Rusty flatworms -vs- My Little Ponies

[KrazieKiKi]

I've got a 60 gallon cube sea horse only tank and holy hell have I got rusty flat worms!!! I've been fighting for weeks now to siphon them off. I'd like to avoid using a chemical to remove them to avoid stressing my ponies with water quality fluctuations and huge water changes. I tried a velvet nudibranch but I swear they are harder to keep than sea horses! Any ideas on a suitable tank mate that'll target these little boogers?


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[iluvmyfishes]

What about Dragon Pipefish?

[KrazieKiKi]

I've heard mixed reviews on whether or not they eat them. I'm going to try a velvet nudibranch.


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[btreyes]

I got rid of mine with a yellow wrasse very quickly and it left my seahorses alone before I rehomed it later on.

[KrazieKiKi]

Originally Posted by btreyes

I got rid of mine with a yellow wrasse very quickly and it left my seahorses alone before I rehomed it later on.

Coris wrasse?


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[BlueCat1949]

I am not a big fan of adding other fish to seahorse only tank and hoping it will fix the problem. It may work but it also could backfire and make the problem worse and/or attack your ponies.

You need to figure out why the worm population is so out of control. What has changed to cause this?

I used an airline tube with a hard plastic piece on the end and siphoned out as many worms as I could and then did a through tank cleaning. because the tubing is small you can get the worms without removing all your water.

[vlangel]

Originally Posted by BlueCat1949

I am not a big fan of adding other fish to seahorse only tank and hoping it will fix the problem. It may work but it also could backfire and make the problem worse and/or attack your ponies.

You need to figure out why the worm population is so out of control. What has changed to cause this?

I used an airline tube with a hard plastic piece on the end and siphoned out as many worms as I could and then did a through tank cleaning. because the tubing is small you can get the worms without removing all your water.

Along with BlueCat's suggestion, you can have a tight weave fish net or filter sock that you are syphoning the water and worms through. That way you can save the water and return it to the tank (minus the worms) if you end up removing a lot. Like BlueCat also suggested a thorough cleaning which could include a good water change is a good idea.

[KrazieKiKi]

So I've siphoned everyday about 1 gallon of water out and just cut my weekly water changes out for now. I pulled my live rock and did a fresh water dip on everything that didn't have corals on it. I read they are extremely sensitive to salinity changes and it's working! I also have been cutting my lights really low daily and they migrate to the glass making it easier to use a algae scrubber to lightly collect them all. I then dip the algae pad in fresh RO water and they come right off. I'll tell you what - the bucket of water I put them in smells like hell so I understand why these guys would cause issues dying in your tank!!!! Gross little guys. Anywho - I decided against the chemicals and the fish and I'm going to try some elbow grease for now...ill keep you updated as I go.


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[vlangel]

Originally Posted by KrazieKiKi

So I've siphoned everyday about 1 gallon of water out and just cut my weekly water changes out for now. I pulled my live rock and did a fresh water dip on everything that didn't have corals on it. I read they are extremely sensitive to salinity changes and it's working! I also have been cutting my lights really low daily and they migrate to the glass making it easier to use a algae scrubber to lightly collect them all. I then dip the algae pad in fresh RO water and they come right off. I'll tell you what - the bucket of water I put them in smells like hell so I understand why these guys would cause issues dying in your tank!!!! Gross little guys. Anywho - I decided against the chemicals and the fish and I'm going to try some elbow grease for now...ill keep you updated as I go.


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I am glad that you are having such good success getting rid of the pests. Good job!