Anemone question

[Wannabe29]

Hey, all. This post is a little long but stick with it for a bit. I want to be as specific about my intended setup as possible so you all know exactly what I'm working with so you can provide the best info possible. My wife and I have finally gotten the bulk of the work done on our first house and I'm finally getting close to setting up my first tank. Here are the stats on my future tank (btw, all of the equipment is in-hand and ready to be set up):

Tank: 40 breeder

Overflow: Glass-holes.com 700gph overflow kit.

Sump: 29 gallon divided into (from left to right) skimmer section, return, and live rock chamber with a 5 gallon refugium filled with chaeto and some sand draining into the rock section from above. The 5 gallon will sit on a pvc stand that will straddle the live rock chamber and the return section and will be fed by a t-off from the return line. The chaeto will we supplied with light from a daylight spectrum cfl flood bulb on a reverse daylight cycle with respect to the DT.

Skimmer: AquaC remora pro with a mag5 pump.

Return pump: Mag 7

Returns: 2 3/4 inch locline returns with the cone nozzles on them connected to a sqwd.

Lighting: Not sure of the specs on them. They are 2 LED units that I got through a group buy on the Long Island Reef Association forum (I'm from LI, NY). The lights are supposed to be bright enough to grow SPS corals. They were custom-made for our group by the manufacturer according to our desired specs. Everyone that got them seems to really like them so, I'm assuming they're good.

The display will have something like 90lbs of live rock with a 1 inch sand bed. The chaeto portion of the fuge will also have about 1 inch of sand in it. I intend to set up the tank with the live rock and nothing but a clean up crew in it for around 5 months or so. I also intend to lightly feed the tank to make sure I'm breeding pods, bacteria, etc.. Also, I have to make sure the chaeto has enough nutrients to grow. Ideally, the LR will come from an established tank to minimize the swings of a full-blown cycle.

I would like to introduce an anemone after the tank has been going around 4 or 5 months. I was originally thinking of an RBTA but, after reading about their potential size and some horror stories about their wandering ways, I'm not so sure anymore. My intention is to introduce two occelaris clowns after the nem and leave them in there together for a time to see if they'll host. After that, I'd like to slowly introduce some other smaller peaceful fish and a mix of sps and lps corals.

However, I want the nem first so that, if it does wander, it can have free range of the tank and settle down without harming anything else.

Finally...my question...if you've made it this far, thanks for your patience. What anemones will work with my setup and clown choice? I know RBTA's are an option but, I'm worried about going with one of them. Are they really as bad as some say or are there different varieties of them that aren't as bad? If RBTA's are a no go, can you recommend any other types that will not grow out of control and need to be sold off after a year or so?

Ideally, I would like a nem that could be placed (or hopefully settle) higher up on the rock structure. However, if I would have to go with one that grows on the sand bed, then so be it. Just as long as it's not going to kill everything else in the tank.

I also understand that there's no guarantee that a clown will host the nem. I figure, if I stick the two of them in the tank together, with no other options available, the chances of a hosting will increase that much more. If it happens, it happens. If not, at least I can say I tried.

Thanks for any input or suggestions. And thanks for enduring the read.

 

[2Addicted]

Really any hosting species of anemone will take up a good chunk of a 40 breeder. Rbta is what I have in my 40 breeder. To answer your question about them wandering, they really only move when they are unhappy. As long as you have a good spot for its foot to anchor, acclimate it to your lighting, keep your params in check, give it the right amount of flow, and keep all your params really stable then you shouldn't have any problems with it moving.

 

[bradleym]

E. Quadricolor, H. Crispa, H. Magnifica. Given in order of difficulty. They all will often live in the rock work, although H. Crispa may sometimes move to the sand. All 3 will likely take up a third of the tank or more full grown. Both H. Crispa and H. Magnifica are known to split infrequently if you are worried about overpopulating.

All anemones will wander if their needs are not met. I had an RBTA that I fed every other day. If I missed 2 feedings in a row he would walk, just cause he knew that was the schedule. I guess. I keep several now that eat on variable schedules without a problem. Mostly once they settle they usually stay put.

 

[Wannabe29]

Hmm....I'm wondering if I can keep the RBTA from getting monstrous by not feeding it. I have a friend at work who has an RBTA in a 40 breeder that he doesn't feed. It's been in there for over a year, has only divided a few times, and is in pretty cr@ppy conditions. But, it seems to be doing well. It hasn't grown incredibly. Could that be a solution to keeping one under control? Just don't feed it?

 

[bradleym]

Typically, a healthy, well-fed RBTA will split about 2-3 times a year and will get about 12-18 inches before it splits. However, there are some exceptions and rules to that. There are some "strains" out there that split often and tend to stay small. As a rule, the ones that DON'T split often continue to grow larger instead. So you will likely end up with either one big one or a couple smaller ones over time. That being said, the anemone's growth is affected by their feeding schedule, so if you have enough light, you can skip feeding and it will live off the lighting and likely grow at a much slower rate.

*Edit*

Technically, it would be living off the excess nutrients in the water column + strong lighting.

 

[Wannabe29]

Interesting. My friend's split about 4 times in the almost 2yrs (or maybe even more) that he's had it in the tank at the office. The "mother" is about 6 inches in diameter and has been that way for a while. Maybe I can convince him to part with one of the "daughters."

 

[bradleym]

LOL. If he's got 2 I'm in the market for mini critters like that. Although just a fair warning, moving anemone to a different environment may cause it to grow differently. Size, color, tentacle shape, etc. But it could be worth a try.

 

[Wannabe29]

Ok. I'm going to give it a try with an RBTA. Worse case scenario, it settles in in an inconvenient spot and I just have to deal with it until it gets too big. Then I can sell it.

 

[bradleym]

Sounds like a winner. Just one caution, if the anemone is too small the clowns can "love it to death" so just keep an eye on them. Occelaris is a pretty gentle clown on average, but I thought you should know.

 

[Wannabe29]

Yeah, I had read about clowns "loving" anemones to death. I think, if I go with the rbta, I'm really going to give it some time to get situated and grow a little bit. Then, I'll introduce the clowns. Thanks for the advice.