Getting rid of pests in freshwater aquarium

Question
QUESTION: Hello,
I've just set-up my tank for two months and I'm facing several pests problems.
Firstly, there are worms; probably planarian. It's flat, has a pointy head and is white. Larger worms are pinkish at the middle. They occasionally come up to the soil surface to the glass walls.
Secondly, another worm, probably nematodes. It's thread-like and is white. They also come to the soil surface occasionally to the glass walls and some swim in the water with the current as they do not have the strength to oppose it.
Thirdly, there are snails in my tank. I removed some of them but I think there are still some hiding as my plants seems to be eaten.
Lastly, there are bug like insects probably water fleas? I'm not too sure of this one. They are white and have a round body. Some of them have two round things below their body while others have one round( or sharp thing like a tail) below their body. I can't really remember as I've not seen them for some time probably being eaten up or they went hiding. I think the difference between these two is due to their gender?

Anyway, I want to remove all of them especially the snails since they are eating my plants but maybe not the water fleas as they seem harmless.
Regarding the worms, are they beneficial to the aquarium since they eat uneaten food? Would they like get into my body system and cause harm to me, my nerite snail or my fish? Different people have different answers regarding entering the human system as they aren't sure what type it is so I think it's best to remove the worms.

I have five rummy nose tetra from my previous tank but they don't seem interested in eating any of them though the water fleas seems to have disappeared completely(I'm not very sure) and the worms went into hiding under the soil but come out occasionally after I added the fishes into the tank. The worms are currently populating the part of the soil where water current is weaker. I'm not too sure where do the worms come from though. I'm suspecting from the plants or from the ADA Amazonia soil.

From other threads, they said to add salt mainly to shrink the worms but it doesn't kill them, does it? Or add garlic? Or add wafers to attract them then net them up; but I'm afraid this doesn't kill them completely.

So, my question is would the worms cause harm to me, my nerite snail or my fish?
Could the worms and snails come from the plants? But I've not had such a problem in my previous tank. They come from the same source but it has been about 4 years since I had ordered plants from them. Could they have come from the soil?
Is there anyway to kill them? Are the methods that I had read from other threads useful? If it would kill my nerite snail please tell me then I'll have her moved to another tank.
Thanks! :)

ANSWER: Hi Arron,
While I'm not a scientist, I do not know of any common aquarium pests that are harmful to people. And very few species that are harmful to fish or other aquatic life.

Worms and other tiny creatures can show up in our aquariums by hitching rides on aquatic plants or be within any live foods added to the tank. They can also come in from the petstore water when you bring a new fish or critter home. (Besides the live foods, this is also how snails get into our aquariums)

Sometimes they can appear in your tank mysteriously. But there is one important factor in this whole situation... Why they are thriving so well.

In order to support such a vast population, they need an abundant food source. Worms like these often appear in large tanks that house big cichlids and other species, and due to heavy meaty diet these fish are often fed, worms can thrive!

The key here is to eliminate the food source. They feed on nutrients in the water and the substrate. So start doing daily 30-50% water changes and gravel vacuuming as much as you can. Your fish will appreciate the extra clean water. It will take some time, but eventually the food source of the worms and other aquatic pests will be depleted. Excess worms and creatures can also be siphoned out during the water changes to further help out. And with time and patience, you can get rid of the population.


I generally don't like recommending chemical treatments, as these can do more harm than good.
Try the daily water changes, make sure you are not overfeeding and try this for at least 2 weeks.

Let me know if you have anymore questions!
Hope this helps!
Susan~



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Susan,
thanks for the info but I don't feed my fish at all. I was hoping that the rummy nose tetras would eat them. I am also doing water changes but on a weekly basis of 50%.
The problem is, I can't vacuum my gravel at all due to the plants growing on the soil. Any other solutions?

Answer
Hi Arron,
The worms and other critters must be thriving on the nutrients in the soil.

Though I don't like recommending chemicals.. I wonder if using the parasite med "prazipro" is your best bet in a case like this. This is normally a medication to treat internal parasites in fish. It's quite safe and not as harsh as other parasite meds.

It's also fine to use in planted tanks as well . I think you may have to look into this treatment.
Let me know if you have any more questions,
Best of luck!
Susan~