little white worms

[fishrookie]

just cleaned out tank and noticed little white squiggly worms swimming all over the place. I am guessing this is not good... What do I do?

We did recently (within the last two weeks) have two deaths. one catfish that was missing eyeballs and a pleco that looked really bloated. Am I overfeeding?

 

[OrangeCones]

Sounds like planaria, and yes, they flourish with execess food that the fish are not eating.

 

[Newman]

if not planaria then they could be nematodes. those also thrive on rotting organic matter. both worms are harmless to fish and actually provide a food source to omnivorous fish.

 

[fishrookie]

thanks for the reply. When I did a google search I saw that someone suggested cleaning the tank everyday. Do you agree?

 

[phin]

what do you mean by "cleaning the tank everyday"?

 

[Doomhed]

I only clean the fry tank every single day. I clean out all uneaten food.

 

[littletankbigworld]

You can siphon the gravel and remove water from the tank every day, but do not clean your filter every day and NEVER rinse the biofiber of your filter. Ever.

 

[fishrookie]

Thanks. I did mean siphon the gravel to clean up debris and remove approximately 20% of water when I said "clean the tank." I haven't seen any worms since I first posted...don't know if they stay hidden though.

 

[littletankbigworld]

You don't need to clean out the tank every day unless the tank is still cycling.
Also, feed your fish once a day, every day for only 6 days. Do not feed them on one day of the week.

 

[Newman]

Thanks. I did mean siphon the gravel to clean up debris and remove approximately 20% of water when I said "clean the tank." I haven't seen any worms since I first posted...don't know if they stay hidden though.

What they do is they come out at night when the lights are off. the worms are mostly nocturnal.

 

[fishrookie]

Thanks again!

 

[Doomhed]

You don't need to clean out the tank every day unless the tank is still cycling.
Also, feed your fish once a day, every day for only 6 days. Do not feed them on one day of the week.

I actually feed fish food for 5 days and vegetables for the other 2 days. only vegetables. I never thought I would see an angel fish tear up a zucchini like it was going out of style, but he did.

 

[lauraf]

My angels like lettuce . . . .

 

[Doomhed]

My angels like lettuce . . . .

there is nearly zero nutrition in lettuce. feed them spinach

 

[lauraf]

Okey dokey, thanks.

 

[littletankbigworld]

Iceburg lettuce has no nutritional value but Romaine has some nutritional value.

 

[Doomhed]

Iceburg lettuce has no nutritional value but Romaine has some nutritional value.

So do brownies but I wouldnt feed them to my angel. And I dont even LIKE my angel.

 

[littletankbigworld]

I'm just sayin'...if Lauraf ever gets in a pinch and has no other veggies in the house, she can feed her fish Romaine. I get snowed in all the time and that kind of thing happens to me.

@Doom: Where did you get those crazy mood ring mystery snails?

 

[littletankbigworld]

I just googled the snails. I can't find any pictures. Do you happen to have any?

 

[lauraf]

I had leftover butter lettuce from a dinner party - otherwise would have used the spinach I had in the crisper. Switched the lettuce for the spinach, but either way, my angels, loaches, gouramis and BN pleco tore into both
Thanks littletank for the backup suggestion. I live in rainy Vancouver, so am not usually homebound, except if I'm just lazy
Hey! Another fish/people recipe idea? Who wants to post about what they do with romaine lettuce????