Anemone and Sponge question

[beachbomb]

Hi, I will be adding Anemones and Sponges to my tank. Is there anything I need to add to the water to help out these items (like food type liquids or anything). I've never put these into my tank before. I currently have alot of live rock and live sand in the tank, Thanks..Jim

 

[perfectdark]

Originally Posted by beachbomb
Hi, I will be adding Anemones and Sponges to my tank. Is there anything I need to add to the water to help out these items (like food type liquids or anything). I've never put these into my tank before. I currently have alot of live rock and live sand in the tank, Thanks..Jim
First welcome to the boards..
Im not familiar with sponges.. however my advise to you based on your question about anemones is to research first before you decide to put one in your tank.
In the event that you are as new as your posts I am going to offer the following. The fact that you didnt say what type of anemone you were considering makes me think that you dont really know anything about them. Adding anything to your tank is the least of your issues if you plan to keep one. First, how old is your set up, what are your water perameters, be specific, alk, nitrates, nitrites, pH, salinity, temp and amonia. What type of lighting do you have watts and bulb type. Also what size tank is it? The novice should not take on the task of housing an anemone and IMO the more seasoned aquarist should also avoid it if you havent researched about the species you want. They are very delicate animals are not tolerant to any change and have very specific needs. And thats dependant on species. If you post back more information we can better help you and give you advise if getting one would be ok or hurt your tank. Good Luck.

 

[reefkprz]

decorative sponges require fairly ample amounts of filter type foods, suprisingly, a lot of the more attractive types require rather large amounts (read as a constant supply) or will slowly starve. very few require light of any kind so lighting generaly isnt a concern except when placed in too high of lighting alga growth can smother the sponge blocking its water channels. sponges are often one of the more toxic forms of marine life, and protect themselves from predation with powerfull chemicals and taste deterrents, this can lead to severe problems should a large specimen die in a closed system like our aquarium. many sponges form commesile relationships with lots of sea critters so you may have the oppourtunity to see commensiluism in action if you have the right animals. which of course is always fun.
anemone depending on the type, generally require very strong lighting supplemented by weekly or more frequent feeding.