Reef Discussion

[BlueBolts]

G'day All, 1st time poster here, introduced by slin1997, and only heard great things about this forum....
Been away from saltwater aquarium for over 23+ years! and great to see the advancement in product and knowledge....just re-educating myself on all aspects, but it's a long journey..... Just cycling a tank ATM, with redsea reef mature pro kit, 8/22 days :-(

Tank - Juwel Lido 120
Filter/Flow - Juwel Internal Filter (Foam Pads) , Fluval G3 (1st tray - Fine & Course Polyfibre and 2nd tray - 50% Media (for a tad of biological filtration with carbon in the
internal cannister) & Hydor Movement Pump (900 l/h)

Despite mix reviews, I decided to use the Juwel Protein Skimmer to match the tank. It's rated for 500lt, so at 120lt, I suspect it'll suffice.
The plan is to keep all the different colours of haddonis carpet anemone, with only 2 Snowflake Clowns....read several post and articles, saying it's ok, "don't do it"... etc, and a tad confused . Would like feedback, and advise on what I need/should do to make this all a success/possibility. The person I'm purchasing the haddonis has 5-6 of them all bunch together in the corner of the tank, with a clown happily swimming throug it.

Thanks :)

 

[Agent M]

Welcome and welcome back to the hobby as well! @slin1977 gets a pat on the head for his recruiting efforts :) I can't answer your question re: Haddonis carpet anemones as I don't personally know about them, however finding out how long the Haddonis have been together will be a partial indicator of whether its ok to do it or not. A lot of these things are often not tested and tried enough by others to get a definitive answer so it can be a matter of getting to know the animal and its behaviour and making an educated guess as to whether what you want to do has a good chance of success or not.

 

[MagicJ]

Hi @BlueBolts and :welcome - you will find that a lot has changed over the last 20+ years ;)

Your plans are very interesting and it could make for an impressive display but I will give you my thoughts...

• Anemone's can live indefinitely in the wild so you need to be confident that you can give them the same chance of survival in your tank. Unfortunately, a significant majority will die within a short time in home aquariums.
  
• In particular, they require a mature, stable tank - I am not sure that your 120 litre tank is large enough to provide long term, stable conditions, and definitely not a newly established one.
  
• These anemone's can, and do, get big - 60cm+ in diameter. Again, I think your tank is too small for 1, let alone more.
  
• Haddon's require a sand bed to feel safe - in the wild they are usually found on the sand flats rather than on the reef. A 5-10cm sand bed is going to be a bit hard to achieve in your tank.
  
• Canister filters are generally not used in saltwater tanks any more - they are very good at converting ammonia to nitrate but not at taking the next step. Live rock is a better 'filter' option together with a good skimmer.
• You can not have any filter/pump intakes in a tank with an anemone unless they are sufficiently covered - eventually they will want to move around the tank if they are not happy - they do this be releasing their foot and, unfortunately, get sucked into the pump intake.
  
• Haddon's require strong lighting - I suspect that the standard lighting with the Juwel aquarium will not be sufficient.
  
• Snowflakes (Amphiprion ocellaris) do not naturally host in Haddon's. That's not to say that they won't adapt so there are 3 possibilities - they will never host; they will host; or they will get caught and eaten - it could be an expensive experiment.

I am not trying to put you off but please, do you research before committing to your plans - there is lots of information available on the net, for example http://blog.captive-aquatics.com/ca...captive-aquatics-blog-saltwater-aquarium.html

Now, I freely admit to never keeping any carpet anemones so I could be totally wrong - maybe @Dr. Schell could offer some comments??

Cheers

 

[BlueBolts]

Thanks Agent M.
Major J appreciate your excellent reply, to date all the info/knowledge gathered has been were summer used by you :) great to get affirmation.

I LOVE the challenge/difficulty of the hobby .. And attention to the WP, stability etc, and the challenges of a nano environment (for 3-5 anemones) excites me.

I've ordered a Zetlight, and as this tank is going to be a anemone ONLY tank (except 2 clowns).... I'm betting that even with the lack of substrate, my strict attention to WC and monitoring of WP, will sway the odds towards me.

