Ritteri and PCs

[Soldier0117]

Could I keep a ritteri in my 55 gal with a set of 260 watt PCs or should i build a halide pendant for him? I want one for my ocellaris and I know its risky either way to keep them but I want to try it.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Definitley halide. And if you want it to thrive, NO other corals or anemones in the tank. And feed it enormous amount of food. I've heard they can eat the equivalent of a few birds a week and they can get about 3 ft across too. Still, they barely thrive more than a few months...

If you want something more manageable that has a better track record and looks the same, look into a Sebae (H. crispa). Still not the best choice for aquariums, but MUCH better survivability.

 

[Soldier0117]

Thanks for tip, I really want a ritteri so I'll look into making at least one pendant halide to put over him, also I'll look for a good one and ask how well its been doing, as I trust an employee at my lfs. When I make a hailde though what kelvin should I use? And if it is 10k should i make actinic T5 or could I get a 20k halide for blue light?

 

[Devilishturtles]

It's all in preference. 14k would be a good choice between the 10 and 20. With the Ritteri though, you might want to get the T5 supplement.

I'd also make sure your LFS has it in stock for a while. Something like 95% of Ritteris die in transport or at the LFS, and more like 99% die within 6 months of having them. It's quite a dismal statistic. I would just, again, greatly reccomend the Sebae over the Ritteri.

 

[Steven Pro]

The few that I have seen that were doing well were kept under 6,500 or 10,000 K 400 watt MH's. They are light hogs.

I would strongly urge you to buy a captive raised bubble tip anemone instead. It is a much better choice.

 

[melosu58]

I think the BTA would be a better choice also.

 

[Soldier0117]

I have a bta but am bored with it. I know everyone said the ritteri is a risk but I'm willing to take it. I'm trading my bta and condi for credit for the ritteri. Also my lfs has had a ritteri in their huge reef tank for a year now and its thriving. I went to get a halide setup from that same lfs today but they were out and they told me to not worry about halides even if I bought it from them. The manger keeps a whole reef tank under T5s and said PCs would be ok for ritteri as long as he was high up and well fed and the clown hosting doubles his chances. And remember I would have bought halides from that same place but he told me to save my money.

 

[melosu58]

OK

 

[Devilishturtles]

My LFS kept a Ritteri in their 500 gallon display tank for around a year...it was beautiful...just kissing the water surface at the tip tip top. Then one day, it died and killed everything in that beautiful tank. Yeah, they'll last a while, but they will die.

If you want to listen to your LFS that is fine. That fact that he is telling you that they do so well though is another story.

Best of luck...sorry to say I think you'll need it.

 

[roka64]

I would suggest looking at drsfosterandsmith.com to see the differences in price, on lighting, between them and your LFS.
On what they told you at the LFS, remember, LFS are there to make money, we are here to share personal knowledge and experiences, not to make money.

 

[Soldier0117]

I know you're typical lfs wants to make money but like I said above I told the lfs guy I would buy a halide from him and the anemone from him. But he told me you don't need that halide. He said my 260 watt pcs would be fine if the anemone was up high and fed often. He DID say ritteris are risky no matter what you do but there is a chance he could do ok.

 

[Lance M.]

Wouldn't a 6500k MH be a better choice since it is the closest to natural sunlight and simulates the light within about the first 3-5 feet of water in the ocean? I've also read they produce more blue than 14000k and 20000k and last longer. Just what I've heard. I plan on setting test tanks up with different lighting but same corals to see what goes well with what in the near future.

 

[ccCapt]

6500K is the closest to natural sun light and about 15-20 yrs ago they were just about the only "reef" mh bulb you could get. I used them for many, many years. The thing about that temp bulb is it is somewhat yellow and you need heavy actinic supplement, unless of course you don't mind the color. A far as growth, I never really noticed a difference between that and the 15K's I use now, but I used more actinic with the 6500 than I do now with the 15K's...so I guess it sort of balanced out.

 

[Lance M.]

I've read that the spectrum in 14000k and 20000k bulbs will change faster than 6500k because there are more gases mixed together so the quality degrades faster. I don't know, can you notice any of this?

I don't mind the yellow tint if everything is doin ok. I'm use to the yellow from my FW planted tanks. lol

 

[ccCapt]

I personally never noticed anything like that, but I always change my bulbs every 12 months.
Gheez, never realized how many bulbs and how much $$ I spent on them over the years. Well, it's a reef and nothing comes cheap.