Quick Question on Carpet

sov82

Member
My carpet's mouth is sticking outside its body now...he also looks like he's trying to push stuff out of him. This is just his way of releasing his waste, correct?
I believe thats right but please correct me if I'm wrong.
 
J

jacob_poly

Guest
sometimes....my BTA does that sometimes....but not as commonly....also when it eats it might do that to get a better grasp of the food....but it should not last a long time. If its with its insides out for extended periods of time then it might be another story. Also did the carpet eat recently? Can you post a picture?
Just the other day my BTA swallowed the shed exterior of a peppermint shrimp. After that for an hour or so its insides were a little out as it tried to spit out the stuff...but after that all was ok. Not sure what the scenario with your carpet is. Wait till someone with a carpet can advise.
 
J

jacob_poly

Guest
Never had a carpet but just wondering if the size of the chunks of food is too large? Usually I have read that the food size should preferably not exceed the length of the anemones mouth. Whats the latest on the carpet? Did it just regurgitate the piece of shrimp and go back to normal or does it still have its insides out?
 

sov82

Member
Man this carpet is crazy lol....couple questions...
Is it normal for him still to be moving around my tank looking for a spot to hang out? Its been a week now and he is still unsettled.
Also, he absolutely hates my MHs. Its weird cuz he moved up towards the top of the tank like he was looking for light and/or flow...but whenever I turn on the MHs, he puffs up and runs away...They are 175watt blueline's...about 4 months old that were running typically 4-5hours a day. Could the spectrum have changed and he doesn't like that? What is a good version of the MH bulbs to run?
Thanks.
Matt
 

sov82

Member
Today his mouth keeps on sticking out. Im not sure whats his problem. Water levels are normal. There just seems to be something wrong with him. I tried to feed him a shrimp...and it seemed like he tried to eat it but now he's just holding it and his mouth is sticking out again...the shrimp was pretty small too....ug.
 
J

jacob_poly

Guest
Hi Matt,
Cant tell from here what exactly the problem might be. But will try and see if theres anything I can recount from my brief experience that might help. The actual reason in your case might be vastly different but its good to have a checklist (and you and people reading here can add) to make sure that atleast you have everything that you can manipulate or within your control from your side taken care of.
1) I read through your other posts about the carpet and am taking it that you dont have any corals? Just wondering because I noticed that when I first added my anemone it didn't quite like all the stuff that I used to dose my tank with..and that list was long. So I stopped that after which the couple of corals that I had started to wane but my anemone perked. Not saying that you stop dosing or anything but just be judicious about how much.
2) How is your skimmer functioning? Is it doing its job without overskimming(a little is ok) or underskimming(this is more worrisome)? I used a cheap protein skimmer that I swapped out for a more efficient one which made things better in my case.
3) Whats your frequency and quantity of water change? Are you a 100% sure that you dont have too much dissolved organics lurking in your tank? I was under assumption that I had heavenly water parameters but had to learn humbly that this was not so (My new skimmer proved this). Also I am doing a 10 gallon water change per week now.
4) Is your tank temperature ideal for the anemone? Has the winter chill brought it down a little and gone unnoticed?
5) Is the anemone being harassed by any of the fish (including any clownfish you might have)? I had to get rid of a large clarkii which was trying to help too much and hurting in the bargain
6) Is your alkalinity right? I had to adjust mine a little bit. Is your salinity between 1.024 and 1.026?
7) Is your MH coming on almost immediately after the PCs? Basically do you have your lights staggered so that the W/G buildup is gradual?
8) Are you overfeeding your fish which might lead to pollution in the water?
Cant think of anymore but am sure people reading this post can append to the above list and correct me if I am wrong on anything.
Good Luck,
Jake.
 

sov82

Member
The most likely problem is that my skimmer is currently broken. I was expecting the replacement around the same time the carpet arrived but it still is not here. I have been "manually skimming" the top of the water 2-3 times a day. This is better than nothing. For whatever reason, my water temperature was down to 76 degrees today. I typically keep it around 78degrees. My heater wasn't running so I adjusted it slightly. I also added another heater in the tank incase that one isn't functioning 100%.
All your other questions are pretty much N/A.
I placed an email with the skimmer company today but got no response. I plan on calling tomorrow and currently am waiting for my RO/DI 15 gallons to finish blending to do a semi-large water change tomorrow. I just finished changing the carbon in my filter.
Thanks for your reply. Very frustrated right now that my skimmer still hasn't shown up and I don't know when it will. I have an old Seaclone that I might setup tomorrow (though last time I used it, it leaked....so trying to avoid having to tinker with that all day long...but looks like I might have to).
 
J

jacob_poly

Guest
I think thats your problem right there....hope you get that skimmer quick. I would definitely set up the seaclone without further delay. Atleast it will get some of the scum out till your new skimmer arrives. The seaclone can be set up as an insump skimmer of needed. So that way you wouldn't have to worry too much if it leaks. Thats assuming you have a sump. Else I would recommend doing small water changes often.
 
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