Is my Anemone dead*PICs*

[paintballa]

i got this tank used from my friend 2 days ago. i am using 2 mine compact fluorescent 50/50 10 watts each.
does it look dead? it does not seem to be fully inflated?
what kind of light bulbs should i use?

 

[paintballa]

pic2

 

[blemmy_guy]

I dont think so, usually when they die, they will look really bad and there tenticles will not be out much at all, they do weird things all the time dont worry yet! And i could be wrong but i really think its ok for now. the brighter the lights the better. Todd

 

[thomas712]

Originally posted by Paintballa
. i am using 2 compact fluorescent 50/50 10 watts each.

And there is your problem---Lighting--not enough
do I read that correctly that you have a total of 20 watts?
Thomas

 

[paintballa]

ya, my friend bought the lights because they were good for corals and such. the box even said like "coral life" on it. also the box says 1 compact fluprecent light eguals 50 watts from an incondecent bulb.

 

[viper_930]

Coralife would be the brand name. And the amount of incandescent lighting it is equal to is irrelevant. Don't go by that, use what the PC bulb puts out. 20 watts total is not enough.
IMO you should bring that anemone to a LFS or give it to another friend. You can fit 96 watts PC lighting, but that still is not enough IME. Also, a 10g is not big enough for that anemone. Water parameters fluctuate much more in smaller tanks.
If you really want to keep it, then the next step would be metal halides.

 

[spankey]

Paint--
That looks like a florida condi? Am i correct? I have the same one in my tank and I have 4 watts per gallon over it and it thrives... I rescued him from *****.. They had him in a tank with oh say 50 fish, and the tank had 1 NO bulb over it.. Not even 30 watts and the tank was roughly 40 gallons... It was a large top tank, if you have ever been to *****.. Anyrate.. I would upgrade that lighting....I hear alot of people using the 96 watt powerquad over thier 10 gallons and they love it.. Plus they can do just about any coral they wish seeing how that would give you 9 watts per gallon....
Here is a pic of my clarkki clown getting a rub down from his anemome buddy....

You should notice a difference right away when you increase your lighting.... Lighting can be very frustrating....And EXPENSIVE....ARGGGG....
Good luck and enjoy that anenome.. Its the center piece of my tank and everyone whom comes to my house just sits and watches the clown and him live it up.... Its a hoot....
Spankey:joy:

 

[viper_930]

Originally posted by spankey
I would upgrade that lighting....I hear alot of people using the 96 watt powerquad over thier 10 gallons and they love it.. Plus they can do just about any coral they wish seeing how that would give you 9 watts per gallon....
Plz don't use the watts per gallon formula. There are a lot of variables involved and that formula is far from accurate.
ex. a 9 watt PC bulb over one of those .75 gallon nanos would give you over 10 watts per gallon, but not everything can live under 9 watts of light.

 

[spankey]

I'd hate to say it but 96 watts over a standard 10 gallon tank is MORE than enough light to house almost anything...Trust me I am not trying to start an argument here in anyway. But these types of anenomes are the easiest and least light required. They are a great species for beginers.
So sorry to use the watts per gallon analogy... But I am more than sure that if he has a 96 watt 10,000k and acintic mixed.. He can house most coral species and such,
Although Viper is right, a 10 gallon is way to small to house one of these... And they are sensitive to water fluctuations...I'd hate to see the little guy die if your tank for some reason spikes for any apparant reason.... I had a 20 gallon and the water remained perfect all the time, although I was running a skimmer and had chaeto in my refugium to help eat up the nitrates and such...Also water changes every week...
If I were you I would return the anenome to the store.. I mean if you explain that you read up on its requirements and it requires a tank no smaller thank a 20 gallon and the light it requires. They should refund your money... They also, that is if its a reputable pet store, should have explained to you about housing one of these. To me if you bought it from a pet store, they are most at fault than you... A good pet store is not just out for money.. They want to maintain a steady customer base... Thats why most pet stores get a bad rap.. They don't bother to educate the hobbiest's and they get extremly upset when you try to share your knowledge.... Its a tough business.. I've been in it... Any rate, use your best judgement and read up on the type of anenome you have.. Maybee you could upgrade your tank and such.....
Spankey

 

[thomas712]

I see three things working against you hear.
1. the lighting. Now if you had the 96 watt PC I would feel better about your success. I think the watts per gallon rule is something to look at with larger tanks but becomes less important with smaller tanks and is only one thing to look at. The larger deeper tanks can only factor the wpgrule if using MH lighting.
2. the tank size. I firmly believe that anemones don't belong in nano tanks less than 29 gallon. bad things can happen in small tanks really fast.
3. If it is a condy then they are not normal hosts for clownfish. But it can happen.
Although I might strongly urge you to take it back or give it to someone who has the proper lighting, I would liketo know how you aquired it. Did it come with your friends tank or did you go out and pick it up within the last couple of days? Also if you only got this tank a few days ago, are you checking to see if you have had any spikes as a result of the move? It could be reacting to more than just lighting issues.
Thomas

 

[paintballa]

nice fish sparky :cheer:
i bought the pink tipped anemone with the tank. is was well and pretty large wen it was at my friends house. but now its kinda floppy.
he told me the tank already had a spike in it and killed 2 of his clownfish. the tank should be fine now? wats should the salt level be at. last time i checked it was 1.017
do u think they will let me return it if i got it from a friend?

 

[viper_930]

Originally posted by Paintballa
he told me the tank already had a spike in it and killed 2 of his clownfish. the tank should be fine now? wats should the salt level be at. last time i checked it was 1.017
Nope, the spike (during the cycle) is not the only time when the parameters fluctuate. The salt should be at 1.025 give or take a .001.
The LFS most likely would let you return it, but you just might not get any store credit in return. Some LFS have different policies than others.

 

[paintballa]

he said like nitrus or sumthing went,because it was a new tank, up a little and killed the fish.

 

[viper_930]

The ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates were proably what he was talking about. But just because these spiked and started the cycle, doesn't mean that these and other water parameters would not change in the future.

 

[paintballa]

ill get a water sample to me LFS

 

[viper_930]

Yea, that would be a good idea to make sure everything is in place, but it wouldn't help water stability. The water parameters would still change up and down, and that is very bad with an anemone.

 

[22caddy]

When you move a tank, the sand gets stirred up. No way around it. Because of this, you will see a mini cycle. Detritus, any pockets of nitrogen caught in the sand bed would get mixed up in the water. I did this by error one time and had a mini cycle that lasted 18 hours. You don't have enough light to keep an anemone or the water quantity. It can be done by the more experienced, but even then it is a pita. Get some test kits and don't rely on the LFS to test your water. If you want to keep the anemone, first get better lighting. Second, get a larger tank.