Actinic Lighting for Anemone Tank?

[cgauer5]

I am in the process of attaching a 45 Gallon Marineland Cube to my current 100 gallon reef system. I want to make it an anemone tank. The plan is to put a couple BTAs and a haddoni in the tank with a pair of clowns TBD. I was wondering if you guys could give me a little insight into the best possible lighting to use. After consulting with Ben at my LFS, Inland Aquatics, I had decided to use a 175W MH with a Aqualine Buske 10k and 4 24" VHOs using 2 super actinics and 2 white actinic bulbs. In my research I have found that anemones do best under a 6500-10000k spectrum which is why we chose those bulbs. This seems to be backed by my past experiences. I have seen lots of anemones do very well under VHOs, but I have also been reading that many people think that T5s are a better way to go. Any ideas or insights?

 

[aday2remmbr]

vho's are not quality lights, also anemones cant live entirely under actinics youll need some daylight bulbs. but most important of all is all those anemones wont fit comfortably in that tank, they will always be moving and stinging eachother, i would suggest just one type of anemone in order to avoid this. it would not be a problem if the tank was bigger.

 

[cgauer5]

Ok, well I was going to start out with some smaller anemones and see how it went. I have a good LFS that would take the haddoni back if something was going wrong and one of the specimens was damaging the others. But hopefully the carpet will be attaching its foot in the sandbed and the BTAs will be on my rocks more towards the top. Also, I understand that you don't put actinics over the tank by themselves which is why I have a 175W MH with a 10k bulb that will be the main daylight source.

 

[MelloW33]

Chipper, my vote is for LED or T-5 actinic supplementation.

 

[bradleym]

As far as I've learned, T5 is better per watt that T12 if it has individual reflectors because the thinner bulb lets more light bounce back into the tank. And LED beats both but has to be quality, which means expensive, or DIY.

 

[aday2remmbr]

Ok, well I was going to start out with some smaller anemones and see how it went. I have a good LFS that would take the haddoni back if something was going wrong and one of the specimens was damaging the others. But hopefully the carpet will be attaching its foot in the sandbed and the BTAs will be on my rocks more towards the top. Also, I understand that you don't put actinics over the tank by themselves which is why I have a 175W MH with a 10k bulb that will be the main daylight source.

sorry i missed the light part, also btas tend to move alot so i would do all just one species just to play safe.

 

[cgauer5]

sorry i missed the light part, also btas tend to move alot so i would do all just one species just to play safe.

No problem, but hopefully I will have the tank setup well enough that they will be happy. If the anemones are moving around then I will have a bigger problem then just them stinging each other because my parameters will be off or the lighting I choose won't be satisfactory to them.

 

[aday2remmbr]

No problem, but hopefully I will have the tank setup well enough that they will be happy. If the anemones are moving around then I will have a bigger problem then just them stinging each other because my parameters will be off or the lighting I choose won't be satisfactory to them.

in a bta case params dont matter they will just wander until they find a place of there liking be it lighting flow etc. if you insist on keeping different species then you might want to consider making like two islands of rock one for the bubbles and one for the haddoni so they have to travel across the sand to get to the other nems

 

[cgauer5]

As far as I've learned, T5 is better per watt that T12 if it has individual reflectors because the thinner bulb lets more light bounce back into the tank. And LED beats both but has to be quality, which means expensive, or DIY.

Thanks for the input. It seems like most people I have talked to recently think that T5 would be my best bet. I am just not sold on LEDs yet. I have seen great things online, but not in my personal experience with the people that I know have them.

 

[cgauer5]

in a bta case params dont matter they will just wander until they find a place of there liking be it lighting flow etc. if you insist on keeping different species then you might want to consider making like two islands of rock one for the bubbles and one for the haddoni so they have to travel across the sand to get to the other nems

That is definitely a good idea, I will have to see what I can do with my rocks.

 

[aday2remmbr]

Thanks for the input. It seems like most people I have talked to recently think that T5 would be my best bet. I am just not sold on LEDs yet. I have seen great things online, but not in my personal experience with the people that I know have them.

yeah i personally still stick with halide until i get a chancce to test leds myself

 

[BonsaiNut]

In my research I have found that anemones do best under a 6500-10000k spectrum which is why we chose those bulbs.

I'm curious - what research are you referring to?

 

[cgauer5]

I'm curious - what research are you referring to?

Just talking to the guys at my local fish store as well as extensive online reading. It seems to be a consensus that they do best under that spectrum range, although I definitely will add light in the blue range as well in order to bring out the color. Do you not agree with this? I was trying to confirm what I had been told which is why I started the thread.

 

[cgauer5]

yeah i personally still stick with halide until i get a chancce to test leds myself

That is definitely my thought process. I haven't seen an anemone under just LEDs in person that seemed to be healthy and happy. At my LFS they have an anemone display tank that has LEDs but is supplemented with fluorescents.

 

[MelloW33]

Chip, I think we should experiment with LED. The MH is going to put out enough PAR for nem and you're really just looking for something to get the colors to "pop", right?

What do you think about the ecoxotic stunner strips. They'd be easy to mount into a canopy and aren't overly expensive.

 

[cgauer5]

Chip, I think we should experiment with LED. The MH is going to put out enough PAR for nem and you're really just looking for something to get the colors to "pop", right?

What do you think about the ecoxotic stunner strips. They'd be easy to mount into a canopy and aren't overly expensive.

I wouldn't be opposed to see what they would do, they are about the same price as a DIY T5 fixture. I really don't know that much about them. They are only 12.5" long so I guess I would need two to cover width of the tank. What are you thinking? Getting four of the strips? Maybe put two of the 8k/453nm in the back and and the solid 453nm or 403nm ones in the front? I just don't know if I would be losing anything because I was planning on running 4 24" T5s or T12s.

 

[MelloW33]

I wouldn't be opposed to see what they would do, they are about the same price as a DIY T5 fixture. I really don't know that much about them. They are only 12.5" long so I guess I would need two to cover width of the tank. What are you thinking? Getting four of the strips? Maybe put two of the 8k/453nm in the back and and the solid 453nm or 403nm ones in the front? I just don't know if I would be losing anything because I was planning on running 4 24" T5s or T12s.

I don't think you're going to be "losing" anything. You're going to get enough PAR from the halide so you only need something for the blue. We could always start with like 2 on there and add more if it isn't enough.

 

[cgauer5]

Ok, so which strips are you thinking?

 

[MelloW33]

Not sure, I'll get back to ya on that.

 

[cgauer5]

Ok Mark, so I went ahead with my original plan of fluorescents while taking the advice of the thread and got a D.I.Y. T5 kit. I am going to be running 4 T5s with my 10k Halide. What bulbs should I get? I was thinking two actinic white and two super actinic 453nm. But I was also curious with your LED idea so I purchase two of the stunner strips (453nm). I am planning on running them in the front of the tank and the only 2 of the T5s in the back to start out. Unfortunately my tank was back ordered and I won't get it for 2 weeks. But, that will give me time to come up with a nice hood.