I recently purchased a condy anemone

[Dan1520]

Looking for some advice...

so i'm kind of new to the saltwater hobby.. i did a lot of research on the hobby before investing and I ended up taking over someone else's tank. here is what i have/have invested into the set up.

73g. bow front tank
2 T8 bulbs a 6.5K and a 420 Acintic
1 Clarkii Clown
2 blue devil damsel
1 yellow tang
1 small yellow damsel
1 small gray damsel
1 coral banded shrimp
1 Sea Urchin
2 Chocolate Chip Star Fish

RENA XP2 canister filter
750 GPH power head
Live Rock and Sand

The tank was not in the best of shape when i took it over but everything seems to be doing much beter now.

Now on to the title of this thread...

I recently purchased a condy anemone from a local fish store. when i asked about caring for it they seemed to give good advice....after getting back though and doing a little bit of research (i know the wrong order...honestly very unlike me) it seems that they require intense lighting...the fish store did not mention this and didn't ask about what i had for lighting.

as you can see above my lighting is sufficent for a FOWLR tank...nothing spectacular but it does the job. my concern is that i do not have enough lighting for the anemone...

Looking for some input.

The other thing i find odd is that if they require so much light then why has the anemone pulled itself into a rock cave so that you can just see some tentacles sticking out between the live rock...i mean its not completely covered up but is mostly. i would think it would stick more to the edge of the rock formation.

i also found it interesting that when hand feeding the anemone... my clarkii came over and took the food from the anemone and brought it to the coral banded shrimp.

Can the anemone survive with my current set up. The store i bought it from did not seem to me using any type of HO lighting.

If i need to upgrade my lighting any recommendations would be appreciated.

Thanks!

-Dan

 

[neilanh]

You're going to need more light to support the anemone. IMO, you should return it and wait until you're ready if you do wish to keep them.

As for why he's in a rock cave, they're really not that different from any other fish or critter. They're in a new environment and need to get comfortable before they'll come out and about. It's not unusual for this behaviour to last several days to a week.

Once it does get comfortable, though, it's going to go on a quest to find as much light as possible. Condy's arent' the tamest of anemones, so don't be surprised to find fish missing either once it comes out. It will also walk itself around your tank in search of the perfect spot as well.

 

[cmor1701d]

I agree with taking it back.

 

[Dan1520]

The store i bought it from told me they usually do not take back saltwater fish. I do know of a store within a couple hours of where i live that will take saltwater fish.

I would like to be able to keep the condy. What would i need to do to make my aquarium a suitable home for this anemone.

 

[Dan1520]

Trying to look at different light fixtures...

would something like a 48 Inch 4x54 T5 HO Light Fixture be sufficient?

i am trying to look at different lighting fixtures...i was just looking an an AquaticLife.

what have you guys had good luck with/recommend for lighting fixture upgrades.

i know there are lots of choices between T5 CF MH etc.

i plan on just keeping FOWLR for quite some time.

i would like to keep this anemone if possible though.

any opinions would be appreciated.

 

[SAAVE853]

If you are handy in any way you can get a good deal on lights that you can install into a DIY hood on ebay or try hellolights.com

 

[Dan1520]

you know SAAVE853...thats an excellent idea! i am a pretty handy person and i'm actually currently going to school for electrical engineering. that website seems to be an excellent website. My tank is a bow front so doing a canopy will be a little more challenging but definitely something i can handle. or maybe i will just make a case and hang the lights.

can you point me in a right direction of what i should be making...T5 CF MH etc? i'm really not sure what the bennefits and downfalls are of each of those. how much wattage should i aim for for my 73 gallon bow front?

 

[SAAVE853]

If you get yourself some good VHO you should be able to keep almost anything except for the very high light stuff, for a real complete lighting system you need a combo of VHO and MH. My problem with MH is the price...