If I fall flat on my face, you can say I told you so :)

 

[Agent M]

If you don't plan on having substrate you could put black fake turf on the bottom and back glass for the anemones to hold on to. One of the local LFS in Vic has it in their anemone tank and it looks good

 

[MagicJ]

I suspect that a Haddon will not be happy in a bare bottom tank - their natural habitat is a soft, sandy base and not a flat piece of glass.

If I fall flat on my face, you can say I told you so :)

I am here to offer whatever advice/information I can so that informed decisions can be made rather than gloat about bad outcomes after the event ;)

 

[BlueBolts]

If you don't plan on having substrate you could put black fake turf on the bottom and back glass for the anemones to hold on to. One of the local LFS in Vic has it in their anemone tank and it looks good

Oooh, have you got a pic... I'm hoping the anemone will accommodate and get settled to the environment given... Read they can adapt ?

 

[BlueBolts]

I suspect that a Haddon will not be happy in a bare bottom tank - their natural habitat is a soft, sandy base and not a flat piece of glass.



I am here to offer whatever advice/information I can so that informed decisions can be made rather than gloat about bad outcomes after the event ;)

I suspect that a Haddon will not be happy in a bare bottom tank - their natural habitat is a soft, sandy base and not a flat piece of glass.



I am here to offer whatever advice/information I can so that informed decisions can be made rather than gloat about bad outcomes after the event ;)

LOL, totally agree, gloating isn't very attractive, BUT saying I told you once is satisfying. Haha.

 

[Agent M]

Oooh, have you got a pic... I'm hoping the anemone will accommodate and get settled to the environment given... Read they can adapt ?

Could be a month or more before I'm there again. In their case they have covered all 4 sides & u look top down into the tank, and they've also used green plastic turf, but the black would look ace. You can buy it from eBay last time I checked. Not sure where else.

 

[Dr. Schell]

G'day All, 1st time poster here, introduced by slin1997, and only heard great things about this forum....
Been away from saltwater aquarium for over 23+ years! and great to see the advancement in product and knowledge....just re-educating myself on all aspects, but it's a long journey..... Just cycling a tank ATM, with redsea reef mature pro kit, 8/22 days :-(

Tank - Juwel Lido 120
Filter/Flow - Juwel Internal Filter (Foam Pads) , Fluval G3 (1st tray - Fine & Course Polyfibre and 2nd tray - 50% Media (for a tad of biological filtration with carbon in the
internal cannister) & Hydor Movement Pump (900 l/h)

Despite mix reviews, I decided to use the Juwel Protein Skimmer to match the tank. It's rated for 500lt, so at 120lt, I suspect it'll suffice.
The plan is to keep all the different colours of Haddonis carpet anemone, with only 2 Snowflake Clowns....read several post and articles, saying it's ok, "don't do it"... etc, and a tad confused . Would like feedback, and advise on what I need/should do to make this all a success/possibility. The person I'm purchasing the haddonis has 5-6 of them all bunch together in the corner of the tank, with a clown happily swimming throug it.

Thanks :)

Haddons are one of the most aggressive of all of the 'clown hosting' anemones. Under the right conditions, these animals are very hardy and grow relatively quickly. In addition, they have been know to successfully spawn and sexually reproduce (past experiences with my own animals) in the aquarium. However that said, these animals get relatively large (often in excess of 60cm across). Add to this that the anemone is VERY VERY VERY 'sticky' and has a voracious apatite, about the only animal that you will be able to keep in the tank is Clownfish that have acclimated to the anemone. Non-acclimated clownfish are often consumed by the anemone BEFORE they have had a chance to acclimate. All CUC, fish, shrimp (with the exception of those that form a symbiosis with the anemone) will also be consumed). Haddons are one of the TOP stingers of the clownfish hosting anemone, and over time (and with increasing stings) you may become sensitised to the anemone and may react to it by simply putting your hand in the water. The potent sting will also mean that any coral that they touch will quickly be killed (ie hammer, bubble and Heliofunga stings do not even rate when compared to a Haddons). On a brighter note, the Haddons will anchor its 'foot' in the sand bed (often attaching to a rock or the glass at the bottom of the tank).
The over rated skimmer is a good idea as these animals will produce a lot of waste given that they need DAILY feeding.
Generally, anemones often fight when kept in close proximity. However, in th wild, they will often adopt a 'love thy neighbour' approach where they seem to 'reach a truce' and then together defend against intruding 'foreign' anemones. This may be what has happened in the tank that currently contains the anemones. If this situation is sustainable, I cannot see whey you could not maintain it in your tank.

