Oh boy have I been busy, Let's dive in.
Have you ever been doing something with your aquarium and noticed that oily film and no matter what you do, it just refuses to go away? Yeah I can relate, That stuff is in my 20 gallon tank right now and I'm not amused, Luckily I have been doing a lot of digging and I think I've found a solution to this headache-inducing problem.
What is the fix?
A surface skimmer.
Wait what?
That's right, A surface skimmer, If you've got one built into your filter you might want to consider getting a second one, No it shouldn't take up a lot of space, The one I found is adjustable and from what I have seen it's betta safe.
Surface Skimmer: Oase 350 or 600 the 350 is pretty small so blending it in is easy to do just make sure to read the manual.
''Ahem. Hasty, Where have you been?''
So to put it into simple terms, Building a pc isn't as easy as I thought it would be, yes that's still an on-going thing but it's given me an excuse to be a total nerd for aquarium plants, and aquascaping styles, I thought I picked one (Red Forest) but now I'm still going between the Red Forest or Dutch-Style Iwagumi aquascape, Getting live plants here in BC is a bridge I'm not quite ready to cross, the tissue culture cups seem to have gotten smaller, So now (When I'm FINALLY ready) Instead of buying 2 of each species, Now I'll have to buy 4 of each species, And getting enough, Red, Pink, and Purple plants is getting increasingly difficult, The ones I want are either out of stock, No stock (For months or even 2 years) Or I'd have to get them imported from the US which I'm wary of doing due to the shipping, and possible delivery costs, Though the biggest concern for me is DOA plants, It snowed here, There's still snow and ice on the ground.
To put it into context, I ordered 9 case fans for my pc, They got delayed twice (I have them now though) This really got me thinking, If my fans got delayed, Any live plants I order would also run the risk of getting delayed, So I'm just going to take my time, there is no rush, I have been away and yes it's going to continue like that for a while.
In the meantime, I do have something else I really need to bring to your attention, It is urgent.
One night I was browsing the internet when I came across a post about some unknown 'White worm thing' on the glass of someone's aquarium, I made the horrible mistake of looking at said worm, Now if you know me even a little bit, then you know how much I rate creepy crawlies, After my mini-heartattack, I looked at the picture and video a total of 4 times, and concluded that it is indeed Planaria Worms, They will eat everything in the tank, They affect shrimp tanks but can affect any tank, Killing them is difficult but not impossible, My suggestion is Fritz Expel-P which can be found on EBay if you are in Canada and probably on Amazon if you are in America.
Note: One Planaria Worm can asexually reproduce, One can become 100 or even hundreds of thousands of worms in a matter of days, They start off extremely small making it easy for them to hide in cracks and crevices, As for the dosing please read and follow the directions, though increase the dosage if needed. Fritz Expel-P was one of the only, Over-the counter treatments I could find, The other two are dewomers that will have a very negative impact on your tank so use them at your own risk (You have to get them from a vet anyway) Flubenol or Panacur.
During the treatment process you should remove all of your fish, snails and shrimps from the infected tank until the treatment is complete or no more Planaria Worms are found, While treatment is ongoing, Preform large water changes of about 80% and net any worms and flush them you could also burn them if they pissed you off XD
''Are they dangerous to humans?''
As this is a parasitic worm, my answer is going to be a resounding, Yes, They should be considered dangerous to you, Pets, and anyone with a compromised immune system or if you or anyone living with you hasn't had all of their shots/exams, Another step, Wear latex gloves when treating the tank/filter, Sterilize your nets, Siphons, and buckets, before and after every water change.
Conclusion: Look carefully before you purchase any fish, snails, shrimp, live plants, moss balls, decorations etc BEFORE you put them into your tank.
That's all I've got for you, For now, Until next time, Byeee and stay safe out there my fellow hobbyists!
Windy
