Caring for a S. Gigantea, new owner

[chasedasea]

I have had a 18" carpet anenome for two days and would like some feedback on water parameters and general care guidance. It was an impulse purchase, yes even after ten years in the hobby it can still happen. Anyway he is looking a bit rough but he is eating small chunks of sardines and seems to be adjusting.

Water parameters -
Specific gravity: 1.027
Temp: 80' F
pH: 8.3
Alkalinity: 10.5 dkh
Ammonia: 0 undetectable
Nitrite: > 0.1 undetectable
Nitrate: > 5 undetectable
Calcium: 450

I do not test for anything else because I do not add supplements to my tank, I've had the the same live rock and corals for over 6 years. As well as a Maroon clown that is defying all logic, he's well over 8 years old.

Equipment -
90 gallons with 80-90 lbs of live rock and shells as substrate
Three Koralia jets: two pointed at anenome
Outer Orbit 2 x 150W HQI with lunar lights, running 2 10,000K compact flo and 2 actnic with two 20000K MH.
Fluval 405 canister filter
Remora hang-on protein skimmer

Please advise on what else I should test for specific to this anenome and what results are unadvisable for the nem. Also equipment specific to caring for this anenome would be helpful as well. This is my first anenome any advise would be appreciated.

P.S. This is my second time ever asking questions on a forum so I apologize if it is too much info or too little.

 

[CockyBrock]

I personally think your salinity is a bit high...if it were me, I'd slowly bring it down to around 1.024 to 1.025. Not too quickly or it will shock your system.

With a carpet that big, be prepared to do frequent water changes or skim very heavily. I have several bubble tip anemones and they like having a bit of nitrates in the water (around 5 ppm) but I'm not too sure about carpets.

Everything else in my opinion looks good....just my opinions

 

[chasedasea]

I personally think your salinity is a bit high...if it were me, I'd slowly bring it down to around 1.024 to 1.025. Not too quickly or it will shock your system.

With a carpet that big, be prepared to do frequent water changes or skim very heavily. I have several bubble tip anemones and they like having a bit of nitrates in the water (around 5 ppm) but I'm not too sure about carpets.

Everything else in my opinion looks good....just my opinions

Thanks CockyBrock, I have ten gallons of water ready to slowly add.

 

[somdinwong]

they say not to rush into feeding them, wait about a week or so then only feed about once a week

 

[chasedasea]

they say not to rush into feeding them, wait about a week or so then only feed about once a week

Okay thanks, will do. I heard that in a few other threads too and I'm sure he is getting food when I feed my fish.

 

[TDesaulniers]

I personally think your salinity is a bit high...if it were me, I'd slowly bring it down to around 1.024 to 1.025. Not too quickly or it will shock your system.

With a carpet that big, be prepared to do frequent water changes or skim very heavily. I have several bubble tip anemones and they like having a bit of nitrates in the water (around 5 ppm) but I'm not too sure about carpets.

Everything else in my opinion looks good....just my opinions

The salinity is fine. In some of their natural habitats, the tide pools temperature and salinity has fluctuations frequently due to the various low/high tides. Sometimes these carpets are exposed out of the water for a few hours. I actually keep my tank around 1.026-1.027 on a consistent basis. As long as it's stable you're fine.

 

[SwampyBill]

Carpets need almost perfect water quality. Are you slowly acclimating it to your lighting? Also, carpets don't like alot of flow. You might move one of the powerheads away from it or put it in a low flow area of the tank.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

Carpets need almost perfect water quality. Are you slowly acclimating it to your lighting? Also, carpets don't like alot of flow. You might move one of the powerheads away from it or put it in a low flow area of the tank.

I would have to disagree.

Generalizations about "carpet anemones" should be avoided since their requirements differ.

Unlike Haddon's carpet anemone, Stichodactyla gigantea surely appreciate a lot of flow- intermittently at the very least. This species naturally occurs in very shallow reef environments that experience fluctuating conditions (thus "perfect" water conditions aren't a neccessity) but bright lighting and good water flow are basic requirements. Anemones can shield themselves from bright lighting if neccessary and I've personally never found it neccessary to acclimate them to lighting. Gigantea prefers very intense lighting and most hobbyists fall short of the lighting requirements of the species. This can be compensated for with more frequent feedings.

If the anemone in the picture is doing fine I would change a thing.