Keeping bristle worms in DT - Yea or Nay?

[Billdogg]

Bristle worms are your best friend and one of the very best at cleaning up detritus. This whole notion that they are bad and should be avoided at all costs, is utterly ridiculous. Also, I hate to break the news to everyone, but you'll have bristle worms in your tank regardless of all the steps you take to prevent them from entering.
When dipping corals, you can certainly discard the ones that didn't make it through the dipping process, as you're trying to get rid of actual pests (and not bristle worms). But to view bristle worms as pests, is completely irrational. I get that they can cause problems if touched and for some, they can have a severe reaction to the bristles. So for those that have to work in the tank, wear gloves (as you should). Bristle worms are not the enemy of a reef tank, but one of the best helpers. Don't be a bristle hater, be a bristle lover!
Cheers!

^^^Very well said. I agree 100%^^^

I can't imagine my tank without my bristles. Everyone has what they want and don't want. It's your system. You have to plan these out. I have firefish gobies sleeping with bristle worms. Nothing happens to them. Ever.

And this as well

I have a ton of bristle worms in my tank and they have never caused any kind of problem. I have recently seen businesses selling them so I figure I'm sitting on a goldmine. Now if my wrasse would just stop eating my profits away.


If it gets to where your bristleworms have an insatiable desire to eat a cat I have one I could sacrifice to keep yours safe. Just let me know I'm pretty close to you. LOL.

Isn't that what cats are for???

Never had an issue here either. Good detritus eaters. And even if you try to not get them in the tank, they will get in there. Probably already have some and you don’t know lol.

For every one you see, there are at least a dozen more.

I wish I had more. Good detritivores, interesting in their own right and part of the wonderful diversity of the reef. If you feel you have too many at some time in the future, just trap some or feed less.

I spread them between systems so that there is always a healthy population in my tanks

I think they are great. The only issue is so does my Dusky Wrasse.. I'm sure I still have some but when ever the wrasse sees them they get tossed up into the water and devoured in no time.

For me it's my Blue Star Leopard wrasse. He eats them all the time.