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Not sure what I have living in my tank but I am pretty sure they don't belong there....definitely some sort of worm...some are reddish in color and some are white. I had taken my pleco out of the tank as I was sure I had fry in there and was concerned for their safety. In just a few days the front of the tank was covered in algae with strands of what appeared to be strands of poop sticking to the glass. Today I noticed there was something living in these "casings" (for lack of better description). I thoroughly cleaned the glass and did a vaccum/ h2o change. But, there are many worm like creatures still in the water...What would be the best plan of action...I have been using a product called "QuIck Cure" for the treatment of HITH (which by the way seems to be doing a good job so far. Not gone completely yet but significantly reduced and healing more each day) The active ingredients are "Formalin and Malachite Green. If I treat for parasites should I discontinue use of other meds? Thanks in advance for your input!!!

The worms you have, if they are not on the fish, are most likly harmless. Certain types of worms "appear in tanks" that have a build up of waste in the gravel. They feed on this wate.It is IMO a sign that the general water quality/gravel cleaning is not as good as it should be. Since I fall into the group that belives HiTH, and water quality are closely related, you might want to consider that as a possible area that needs to be adjusted in your tank. How often do you do your tank maintence? Do you remove left over food, after you feed your fish? How often, and how much do you do water changes? HOw many, and what type of fish, and what size of tank do you have?

This tank is a 55 gallon containing 1- 8" Tiger Oscar and 1- 6" pleco. We vaccum and 20-30% h2o change once per week. The filter is HOB 30-60 gal per hour. The filter media is replaced every 2 wks. Would you recommend chemically treating to remove the worms? I have seen them on the fish but appear to have just "settled" there...don't appear to be trying to enter the fish's skin. Or maybe we should take out gravel and wash it? Yes we remove as much uneaten food as possible...mostly feed small amounts several times a day to avoid uneaten food. Thanks for the quickly reply! If you have any further suggestions I would really like the input

Your filter, is it a whisper 30-60?
Even if it isn't, it is a bit to light for Oscars, I would recomend getting another one. That might be why, with what I would consider normal tank maintence, you still have to much waste in the gravel. The worms will die off,( or even start to be eaten by your fish) once there food source is gone. Generally there is not a need to medicate a tank for them. You might want to do a search online for anchor worms, just to be safe. I am fairly confidant all you have are harmless worms.

You were right! what I was seeing did not look like any parasitic worms I found on-line...also, did another good vac on the tank and within a couple of days amount of worms were nearly gone...now if I look long and hard I might see 3-4 so the rest seem to be taken care of all by themselves... thanks again for the input.