Flatworms

[Nano10]

Ok so I need some advise,help.

I have a 55g reef with mostly zoo's and a few softies left. I have recently Begin losing some of my beautifull corals, which i have decided are because of flatworms as over the last few days everything has become covered with them. I had this problem before and added a sixline wrasse which destroyed to flatworm population. Well he/she no longer touches them. I'm broke as a joke right now and have no money to get flatworm exit or another fish to eat them. It's really frustrating because I've now lost three ricordia's, 6 zoo frags, 1 Kenya tree and a 8 headed frogspawn. I know this is the cause because they have been covering the corals I've lost. I tried blowing them off the coral to try and help till i have some money to get flatworm exit. My question is, has anyone had any luck with a moneyless way of dealing with these guys? Any one have a solution. I don't get payed until next Friday and I'm afraid I'm going to lose everything by then. Help me my tank is looking bare

If part of the solution envolves taking the rocks out thats fine with me i've been looking for a reason to re-aquascape.


Tank set-up

55g aga
aquaclear ac300 hang on filter for marco algea
10g aga sump
overflow box
80lbs lr
40 lbs ls

fish
1 Scopas Tang <--- fish was a recovery from a freinds tank every sick and skinny when i got him now he's fat and happy and enjoys the tank. he's Small and will be in his new home when i upgrade next year.

2 perculla clowns
1 blenny
1 sixline
1 star
1 coralbanded shrimp
1 blue chromis
hermits and snail

 

[sinkingbeach]

The only thing you can do is siphon out as many as possible til your able to get yourself F.E., this will need to be done on a daily basis. GL

 

[mladencovic]

I am a bit curious why sixline stopped eating them if it was eating them before. Would it be possible for you to isolate some of the fish (chromis and clowns) and then stop feeding the wrasse and blenny (I would keep the blenny to compete with wrasse over pods).

Syphoning is very easy but tedious. Assuming you don't have filter socks to spare, put piece of paper towel (you could use coffee filter as well) in some kind of funnel (or something similar that can hold the filtering paper and drain nicely), and place them to drain into sump. Take a piece of air tubing and place one end into funnel, and use the other to syphon the worms out. It tremendously helps if you can attach a plastic tubing to that end. "Vacuum" the worms slowly and patiently. You will never get rid of them that way, but it will make the wrasse's work easier, and is something you should do anyway, before applying flatworm exit.

 

[Nano10]

Thanks for the advice i guess i'll be spending my evening syphoning my rocks. Is it safe to reuse the syphoned water?

 

[mladencovic]

Thanks for the advice i guess i'll be spending my evening syphoning my rocks. Is it safe to reuse the syphoned water?

That is the whole point of syphoning it back into the sump (I assume you have one) . The filter paper will capture the worms and you thow it afterwards, and the water goes back into the tank. Since worms are not dying, the will not be releasing the toxins. Just be carefull not to get too much of substrate becues it will be pain when it clogs the tube and no point in lossing it in the first place. That is where the rigid piece of tubing will help the most - so you can hower 1/8 - 1/16" of the surface of corals and substrate and not suck in coral tissue or the sand. Trust me, the 4-5' drop will still create a very poverfull suction even through the tiny air tubing, so be careful not injure the corals. Test the suction on your finger.