Help! I think flatworm exit is killing my nass snails.

troybuckle

Reefing newb
I just dosed my tank with flatworm exit and all of my Nass snails came out of the sand and were fully extended out of their shells and looked swollen and pink. Overall their behaving very awkward. I pulled as many as I could out of the tank and I now have them in a small bucket of water with a heater. What’s going on and what should I do?
 
Did you have a lot of flatworms in the tank? Did you see them dying? It's not the Flatworm Exit that's toxic, it's the flatworms themselves. They release toxins when they die. Did you make up water for a water change once you are done treating the tank? And do you have carbon ready to run? Those are to help remove the flatworm toxins.

I'd say continue on with the treatment. If the nass snails don't make it, but the rest of your livestock looks okay, that's a small price to pay to eliminate a pest like flatworms, IMO.
 
There weren’t a lot of flatworms in the tank; I only knew they were there cause they were on the glass. They were very small – like ¼ the size of the ones I saw in a tank at my lfs. I siphoned some out before the treatment and did water change just after. I don’t have any carbon, for some reason when I went to the store I thought I was suppose to get calcium now I have that instead. I had a brain fart or something. I guess it’s better to lose the snails than anything else, but I hate to kill stuff accidently(I did it to a Newt once.) Think I should leave them in the bucket for a few hours then put them back in the tank?
 
I think so! If you did the water change, I think the snails will be okay. At least you have enough calcium to get you through the next few months. ;) It sounds like you did everything right. So I hope the snails pull through.
 
Thanks for your help. I appreciate it very much. I will post again tomorrow and let you know how it went. Looks like there doing good in the bucket though.
 
Well I kept my snails out of the tank and in the bucket for about 8 hours before putting them back in. I know that some of them have died, but most pulled through. My corals have fully opened again, but the day that I put the Flatworm Exit in they closed? However, I noticed a lot of dead bristleworms though, so that’s too bad. Thanks for your input Biff – I had a bit of a scare and would hate to have a major tank breakdown/die off that must suck big time.
 
trust me, losing bristleworms isn't a bad thing. where 5 are dead there are thousands more hiding in your tank. I can't seem to get rid of the nasty things >:[ i hate those worms.
 
Back
Top