gregr
New member
I can't keep bubble tip anemones happy and could really use some help figuring out why. Gonna be a long read because I'm gonna run down the whole setup soup to nuts:
Display is a 150g tank with 2 corner overflows. 30g sump and 40g refugium. One overflow goes into fuge (which gravity flows into sump) and one to sump. Two return pumps plus one big closed-loop feeds lockline jets all across the back/bottom of the tank behind rockwork.
Two 250w SE 20K halides under Lumenarc reflectors and two 5' T-5 actinics, bulbs changed every 6 months or so.
Korallin calcium reactor keeps calcium steady at 420 and alkalinity [dkh] at about 7.5-8 (would like that to be higher but coral health is so good I ignore that number
. pH is generally 7.9-8.3 throughout the day.
Biopellet reactor and GFO reactors keep nitrates and phosphates low. I feed oyster and phyto feast every other day and fish get fed once a day, one or two cubes. Bioload is moderate- one 4-5" gold spotted rabbitfish, one 4" mimic tang and the rest are small blennies, gobies and wrasses (mystery and potters leopard).
Corals grow like mad- there are tons in the tank, everything from soft to sps, mainly sps but lots of lps too, and everything in the tank, literally every coral, is growing well. Even a flowerpot that has doubled in size in one year.
I've have a long tentacle anemone for about 6 months, doing very well, and a tube anemone that is ok for about a year. 3 mini carpets for about 2 years now, and a rock anemone hitchhiker since I started the tank (about 4.5 years ago). Here's a short video of the tank:
http://youtu.be/hNWWPgwxL70
I've added 3 bta's over the last 18 months and each time they look great for a couple days then move into the rocks and are never seen again. All 3 were healthy and acclimated slowly. My best guess is too much light but that just doesn't hold up when I see other people with similar setups, 400w halides, super clean water etc.
Help! Any ideas?
Display is a 150g tank with 2 corner overflows. 30g sump and 40g refugium. One overflow goes into fuge (which gravity flows into sump) and one to sump. Two return pumps plus one big closed-loop feeds lockline jets all across the back/bottom of the tank behind rockwork.
Two 250w SE 20K halides under Lumenarc reflectors and two 5' T-5 actinics, bulbs changed every 6 months or so.
Korallin calcium reactor keeps calcium steady at 420 and alkalinity [dkh] at about 7.5-8 (would like that to be higher but coral health is so good I ignore that number
. pH is generally 7.9-8.3 throughout the day. Biopellet reactor and GFO reactors keep nitrates and phosphates low. I feed oyster and phyto feast every other day and fish get fed once a day, one or two cubes. Bioload is moderate- one 4-5" gold spotted rabbitfish, one 4" mimic tang and the rest are small blennies, gobies and wrasses (mystery and potters leopard).
Corals grow like mad- there are tons in the tank, everything from soft to sps, mainly sps but lots of lps too, and everything in the tank, literally every coral, is growing well. Even a flowerpot that has doubled in size in one year.
I've have a long tentacle anemone for about 6 months, doing very well, and a tube anemone that is ok for about a year. 3 mini carpets for about 2 years now, and a rock anemone hitchhiker since I started the tank (about 4.5 years ago). Here's a short video of the tank:
http://youtu.be/hNWWPgwxL70
I've added 3 bta's over the last 18 months and each time they look great for a couple days then move into the rocks and are never seen again. All 3 were healthy and acclimated slowly. My best guess is too much light but that just doesn't hold up when I see other people with similar setups, 400w halides, super clean water etc.
Help! Any ideas?
