Starting a Reef(ish) tank..

supercichlid

supercichlid

Member
Hello.
It seems, after convering my FW 3ft tank to SW, i am going to convert my 24"x12"x12" tank into a SW tank, not a full reef tank, but i REALLY want an anemone..not caring which type..but preferably the atlantic pink-tips..(i think these are low light, too?)
Anyway..
The tank will have 3" of LS, making the water 9" from the lighting.
My question is, what is the minimum lighting i can have to keep a low-light anemone? And, can someone tell me the low light anemones? The only low light anemone i know of is the pink tip..
Any help would be greatly appreciated..
James:)
 
buzz

buzz

Active Member
BTA's don't require too much light, but need meaty foods as well. Do your homework on them, and make sure your tank is well established before putting an anemone in.
BTA's are probably the hardiest, but all anemone's are still fragile.
Water quality is very important.
 
supercichlid

supercichlid

Member
does BTA stand for bubble tip anemone? If so, i thought they needed a LOT of light?
I have had an anemone before..it was a Tube Anemone..got rid of it after about 4 weeks though, it was getting in the way in my 3ft pred tank..
How much light are we looking at? Would it possible to just have 1 tube? Well, i will have 2 15 watt normal flourescents, and then one tube of whatever i decide to get..so i guess thats three, but im only buying one..(hope that makes sense).
Meaty feedings is not a problem..
Btw, this is a pic took from my lfs, is this a bubble tip anemone?

James:)
 
buzz

buzz

Active Member
Sure looks like a Bubble Tip to me...yes BTA is bubble tip.
Some anemones need more light than others, but I have 2 -20w - 1 pink, one blue in my 29g. My BTA found a spot at the bottom of my live rock...away from the light, and it is flourishing. When it happens to need a little more light, it stretches itself up for a while, and then settles back down. Hasn't moved it's foot though. But it is growing, and thriving.
Some people will tell you that all anemones need metal halides...or just that they all need a lot of light.
I'm sorry but that simply isn't true. There are a lot of people on this board who have had very good success with anemones, particularly BTA's, who will tell you that feeding is more important.
No...BTA's do not need as much light as other anemones.
 
supercichlid

supercichlid

Member
Well, my lighting will be 2 15 watt flourescent tubes and 1 actinic tube that will be 25 watt..so thats 55 watts.
Is this enough for a bta? and what about a pink tip anemone? Some people are saying yes, some saying no..
 
buzz

buzz

Active Member
IMO, it is enough for a BTA...but I am not familiar with pink tips, so I can't say there.
 
sistrmary

sistrmary

Member
Perhaps a bubbletip, but really do sit on the idea for a while. Let your water establish. They run anywhere from 30-45 dollars in a LFS, so it's a costly thing to hurry.
If you're talking about a sebae anemone (It's early, and at the moment, that's the only response that came into my head with the words "pink tip") that's a big fat no. Sebae's (h. crispa or h. malu..the name is commonly used for both) require more light than most anemones and near perfect water conditions.
However, if it's a condylactus anemone (there are billions. I'm betting there are a few with pink tips lol) it would probably be okay...since they're seemingly tanks as long as they're fed well. If it is a condy, you'll want to watch your scarlet legged hermits since they're natural predators of some condy anemones.
Oh and yes, that's a bubbletip. Easily identified by the maroon clown in it lol (well, that and the swollen tips) Maroons rarely take to anything else. It's a nice one.
 
jonthefb

jonthefb

Active Member
im gonna have to disagree with buzz on this one. anemone's need a LOT of light. no matter what kind, even condy's. they do feed on the things they catch with their nematocysts, but they also derive much of their energy from the zooxanthellae that live in their bodies that convert sunlight into energy, there fore, you must porvide a lot of light to keep the zooxanthellae alive. even if you had an anemone under your proposed lighting and fed it all the time it will still slowly waste away because of the lack of zooxanthellae. If you really want to do it and do it right, build yourself a nice little canopy and then get like a pc retro kit or even mh. and really research an anemone before you buy it. wait until your tank is mature (6 mos-1year) and then if you feel comfortable go ahead, but definately beef up your lighting, for the animal's sake!
good luck
jon
 
buzz

buzz

Active Member
I'm not saying they don't need light...just that they don't need as much as some other anemones.
Maybe mine's the exception, but it's eating, growing and thriving...
I do have a bit more light than James, but not by that much...and my BTA is a happy camper...:p
 
jonthefb

jonthefb

Active Member
i agree buzz, that they are a little easier and less demanding than some of the anemone species out there, but i cant stress enough how important lighting is to anemones. i have heard employees tell people at lfs's tha tanemones dont need any light to live, and i of course have to jump in and open my big friggin mouth :)
p.s. good luck with yours hope it lives a long and healthy life!
jon
 
j21kickster

j21kickster

Active Member
jon- i am going to have to agree and disagree on the importance of light to the anemones- good lighting should be used -but the food that the consume after photosyenthsis are sugars, mostly, just as in plants- C6H12O6- glucose a sugar, one of the main products of photosyenthsis, is consumed by plants, this however, will not keep a plant alive forever- the require the intake of external nutrients- nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium ect. so the plant as well as the anemone cannot survive on just light- and not even all anemones need much light- aptasia, for example will grow in the darkest corners, as well as curley cues- ( even noone likes those ones) Rock anemones do very well in low light provided the are fed enough-
This brings me to my next point that lighting is not the limiting factor- it is how much you feed them- there is a reason why anemones sting- it is not just for protection- it is also to capture and kill small animals- this is why they have the ability to fold their tentacles, to bring food to their mouth- if the relied almost all on light they would just sit there and absorb nutrients from the water.- So to sum it all up you could have an anemone under MH and have it die of starvation or you could have one under PC, VHO, and feed them well and have it for a long time. So you can spend a fortune on lights to keep your favorite anemone- but if you neglect to feed it you might not have it for as long as you would like.
PS- a well lit tank is still a good idea though- dont let this sound like im saying they can be grown in the dark- :)
 
jonthefb

jonthefb

Active Member
i totally agree with you kickster ( i think i feed my BTA several times a week) but i dont think that lighting for these guys is stressed enough. i think that NO is way below par, and that an anemone needs to be under VHO or higher. Glucose as well as oxygen are both products of photosynthesis, and at the same tiem that the anemone is using th esimple sugars as energy it is also using the oxygent for respirstion (e.g. digestioin, etc.) i am not sayign to throw an anemone in a highly illuminated tank w/o feeding it, it will die, i just want to stress how important it is if you are going to keep a commensal anemone such as a BT or carpet, or Sebae, ot have the proper illumination for the health and well-being of the animal!
:D ;) :D
a great discussion though, i might add
good luck
jon
 
j21kickster

j21kickster

Active Member
glad we agree- so good light and good feeding are the 2 most important factors, assuming water is good to begin with.:)
 
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