blackworms living in gravel

[danny d]

Is there a problem with blackworms living in the gravel of my tank??...i'm assuming it's ok....are they beneficial like worms in your garden eating decaying matter???...thanks, danny

[DarkDiscus]

Danny,

This happened to me in my Nicaraguan cichlid tank once.

My take is that if the worms are finding enough to eat and thrive your tank is too dirty. If not, they are going to die off and make your tank too dirty.

I siphoned them all out and did a major W/C and there were no more blackworms in the gravel.

JMO,

John

[ppv1951]

i'd have to agree with john. i'd go in there and do a major cleaning on that gravel. when i kept planted community tanks with UG filters, i'd do a complete gravel cleaning with a diatom filter once a month. you'd be suprised how dirty those tanks get. what are you using for filters?

pat.

[billeagan]

How many do you have living in the tank? I would agree with everyone if you have a ton.

However, one of the big benefits to feeding black worms is that they are a live food and while they may add a little to your bio load they are going to decay like dry foods and beef heart.

I prefer a few to live in my gravel. It gives the discus something to hunt for and the worms eat things that I have missed.

[danny d]

I have a 65 gallon tank with a fluval cannister filter...i change 10 gallons of water daily and i use a gravel cleaning siphon...there is a small amount of blackworms in the gravel...the only time i see them is when one occasionally gets sucked up the gravel vacuum...it's far from an infestation, there are just a few living in the gravel

[ppv1951]

i wouldn't worry about it then. it's when they get in your gravel and die that they become a problem.

good luck!

pat.