anemone question

[chadman]

my g friends tank has cycled after only a week...all readings are at zero after initial spikes...how long would you say till we can throw some anemones into the tank? i waited a few months i remember with my tank but was wondering if once the tank is up and stable for a few days whether it would be a problem to add a carpet?

 

[reefforbrains]

that sounds too fast of a cycle unless its a cloned tank. If it IS a cloned tank go for it, if not, then reason for the flat readings is the cycle has not even STARTED yet. Give more history on the tank and the cycle please

 

[skipperdz]

well they are expensive, so be careful! i would personally wait a little longer for the tank to mature a little more. imo one week set up is a little premature for any anemone. your lfs would say to use a damsel. or someother hardy fish. but for now your probably better off just setting up a cleaner crew then in a week get a clown or something that is anemone friendly

 

[chadman]

i added about 50+lbs of uncured lr last week to my g friends 55g tank...i also added a cycle product which allegedly has bacteria and such to speed the cycle process which a lfs told us about....the first few days my ammonia nitrite and nitrate were through the roof since then my ammonia is nearly at zero and the trates and trites are also very low....have been running hob filter since day one with carbon and ceramic rings and sponge

 

[chadman]

haha the old lfs damsel story...hahaha.....one i set up my 30g and had no clue about anything...the day that i put water in my tank my lfs said it would be fine to add fish...i added two clowns and four damsels not knowing any better....what a mistake...all are still kicking except for one damsel i would love to have those damsels out of there

 

[skipperdz]

cant you take them back in a trade in? my lfs does that. yea i use that stabilizer in my tank to start if off as well. it speeds it along nicely. in the end it is your tank...girls tank but i would still wait maybe one more week for caring for anemones sake lol.

 

[chadman]

yeah i hear yah...patience is key in this hobby i have learned that...
yeah my lfs would take the damsels back the only thing is i can't catch the darn things....i have a lot of lr in my tank, i have tried everything to get them out but nothing has worked thus far....i would have to take the whole tank apart in order to get those guys out....

 

[skipperdz]

do you havea qt you can put the rocks in? if you want them out bad enough youll move them around lol. my buddy has a flame angel and all the damsels follow him around, so he decided to keep them.

 

[chadman]

i don't have a qt....and it took me months to get my rockwork set up the way i wanted it so i won't be moving that around....the only thing i haven't tried is getting a super aggressive fish that would eat them...but then i'm afraid the clowns would be history too...and i have a lot of coral

 

[skipperdz]

yea if they'll eat damsels theyll eat corals too more than likely...and damsels are pretty aggressive themselves.

 

[chadman]

this is true damsels can be tough guys sometimes mine are pretty chill though....
how about clams...how long do people wait before adding clams?

 

[chadman]

also about the tank cycle question again...if my ammonia is at zero and there are slight trites and trates..wouldn't that mean the tank is cycling? cause you can't have trites and trates with out first having ammonia correct?

 

[skipperdz]

ammonia gets broken down into trites then trates....or trates then trites cant remember. but yea thats usually what that means. your ammonia may be gone the the trates and trites are still present and being broken down. as far as the clams go i know nothing about them sorry. i do know that people that have them put them in well establised tanks, i heard they are sensitive. i think demartini has a clam..shes pretty knowledgeable

 

[chadman]

yeah i always get the trites and trates thing mixed up myself....
i kinda figured to wait for the tank to be well established before adding clams...usually the prettiest things in this hobby tend to be the toughest to keep.....either that or can't be kept in a reef tank which sucks!! i want lions and triggers in my reef!!!

 

[skipperdz]

yea that seems to be the case, which sucks! will they go together? both are aggressive. triggers are AWESOME, i love those fish

 

[chadman]

no they won't i don't think...almost all the fish i really want are either too aggressive or aren't reef safe

 

[skipperdz]

good thing their goin in a reef, lol. well i know fish dont always end up the way they are SUPPOSE to. you very well could have a happy family in that tank of yours. natures crazy