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Does bleach completely evaporate on its own, or does it need to be completely and totally rinsed away? I ask because I've just noticed that Napoleon's worms are back, and I'm still having problems with Moxie's worms recurring. I'm going to call the vet in the morning and get them both back in for another worming, but I don't know what to do about the tanks. Last time I used bleach in Napoleon's tank and it was fine, but I wasn't sure if it was okay to use on the filter and dock so I didn't. I want these things GONE so I want to be as thorough as possible this time. Will it be okay to use a bleach solution on the dock and filter (minus media obviously)? How long should I let them dry?

On the chance that one of you maybe has some experience with this, I'm also posting some pics/videos of the worms. The vet said Moxie's were nematodes but we couldn't get a sample to identify Napoleon's.

Napoleon's worms are a little under an eighth of an inch long, and basically look like flat, fast moving maggots. Nasty. They seem pretty much to stick to the walls and bottom.





I'm told these are nematodes. They're about a quarter inch long and pretty much look like very small earthworms. They occasionally slink along the bottom but mostly I see them drifting around in the water.

Okay, first the question about bleach. Take a 10-100% solution of bleach and wipe down all of the surfaces. You can also make a 10% solution and fill the tank up. After the bleach solution is removed, you want to rinse it a few times with water. Then let it evaporate to complete dryness, probably at least 24 hours. We do this with our cat dishes and whatnot and no one has died yet.

There are other ways to kill worms, though. Have you tried a high salt solution? That can cause their cells to become damaged and they'll die. Another possibility is alcohol, as strong as you can get. After using either of these, I would again rinse a few times and allow to air dry.

As for your filter parts and whatnot. I'd toss any of the filtration media, the pads, the stars, the carbon, etc. The actual filter and tubes can be bleached, salted, or alcoholed. The salt solution you can probably just let it run through the filter and into the tank, let it circulate a few times.

Thank you for the advice! I tried the salt last time and it definitely killed most of Napoleon's worms, but a few of them were still moving after a couple days. I figured bleach would be the most likely to get them all. The alcohol is a good idea too though. Maybe I'll use that on the dock. I have an appointment to take them both in for worming tomorrow, so I'll have to do this stuff either tonight or tomorrow morning so they can go back in before I have to leave for Thanksgiving.

Were those worms in the stool? Those things would bug the heck out of me too. If nothing else works, I'm thinking of a UV filter to try to zap those little buggers, though I know that's more expense .

i'd personally be hesitant about using bleach, but then again i'm paranoid on whether or not i rinsed it out enough.

get a HUGE bottle of 91% rubbing alcohol. pour that baby in the tank and wipe down the walls with it. That stuff will evaporate after you rinse out your tank for sure.


Good luck! Those worms must suck to have.....

A bleach solution is fine for disinfecting. You just have to rinse well (repeatedly) and letting the object air dry overnight (preferably 24 hours) will get rid of any residual chlorine.