Tank has been up for 7 months, I have been fighting nitrates since the beginning. The first post was either a test error or they dropped for a week. I do 10 gallon water changes weekly. Tank is a 40 breeder with a 20 long sump. Everything else in the tank seems to be doing ok.
Help with anemone
- Thread starter tytyler
- Start date
Yep, that's how I see it as well. I just got one a week ago and he will inflate/deflate randomly sometimes. I don't see it as a big issue, just have to keep an eye on them. It'll be really obvious when it's in trouble.
Aquarist007
New member
Those nitrates could be reduced with a 50 % water change. It's doubtful but anenomes are very sensitive to water chemistry
What lighting are you using and how long is it on for
I do close to 25% water change weekly but can't get my nitrates much below 10 and they won't stay there. I have been unsuccessful trying to find out why they keep raising so fast. I have reef breeders lighting that ramp up to a max of 45 whites and 60 blues, blues come on 2 hrs before whites and stay on 2 hrs after whites for a total of 10 hrs, max lighting for 3 hrs. Thanks.
Aquarist007
New member
You might want to increase the photoperiod for max lighting a couple of hrs and see how the anemone reacts to it
Aquarist007
New member
Is part of your sump setup to have a refugium with macro algae. This would help keep your nitrates down.
If you do a 25 per cent water change then that brings the nitrate level down 25 per cent. So if the level was twenty then it would be 16.. Not really that much lower yet enough that could disturb the anenome
Suggestion .. Change one percent daily or in your case 1/2 a gallon. That's easy and quickly done.
Keep track of your nitrates and phosphates for the next couple of weeks. If the phosphates rise then you can start liquid carbon dosing(vodka and or vinegar) which will keep the levels of phosphates and nitrates low
With one per cent water changes this situation is ideal for anemones
I have been meaning to increase my lights and I will. Wouldn't the anemone be stretching out more if it wasn't getting enough light? At night the anemone is stretched out but deflated, then during the day with lights on it will retract fully. I do have a spot for a refugium but have yet to set it up. What is the idea behind daily water changes? Is it so I can lower nitrates gradually? I have 10 gallons of saltwater mixing for a water change today.
Aquarist007
New member
Those numbers won't hurt an anemone. I'd just let it be and keep monitoring it
Well this morning I found the anemone on the sandbed I put it back on the rock and it grabbed a hold so I don't thinks it's completely dead but it did fall off again. Lights were turned up about a week or two ago. Parameters are still good but I will double check again today and post results. Any ideas or can I assume it's a dead anemone? What could have caused this? All other corals and fish are good. I have an sps coral that was slowly dying but started making a comeback before I added the anemone so I figured an anemone would be fine.
Aquarist007
New member
Those results are fine
Here is a good read. I don't think you are doing anything wrong
" One other obvious observation from my experience with managing a LFS and from what I see posted within the forum is that anemone do not travel well, taking an educated guess, I would say that 2 out of three anemone do not survive their first year in captivity, most, their first month. Which is a shame for a creature that is capable of living beyond one hundred years. Any species of anemone that I collect from the wild has always done extremely well for me. The only thing that I can think of at this time which would cause an anemone to not being able to handle long distance transportation is the rough treatment they get, after all they are really just bags of water, and am sure being bounced around roughly does their internal organs harm, that and enduring weeks of being kept basically in less than ideal conditions. Then after moving from one tank to another during their journey, they then get tossed under intensive lighting and yet another set of water parameters. Which is why water and lighting acclimation is very important if they are to have any chance at all. "
http://www.chucksaddiction.com/anemone.html
