What are these worms in my tank?

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I have seen these in one of my tanks a long time ago......I was told they are harmless but could be a problem if my fish began eating them. I dont know how true that is but apparently they love to live in the substrate of your tank and become visible once the substrate is disturbed.....I was told to do a very thorough gravel cleaning and then make sure i wasn't feeding my fish to much....I did what i was told and after a week or two I never saw them again......hope that helps
 
CrazyCichlids;4979651; said:
I have seen these in one of my tanks a long time ago......I was told they are harmless but could be a problem if my fish began eating them. I dont know how true that is but apparently they love to live in the substrate of your tank and become visible once the substrate is disturbed.....I was told to do a very thorough gravel cleaning and then make sure i wasn't feeding my fish to much....I did what i was told and after a week or two I never saw them again......hope that helps
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^^ That sums it up.. pretty well.. I used to have them also.. and I noticed that the feeders started eating them.. and also my spiney eel.. the eel is happy and fat so I really don't think eating them is harmful..

and I'm almost sure mine was due to food staying at the bottom of the tank.. so yes a good gravel cleaning and even not feeding the fish for a few days will help...

I happen to think they are really gross, the way they wiggle in the water.. and you might notice that when they die... they stick to the tank at the top right where the water line is.. when there is a whole bunch it just looks gross.. GL!!
 
I have the same things, there was a huge one (1") swimming around once and it was GROSS.
 
feed less and dont let food sit and you wont get the worms. gravel vac and do a few WC and they will go away
 
It's really disappointing to see such prejudices still at play in the freshwater world. If this were a saltwater tank you'd be cheering that life had become more diversified in your tank. At the least, you'd be happy for the free fish food growing therein. Worms are amazing! They help keep substrates clean and aerated and indicate over-feeding for you. If the fish store sold these in a box you'd probably want to buy them. I have tubifex in my culture buckets, blackworm in a different bucket, and several types of nematodes (one of which swims like a sidewinder) and they are all fun to watch.
 
knifegill;4979915; said:
It's really disappointing to see such prejudices still at play in the freshwater world. If this were a saltwater tank you'd be cheering that life had become more diversified in your tank. At the least, you'd be happy for the free fish food growing therein. Worms are amazing! They help keep substrates clean and aerated and indicate over-feeding for you. If the fish store sold these in a box you'd probably want to buy them. I have tubifex in my culture buckets, blackworm in a different bucket, and several types of nematodes (one of which swims like a sidewinder) and they are all fun to watch.
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Well I don't hate them, but I do need to clean the substrate a little bit. They are more than welcome, I just wanted to make sure they were harmless!
 
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