Despite what I have said above (makes the animals sound like monsters), Haddons are a very beautiful animal and when maintained with thought, they are a rewarding species to keep.

Good luck in keeping them and please feel free to pick my brains as needed.

Cheers.

 

[Sarg]

Pic I thought you might like....

 

[BlueBolts]

That's a gorgeous pic :-)..... I initially thought they' would anchor on rocks, but on further research and post here, perhaps I need to re-structure my live rocks and give the anemones more sand /ground space.....

My tanks is cycling nicely, and exactly how redsea said it would mature ..... Theoritically I can add some cleaning crew tomorrow, but will do a complete WP check before I do.....need to "rent/hire" some snails, starfish...etc, as once the anemone is in, all other live animals will be removed, and just 1 pair of clown fish with call it home...

Thanks for the advise to date, great info and feed back... I think I need to have 10 post before I can post pics.....

 

[BlueBolts]

Also,
1. Should I add a air line to my power head to create air bubbles into the tank ?
2. Do I need a UV .
3. From a maintenance perspective, is there a particular mineral/element that a heavily stocked anemone tank would absorb more then others, like say magnesium (no idea, just giving an example....) I have 3 eheim auto liquid doser that I can use
4. In the initial days of true protein skimmer, it was producing brown scum, now on day 8-9, it's producing green scum ? Love to know why ?

Thanks

 

[MagicJ]

1. No
2. Short answer, No.
3. don't think so.
4. Algae growing somewhere which is being collected by the skimmer ?? - I am really only guessing on this one.

 

[BlueBolts]

Day 10, loving the accuracy of the redsea reef mature pro kit....ammonia & nitrites @ 0, and nitrates at 30...
Been advise to use charcoal and a phosphate eliminator ? What's the best phosphate remover ? phosguard ? Mats ? ... Thanks

 

[Agent M]

I personally would not use any products during the cycle & feel that more often than not the suggestion to use this or that is money driven. If algae is bothering you during the cycle & you don't want any present, consider dosing the tank with hydrogen peroxide. There is a thread on Reef Central that goes into this in depth that I will post the link to when I'm not on my phone. No clean up crew required ifu go this route & it will eliminate any algae if u want an algae free tank.

With clean up crew, I find algae eaters of limited benefit, they do not keep the aquarium as free of algae as you would hope. Starfish are nxt to useless for this purpose & have a poor survival rate. If u add clean up crew, add it for the sake of your enjoyment/interest.

 

[Agent M]

If you really want to bring your phosphates/nitrates down during the cycle, just do a water change & start your water change routine early. I prefer this method over using products but it isn't the only way & others will have varying suggestions for you.

 

[BlueBolts]

Thanks Agent M.... The H202 path sounds perfect....please do post up the link when you can :)

The phosphate/nitrate remover is for once the tank is cycled (apologies, didn't clarify that...), and thought of using purigen and phosgaurd as a insurance policy, unless there's a much better/prefered product, as I understand there's a whole lot of other products available, that may/will be better ?

As a maintenance strategy, I'm thinking of dosing the tank with zeobak, red sea NO3:PO4-X and a 10% water change, with a 6 weekly filter rinse & change of carbon, purigen & phosgaurd ? All comments appreciated, as I don't want to take any chances and prefer to go overboard with the health of the tank, and then then take it back a notch as I gain more experience and confidence....

 

[BlueBolts]

Just been reading and researching, and found a discussion mentioning to even remove the carbon during the cycle period ? .... Is this correct ? As it claims to slow down/halt the cycling process ? Just wanted it substantiated before I action this ?

 

[BlueBolts]

My tank @ Day 6 of cycling...

Tank today @ Day 10... Starting to see algae developing, and life :-)