black worms and plant/fish/invert compatibility.

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
haha i recently tried to "seed" my sand bed with black worms, i waited till the lights went out then i dumped 5 portions of worms i got from my LFS and lol, it was crazy looking when i took out the flash light, i was hoping they start to burrow but they just clung together while my fish went crazy eating them all, i have no idea if it worked, i think i might have to try to seed my sand again once i get a more/deeper sand bed in there.
 
anarekist said:
haha i recently tried to "seed" my sand bed with black worms, i waited till the lights went out then i dumped 5 portions of worms i got from my LFS and lol, it was crazy looking when i took out the flash light, i was hoping they start to burrow but they just clung together while my fish went crazy eating them all, i have no idea if it worked, i think i might have to try to seed my sand again once i get a more/deeper sand bed in there.
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you are trying to "seed" as often seen in reef systems. your black worms will not seed your sand in your freshwater setup. it will just be an all out buffet for your fish. :)
 
kamikaziechameleon said:
Hope this is the right forum, I apologize for so many threads but designing a new tank has me full of questions.

I was wondering if putting black worms in a planted tank would result in them eating live plant roots, and resulting damage to my plants, or if they would be beneficial. If there are no worm predators in the tank will they overpopulate and damage ecosystem? I would maybe have dwarf frogs and khuli loaches that might eat young black worms. Will they harm or threaten any other inverts(snails, shrimp...)
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if you have no fish to eat the blackworms, yes they will increase in numbers.... you will probably see very good growth in your plants. Many keep setups like this to supplement/feed their fish in other tanks. I had a black worm colony with no substrate, no predators for 6months to supplement some baby fish I was growing out at the time. Their requirements are just the same as tropical fish, temp 78-80 degrees, good filtration (depending on the amount and tank size, they do produce a considerable amount of bio-load --- hence the goodness for your plants). They are harmless to snails, shrimp etc..

What you do want to do from the very beginning is get them from a reputable place. if getting from an lfs ask them how they handle the worms. Some places dump the new worms in with the old worms which can potentially cause many problems. smell the bin in which they are held....should have an "earthy" smell and not rotting smell at all. Check to see if their are whitish to very light brown worms....these are either dead worms or on the brink of death.... stay away from these......once you have your black worms, rinse with drinking water several times...then dump into your tank.....make sure your filter intakes are at least 6-10"s above the bottom tank.....if the intakes are too low, you will find many worms in your filter....I have found putting sponges on your intakes to drastically reduce the amount of blackworms getting into your filters. good luck.
 
blackworms are very beneficial in a planted tank with small substrate for them to hide in. make sure your water isnt too warm tho or they'll prolly die.
 
I have a bucket with gravel and a sponge filter for my blackworms. In about 2 weeks their numbers doubled. I throw in 1-2 tiny plants and a couple sinking pellets every week.
 
Yep, all of my fish LOOOOVE them too.
 
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