Flatworm exit 4 drops per gallon?

b4tn

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Just when things are starting to look good I find these. They are red Planaria I think. Or at least they look like it. They are more red looking on the rock than dead in the bucket. but they only have two spikes on the tail. The problem is I have a test bucket with one gallon of water. I siphoned some into the bucket and am up to 4 drops of FWE now and they are slowing but still moving. It’s been about 30 minutes. The instructions say one drop per 5 gallons which is a lot less that 4 drops per gallon. I am super nervous to use this stuff. This is the best I can get for pics. In the coral pic they are all over the rocks you just have to zoom in a bit.

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hdsoftail1065

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Looks like red planeria. 4 drops per gallon in you test bucket should take them out for sure. I had to treat multiple times to get them all. It looks like you have quite a few. Siphon out as many as you can before you treat, have your wc ready and your carbon. You got this!
 
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b4tn

b4tn

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Thanks, I guess I am just worried that instructions say 1 drop per 5 gallons and its taking me so much more. They are super difficult to get off the rock also. I am using hard airline tubing and they really cling. I will probably spend the next few days sucking out what I can see before I treat.
 

GlassMunky

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I’ve used as much as 25 drops in 1/2G of water in my dipping protocol.
The FWE won’t effect your corals or clam at all.

what WILL effect them is the toxin the flatworms release when they die.
You really need to blast every rock with high flow from either your hand, a turkey blaster, power head, whatever works. Blow them off the rocks, and try to remove as many as possible with the water change following the FWE. also, have ALOT of fresh carbon ready to go.
hope this helps
 

GlassMunky

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Thanks, I guess I am just worried that instructions say 1 drop per 5 gallons and its taking me so much more. They are super difficult to get off the rock also. I am using hard airline tubing and they really cling. I will probably spend the next few days sucking out what I can see before I treat.
Blasting the rocks with heavy flow after they have been stunned by the FWE really helps.
 

hdsoftail1065

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The regular dose never worked for me, I always had to dose a little more. A fine mesh fishnet works well when they start dying off and floating in the water column.
 

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You need some flow to remove the slime coat from the worms. I would bet that even stirring with a spoon in the bucket will help them along...

Do not underestimate the effect of the toxins when they die. Be sure and have a lot of GAC and some water change ready to go.

Once they start to "melt" and get stringy, you can lower the flow and siphon them up in bunches with their slime tails.

You might need to do this a few more times to get them all, but the first time is always the worst.

I also agree that the FWE is plenty safe, but the toxins are no joke.
 
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b4tn

b4tn

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Thanks everyone! I have a 30 gallons of mixed water ready to go as well as 2 pounds of carbon for the reactor. I will work up the nerve over the next few days as I try and manually remove as many as possible.

Once dosed how long roughly should I wait till I start blowing off the rocks and doing a water change? The instructions say an hour but that kind of freaks me out with all the talk of how bad the toxins are.

Also, in my test bucket they did not slime up, convulse, or anything. They just slowed and eventually stopped moving after about 45 minutes. I didn’t realize how fast these things can move!
 

GlassMunky

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Thanks everyone! I have a 30 gallons of mixed water ready to go as well as 2 pounds of carbon for the reactor. I will work up the nerve over the next few days as I try and manually remove as many as possible.

Once dosed how long roughly should I wait till I start blowing off the rocks and doing a water change? The instructions say an hour but that kind of freaks me out with all the talk of how bad the toxins are.

Also, in my test bucket they did not slime up, convulse, or anything. They just slowed and eventually stopped moving after about 45 minutes. I didn’t realize how fast these things can move!
I usually wait about 30 minutes or so.

you will be able to visually watch them be effected. First they start running around quickly, then they start loosing their footing on the rocks and then they start falling off the rocks
 

jda

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You will be able to tell. They start to get stringy, lose their composition and really start to die. If you go too soon, then many of them will recover.
 
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b4tn

b4tn

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I can’t really find anywhere that says how long to run the carbon for. I was going to fill my BRS reactor to the top and run that. But should I change it out in 24 hours? Or let it run for my standard 2 weeks?
 

jda

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This is a different kind of treatment, but it is worth mentioning... but velvet nudibranch will destroy these. Velvet Nudis will not tolerate too high of levels of N and P, so if you are in the current fad of dosing these things, then they will not works... but otherwise, they are voracious hunters of red planaria.
 
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b4tn

b4tn

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I think I’m set to do this tomorrow. I was trying to suck out as many as possible first but it seems like an impossible Pointless task. I need to use a magnifying glass to even see them on the rocks and by the time I get from one end of the tank to the other there are more already attached where I started. They don’t gather in groups rather settle an inch or so apart from each other on the rocks. I will post tomorrow wether or not I nuke everything. I think I will be adding a flatworm exit step in my dipping routine.
 

jda

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Be resolute not to pull the trigger too soon. You have to let them start to slime and "melt." Then, you need to be quick to change the water and get the carbon online... but no so quick that you mess up.

Bayer will kill the worms and is quite safe on all corals. CoralRx and Revive will kill them too, but you gotta sir it up a bit since their slime can protect them.

Also, make no mistake that you will likely not get all of them this round and a few that you cannot see will slip through. Do it two more times in the next few weeks. You will have a small fraction of the worms and there is no need to sweat the toxins.
 

Dave Cureton

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I agree with the others that this will take a few rounds to get rid of them. Yellow Coris Wrasse and other Halichoeres wrasses seem to do a good job of hunting these pests as well. Good luck!
 
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b4tn

b4tn

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Yeah, I’m assuming they are a carry over from my old reef. I used to have a corris that took care of them for me. But I went bare bottom so no more sand dwelling wrasses.
 
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b4tn

b4tn

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I just dont have the nerve for this kind of treatment. If this round does not wipe them out (which it likely won’t) I’m going to go get some sand and another wrasse or look for the nuddi @jda mentioned. I dosed 3 x the dose based on my bucket test. Within 5 minutes the tank looked like it was snowing. My dwarf Cerriths started dropping off the walls, my two huge brittle stars that never come out, came racing out of the rocks, emerald crabs also crawled out of the rocks, my maxima is still shut tight, every coral in the tank slimed up, my BTA is totally recessed, and at least one monti is looking pretty pale. All the fish seem ok but all coral is stressed. I did a 15 gallon water change (25%) and am running a full reactor full of carbon right now. I will change it out for another full canister in the morning. After about an hour I put in a fresh filter sock and will probably swap in another new one before bed. I sat there biting my nails and praying for 30 minutes before I started the carbon and water change process.
 
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