Anemone water chemistry?

2eyepatchs

2eyepatchs

Member
I am currently testing my water for PH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates. Which of the other water nutrients do I need to be testing for to house an anemone? No, I haven't got the anemone yet, just hoping to avoid any major disasters. I also keep hearing that Instant Ocean salt is junk. If I switch to Oceanic, will that be okay since I don't have any coral to use up the extra nutrients? :notsure:
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
IMO avoid Oceanic if you don't have corals or don't want to test for Magnesium.
What specie of Anemone are you considering?
 
2eyepatchs

2eyepatchs

Member
I have a brand new pair of true percs, so I was thinking about a bubble tip or maybe a long tentacle. Which ever one will work best for the percs.
 
T

thomas712

Guest
If you become an anemone owner the I would suggest the tests for calcium, alkalkinty, magnesium, and the ablility to test pH.
I'm one that feels that Instant Ocean is simply not made for any type of reef tank. It may be fine for fish only or FOWLER style tanks. If you use IO salt and can dose calcium and alkalinity, and don't have corals that will strip the water of these two then it might be ok.
I for one will not use it again.
Thomas
 
2eyepatchs

2eyepatchs

Member
Which brand of salt do you guys recommend? I am FOWLR for now. With IO salt my PH too low, 8.0 before I added it to the tank.
Also, is 20 gallons enough of a tank to raise an anemone?
 
T

thomas712

Guest
IO may be alright for a fowler tank or even fish only, but for reef IMO I don't recommend it. Personally I do use Oceanic sea salt.
Also IMO a 20 gallon tank is marginal, I'd rather see an anemone in a 29/30 gallon tank instead.
Thomas
 
crox

crox

Active Member
Hi Thomas
I use IO on my tank and I'm switching to a reef. What salt brand do you recomend?
 
T

thomas712

Guest
For my tank Oceanic has done well, I'm going to also try a bucket of Coralife and see how that does.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by Thomas712
For my tank Oceanic has done well, I'm going to also try a bucket of Coralife and see how that does.
IME, you don't want go there Thomas.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by Crox
Bang
What do you mean that you won't go there? What kind of salt do you use?
Typically I use whatever is on sale and cheapest except I no longer try Coralife or the "Bioassay" formula of MarineMix (the normal MarineMix is fine IMO).
I don't just switch from one to the other though. When I switch salt brands I mix the different salts together for a while so it's not a sudden change. I'm currently using Oceanic because Petsmart had it on sale.
 
2eyepatchs

2eyepatchs

Member
This whole water chemistry thing is a little confusing to me. I know that there have been millions of questions on this same subject but is there a way to raise my PH slightly without making all of my other water perimeters go crazy? I have heard that I could use baking soda but I don't want to add anything that I am not sure will work. If I use something like baking soda, will I have to add it everyday or just add it to the water I am adding to do water changes? :notsure:
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
If your ALK is low you can add Sodium carbonate (baked baking soda or Washing soda) otherwise it's best not to try to adjust your PH chemically.
What is your tanks PH range?
 
2eyepatchs

2eyepatchs

Member
When I mix my water (Instant Ocean) the PH is 8.0 with the salinity at 1.026 and the temp at 80 degrees. The PH in my tank prior to my weekly water change falls to around 7.9-7.8. I am concerned because this is very near the minimum recommended range I believe.
 
2eyepatchs

2eyepatchs

Member
I generally test my tank around 10:00 am (2 hours after lights on). I don't have any test kits for alkalinity now. I thought that I wouldn't need to test for alkalinity and calcium until I added coral or an anemone to my FOWLR. :notsure:
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Alkalinity is also important for fish only systems. It's important to test Calcium because it should be balanced even in fish only systems. ALK and Calcium are typically a lot more stable in fish only systems but they should still be tested occationally, expecially when there are water quality problems.
Try testing your PH at 5:00pm or later so you can see what the PH range for your system is. Testing only once in a day doesn't make it possible to find out the PH range.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Fireykat - That's a very interesting link but I had to remove it. The owners of Saltwaterfish.com have asked us not to post links to other websites.
Thank you
Bang
 
fireykat04

fireykat04

Member
Sorry, didn't notice it went back to the other web site; I wasn't paying attention, thought it just went to the magazine.
 
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