Ive got worms. Aeiiee!

[tyrel]

Their are worms living in my tank. And they aren't invited. They are very tiny, thin, and white. some are floating around in the currant, and a couple are crawling around on the glass. Are they harmful? Helpful? how do you get rid of them?

This tank is giving me a lot of heartache.

 

[DragonForce]

get some pics if you can.

 

[Scottm]

no big deal cut down on feeding and do some gravel vacing if they don't go away then maybe treat with methylene blue which is a minor anti-parasitic but only if you don't have snails or shrimp and only as a last resort. the real problem here is an over abundance of nutrients and you have to fix that problem or else they will just come back.

 

[DepotFish]

Anchor worms? None on the fish? I'd remove the unaffected fish to a holding tank. Worms are such a pain in the rear. Have you gotten a new fish or two recently that you added to the tank? After you remove unaffected fish net out all the worms you see, unless they are some real small type of worm, maybe vac them out. Then add some external parasite treatment to the tank, and maybe a little to whatever you use as a holding tank.

 

[tyrel]

But are they harmful for the time being? (sorry, cant get pics)

They are Not anchour worms.

 

[Meredith]

a description from an article ... If they are flattened and squat in body shape (but elongate as they move), then they are probably planaria ... if they are thin, long and squirm back and forth, looking, as my friend described them "like wriggling white cat hairs", then you probably have nematodes. Neither should exceed 4 or 5 mm in length....
They are not dangerous at all, and there is no need to medicate your tank. Cut back on the amount of food you are feeding,increase the amount of water changes you do per week and really get in there with the gravel vac. They will die off with the lack of excess nutrients.

 

[tyrel]

Ok, thanks. My bicher is kind of a messy eater, but im getting a snail to clean up soon.

 

[DepotFish]

I suppose you could feed the fish less and let them die on their own. I guess my attitude with any unwelcome worm or nemotode is remove the fish, suck out worms, add a little worm killer, then add back fish. I like to kill em all in one swipe. I can't see having a messy eater in the tank can make for these worms, my undergravel would be covered.