Someone told me in another forum that anemones do well in T-5 fluorescent lighting. I thought this couldn't be correct because they don't put out a ton of light and anemones require intensive light. So my question is this, will anemones do well under a T-5 light that would probably be about 30" Thanks.
I had my BTA under PC's and it did well about half way up the tank. Under the Solaris it has moved to the bottom of the tank. It had stayed in the same place for nearly a year. It started wandering before I got the Solaris but was still always in the top half of the tank. Once I got the Solaris it moved its wondering to the bottom half or the back of the tank. I thought it had settled down as it hadn't moved for a few weeks but this week it is up to its old tricks.
I'm not sure what kind. I want something that a occelaris clown will host in. I like the way carpets look. The kind really doesn't matter to me, just something a occelaris clown will host in. I thought I couldn't have a anemone but now that I'm hearing I can use T-5 lighting for one I want to look back into it, because I can actually afford T-5.
How closely are you going to pack your T5's and how many will you have? How long will they be? Carpets are beautiful but get big and can be fish eaters.
I imagine they would be about 30", typical T-5 lights. I like them because they are cheap. Probably double bulbs. I do not know a lot about lights of this kind, I just started looking into the option.
Maybe not a carpet then.
What kind is relatively beginner friendly, won't attack other fish, will host a couple occelaris clowns, and would survive in T-5 lighting.
I don't think that they come in 30", its 24" or 36". The 36" bulbs are 39 watts and I don't think that any anemone would be happy under 2 of them. You would be better off with PC's.
I had my BTA under 130 watt PC's for a year and it did OK but mostly lost its bubbles. I got my Solaris about 3 months ago and the bubbles are coming back.
I've seen Tomato Clowns(wild and tank-bred) host 90% of the Anemones on the list Bobby posted.
Once they settle in,the agression level tends to drop way down,localizing to the area around the anemone itself.And then they seem pretty content.
Ocellaris are not as likely to rush into any anemone except a Carpet.
So,IMO,a Tomato clown and a Bubble tip would be the way to go.
You could keep an anemone under T-5 lights but a PC fixture would be your better bet. You would spend more at first on the fixture but the light is a little more intense and the bulbs last longer than T-5s so you won't be replacing worn out bulbs as often.
In my experience, lighting doesn't seem to be as important for anemones. Of course this depends on the species of anemone(actually the color, you can research it if you want, thats half the fun of this hobby!). I say as important because it is important, but to me flow is more important than lighting. Flow dictates the final position of the anemone in your tank. With your lights you know where the anemone will be in the tank by knowing the intensity of your lights. The lower the intensity(wattage) of the lights the higher in the tank the anemone will be. Flow on the other hand dictates where the anemone will be in all other aspects. Will it be on the left, the right, in the back, under a cliff, in a crevice, can you see it in plain view? Flow seems to have more duties than lighting huh? If you can keep soft corals under your lighting scheme then an anemone can be kept just fine. I will warn that some species get very large and should not be kept in smaller tanks. I suggest going with a green brown bubble tip anemone. They don't need high intensity light as long as they are kept fed and are in the right kind of flow. Make sure there is a random flow in your tank and the water moves a good bit. The anemone will move to where it wants. You can try and change the flow directions to get it to move to where you want if it doesn't settle in a viewable place but this can be tricky. Also make sure to test your parameters before even going to the store to get the anemone. If there is any test that reads too high(or too low in the case of pH) wait until the tests are reading normal. Make sure you acclimate it slowly and you should be ok. The lights need to be off and it might be a good idea to shut you pumps off until the anemone is stuck to something. If it gets caught in a current and hasn't attached it can get blown around and possibly sucked into a pump!(ouch!) Anemones are usually wild caught and there are people who are against keeping them in a tank but it can be done no problem if you plan it out right and keep up with husbandry. Also do a lot of research! Google search anemones and find out as much about them as possible! Good luck and let us know how you do!
__________________ Clarence 55g sumpless mixed reef(soon to be 120g)
DSB(2 to 6 inches)aprox. 80 lbs,LR aprox. 60 t0 80 lbs.,Coralife 220 Protein Skimmer,CPR HOB Refugium with Fiji Mud Member of TRS Member of SDMAS
RIP Sarracino Ciro 12/16/04 - 4/3/08
Last edited by Pescaiolo; 09-05-2007 at 01:21 PM.
Reason: Forgot to proofread, sorry!
Thanks!
Everyone here has been so helpful
If I hadn't found this sight I probably would have quit the hobby before I began.
I'm still in the process of deciding what tank to use, my 36 gallon or buy and aquapod 24. Previously I said I was doing the 36 but I love the aquapod design, I'll keep you posted!
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