01/2007, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by wrott
yeah, those look like flatworms. You should be able to siphon out quite a few--then use flatworm exit ??? I never have used it, so I don't want to steer you wrong.

It just seems like an awful lot of really bad threads
start out " I used flatworm exit...."

What will they do to my mushrooms, etc.????

RicGio · #6 09/01/2007, 08:16 PM

I used flatworm exit a year ago. It worked great, although I did lose a fish or two (my mandarin that was eating flake food!

)
. I think that was due to not siphoning out as many as I could have before I added the Flatworm exit.

spanglish · #7 09/01/2007, 11:15 PM

What if I don't treat??

spanglish · #8 09/01/2007, 11:17 PM

Where do they come from??
It's been months since I've added anything to my tank

Dejavu · #9 09/02/2007, 05:50 AM

If you use FE make sure you get them all the first time. If not they will build an immunity to it. I would dose it little higher then recommanded. good luck!

lvpd186 · #10 09/02/2007, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by spanglish
What if I don't treat??

There is a possibility that they will continue to multiply and once their population gets too big you could have a mass die off which could wipe out your tank. I think if you read some of the threads that talk about flat worm exit success stories you will notice that the key is to siphon out any and all visible FWs. I believe Melvee, when he talked about this on his site, used a filter bag attached to a hose. That way you can filter the FWs out with out doing a huge water change. Good luck.

vessxpress1 · #11 09/02/2007, 09:42 AM

I recently found that I have them as well. I don't have this type in the photo but mine are very small, and white with a forked tail and move pretty fast. They're pretty hard to see on the rock.

My question is, how do you siphon them off jagged rocks and how would you ever know how many you actually have? I want to use FWE but I'm nervous that I may not get them all and end up killing off the tank. I really don't want to do that. They haven't hurt anything but they are multiplying. If they have a huge die off I can't control, I'm screwed anyway I guess.

Bret61081 · #12 09/02/2007, 10:01 AM

I have a friend who has them in his 500g...they have pretty much taken over! He has tried spotted mandrines with no luck and he is scared to use flat worm exit b/c the last time he tried it it killed a 300$ wrasse along with a few other fish. They are just everywhere! Has anyone else found anything that will eat them? He jsut got some of the velvet nubis hoping they make a different but I dont think they will

lvpd186 · #13 09/02/2007, 10:08 AM

If you use a smaller airline type hose the suction it creates should get them off the rocks. Basically its going to take some time for you to catch up with them, but by syphoning them off this way, and with water changes, you should make some headway. Also you might want to ID them first anyway, they might be a harmless type.

spanglish · #14 09/02/2007, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by lvpd186
If you use a smaller airline type hose the suction it creates should get them off the rocks. Basically its going to take some time for you to catch up with them, but by syphoning them off this way, and with water changes, you should make some headway. Also you might want to ID them first anyway, they might be a harmless type.

Excellent point!
I'm looking for anyone who can ID!

michaeldaly · #15 09/02/2007, 10:38 AM

I had an infestation of those about a year ago but for some reason I used a liquid phosphate remover in my tank and it got rid of all the flatwormd.

Misled · #16 09/02/2007, 11:49 AM

Just because it wasn't mentioned, it's not the FE that causes the problum, but the toxins released by the flatworms when they die. That is the reason you want to siphon out as many as possible before using it. Spend a week siphoning out as many as you can a few times a day before using FE and be ready for a water change after. Also have carbon on hand to help remove FE after your water change.

Bret61081 · #17 09/02/2007, 10:36 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by michaeldaly
I had an infestation of those about a year ago but for some reason I used a liquid phosphate remover in my tank and it got rid of all the flatwormd.

any particular type?

melev · #18 09/02/2007, 10:43 PM

That is my Flatworm Vacuum.

The ones in the first picture are not the kind that Flatworm eXit targets. FE is designed to kill Red Planaria.

If you find some that are the same shape as Planaria but are beige or cream colored, those are considered benign and you don't have to worry about them. The rust colored ones need to be removed though.

I'd ask Habib in the Salifert forum if it would work with the flatworms pictured in the first post and see what he thinks.

aquarius77 · #19 09/03/2007, 02:28 AM

I have never seen them on coral like that... Very interesting pictures.

So FWE is specific to the red ones?

OmarD · #20 09/03/2007, 10:12 AM

Get a sixline...they are supposed to gobble them right up. Would do a good cleaning out of them first.