Dream/Future Tank

[CuttleKid]

When i purchase my forever home i am going to get a huge tank because that was never a possibility as a child/teen. I was looking through TOTM archive to get ideas and i saw two huge several thousand gallon reef tanks. I was amazed at them and said to myself im going to have something that cool one day. I have some questions that are anemone related. If/when i have a tank that is at least 1500 gallons would i be able to keep more than one anemone? I want to replicate a natural reef and have sand beds with multiple haddonis. Also i would want a ritteri and/or gig. Wold this be possible. I have heard of chemical warfare and im a little anxious about what people will post. I also want to keep a myriad of different fish/corals to replicate a natural reef. If you cant keep more than one nem what one would you suggest. Please keep in mind that it will take several years to get this project up and running so it is not a build thread. just looking for info/advice.

Ps: if i keep expensive fish will the carpets just devour them.



Thanks

 

[bradleym]

At 1500 gallons you should not have to worry much about chemical warfare. Running carbon should take care of that easily. As far as fish are concerned, they are just as likely to get eaten if they get near the anemone. With a large tank they may be safe if they don't wander into that part of the tank. But as far numbers go you should be able to do roughly 1 anemone per 50 gallons, so if you ONLY wanted anemones you could keep 30 of any species safely, more if they are small rock dwellers like BTAs. Not advisable for a mixed reef, just saying...

 

[CuttleKid]

thanks for the info. so if i kept i had a 1500 gallon tank i could keep 2-3 haddonni's along with a gig and a ritteri and maybe a few bta's i would have no problem if i run carbon. Good to know thank you. But could i keep some sps/lps/softies if i have more than one anemone. If not then I'll just have to settle with one big anemone.

 

[bradleym]

thanks for the info. so if i kept i had a 1500 gallon tank i could keep 2-3 haddonni's along with a gig and a ritteri and maybe a few bta's i would have no problem if i run carbon. Good to know thank you. But could i keep some sps/lps/softies if i have more than one anemone. If not then I'll just have to settle with one big anemone.

You should be able to keep a couple different anemones even in a mixed reef. Just be aware of the size and typical locations and habits of each type. For instance, a haddoni will stick to the low flow areas of the sand bed. The gig and ritteri will probably seek out high lighting and high flow, and the ritteri will likely claim the top of a rockpile or pillar. And all anemones will kill the average coral if they are touching. So with a haddoni, all corals over 12 inches above the sand should be safe. But with a ritteri (or H. Magnifica) the ones up top could get demolished when you put it in.

And as long as your water can be maintained at low NO3 and no PO4 with normal reef parameters, anemones don't need anything dosed, just occasional feeding IMO. So the carbon should be the only extra in case there are any chemical issues, but for this reason I would suggest running carbon on ANY reef tank.