bad LCD advice

[hammerfrog]

I currently have a 75 gallon aquarium with a 20 gallon sump.
I have 4 54w t5s with 20 LEDs.
I used 50lbs of cured live rock, 3 cups of live sand and water (2 gallons) all from my friends 6 year established reef.
My system has been up and running now for 1.5 weeks. I have had no trace of ammonia, nitrite or nitrate. My SPG is 1.026 and my ph is 8.0.
I went into my lfs to pick up some equipment. They asked me what my parameters were. Then they told me they have a rbta with a clown and wanted to sell it to me. I did not buy it. I was under the impression that anemones need established tanks, at least 6 month, before you can add one.
Eventually I would like one but I was just double checking with the experts that i made the right decision.
Thanks

 

[hammerfrog]

The title is supposed to say bad lfs advice. My iPhone auto corrected and I didn't catch it. I'm not sure how to change it either
Thanks again

 

[Dratini]

I wouldn't put anything at all in a tank that's less than two weeks old, I wait at least four weeks even if my cycle has gone according to plan and I'm not getting ammonia spikes anymore.

 

[bradleym]

You made the right choice. I met a guy who had perfect parameters for about 2 months so he dropped a RBTA in there and it melted in about 2 weeks. The problem with new tanks isn't the parameters, its the ability of the tank to absorb changes caused by the livestock. A new system doesn't have the ability to reliably maintain low levels of toxic waste. If your ammonia were to spike too high it could seriously stress a new anemone. By the time you tested for it, the tank would likely have bounced back and you'd never know what went wrong.

After a few months, the bacteria have colonized in all the places they are needed most to keep the tank stable and then you are far better off adding anemone.

 

[bazineta]

By going with cured rock and seeding, your tank probably cycled practically immediately. However, it's very likely that one if not two algae blooms of somewhat epic scale are still in your future, so I'd really recommend waiting a full month before adding livestock, since the bloom and die-off can be unsettling for the tank parameters. Also, when the cycle is complete, the bacteria are obviously present, but without a bioload, they're not really rolling yet. That's why livestock introduction is done slowly, to allow the system to rebalance itself in an incremental manner -- more bioload, more waste, corresponding increase in bacteria to process it, but you want this increase to be gradual and incremental, not large and sudden.

Of the anemones, RBTAs tend to be relatively hardy, especially those that are clones from others with long-term success in captivity. That being said, the key is consistency of conditions, rather than age per se. Young tanks tend to have fluctuations that older tanks do not, but this is in many ways a self-fulfilling prophecy; that is, for a tank to become old, it has to be managed such that conditions are stable.

I would personally hold off on adding more advanced stock such as an RBTA until the tank is older. They also prefer a certain type of spot, i.e., one where they can plant their foot in a sheltered spot, often in a crack or under a ledge in the rock, situated just under a region of good flow, and lit to their liking. They'll roam around until they find such a spot, and in the presence of powerheads, this roaming can be tragic, so if you can preconfigure such a spot to begin with, it's an easier introduction.

 

[hammerfrog]

I thought so.
Thanks for the help