Update On My Planaria Problem

[Debo]

Hello, I though I would give an update on the planaria problems that I have been having. The problem started in my 125 planted tank. On advice from friends on Simply. I uped my water changes and wiped the sides twice a day or more. vacumed almost everyday ;). Cleaned canister filters weekly. I cut back on feeding. They never went away. they would decreases then increase this has gone on for quite a while now. Its really hard to keep gravel clean ::) Then I decided that sense I never have wormed my Discus I thought that I would. So I bought some deworming flakes. You guessed it! Killed all the planaria also! Not 1 seen in over a week now. No worms from Discus ether! :D
Thank you all for help!
DebO

[brewmaster15]

Hi DebO,
Glad things are looking up for you. Was this tank planted?

-al

[Debo]

Yes Al, it is planted. the plants don't look so good now after all the vacumming that was done. Hopfully they will recover.
DebO

[Discus_Hans]

A blue spot gourami (hope you call them the same as here in Holland) eat the planaria, so if you would have 2 or 3 in your tank the also would have be gone without ussing meds. Did you clean your cannister everyweek compleetly, hope not, if yes keep up the the waterchanges for at least 2-3 weeks, that needs your cannister at least to start working. Hans.

[brewmaster15]

Sounds like Hans has a good idea. for future reference salt will work on planaria great.... though in a planted tank... it may not be good for the plants.

-al

[BlueBull]

Will too much salt harm the Discus?

[Discus_Hans]

Al, I've indeed see planaria die from salt but only when you hit them with a lot of salt straight ON them, I did some test on planaria in a glass of water with salt, I had to add so much salt before it did anything, no sence in a tank. If somebody has planaria at the moment, do some test with differend meds, its easy to do, Hans.

[brewmaster15]

hi,
Salt at 1 tablespoon/ 1 gal will kill planaria in a day or two. May even work at 1tablespoon/ 2 gal water. I have seen them crawl out of the filters pile on the floor of the tank with salt at this dose.

Discus will easily tolerate this concentration of salt foir several days.

hth,
al

[jamesmcsyd]

Large doses of formalin works brilliantly.
Praziquantel will knock off a fair chunk of them.

If the blue gourami thing works, i'd use that option for sure!

james

[Debo]

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions! I like the idea of adding gourami. I have always liked them. I have also watched my Malawi cichlids eat them. I don't think they would go well in my Discus tank :) As for the salt concentration. Would that not be harmful to my plants?
DebO

[giroux68]

My Rummy nose and Neon Tetras both eat them. But they still are all over the tank