Took the plunge...!!!

belindamotion

belindamotion

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After 5 months of "cycle" I decided that today was the day...still haven't gotten my Refractometer and neither do I have my Test Kits, but I knew I just had to get something in the Tank or else it would end up in the Garage...so out we went and ended up getting 2KG extra LR..2 Nemo's, 1 Cleaner Shrimp and a Nennie...you can't have Nemo's if you don't bring their "house" with...haha (IMO)

Nemo's are happy...atleast I think they are...and the Shrimp is pigging himself out with all those gogga's all over my Tank...The Nennie isn't mounted so the SEIO Pump is currently switched off so he can walk around and latch on somewhere...then the pump goes on tomorrow and he can move to wherever he wants to go, if he doesn't like he's spot...when he's "settled" I add my Mushrooms...Zoas...

Nemos
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Shrimp
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Nennie just submerged
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Nennie squashed in a corner
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Extra LR to change my lay-out..hopefully better...
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The LR is actually better arranged than what my picture shows...
 
Finally you got some live stock! I would suggest reading up on anemones :) I dont know much about them but normally they need a lot of light and a 9month old tank.. but as I said, I dont know much about them :)
 
congrats on the first introductions to your tank belinda :) always exciting.

clowns and cleaner shrimps will do so well in that tank and they are excelent choices.

Nennie, not so good :( one of the biggest misconceptions about clowns is that they 'NEED a nennie to host in' they absolutley do NOT. Most clown species will host in a number of things, most commonly a soft coral such as pincushion or other leathers. These are FAR easier to keep than nennies, especially when one first starts out and they are FAR better choices as an organism to host your clowns.

Anenomies are rather advanced reefing im afraid to inform you, and require specific tanks in order to thrive. Your nano doesnt look like its really that suited to having nennies in it even though ypou started with an easier to keep species the green bubble tip anenome.

i realy would suggest taking that nennie back and save yourself heartach later on. in nanos the parameters shift often and fast (low water vollume) and there is often insufficient light, so nennies move. they will get sucked into the power head and that will be the death of not only your nennie but the entire system.

Please seriously reconsider having that nennie and replace it with a soft coral that your clowns can be hosted by.
 
Well done on being so patient with the whole cycle thing and congrats on your first live stock. I would have to agree with Crispin on the nenny though not ideal in this situation.
 
also there is no guarantee that the clowns will host in anything :) .. So rather just tell yourself that they werent gonna host anyway.. that way you will feel better about returning it :) .. Get some sweet fire fish instead :)
 
Tremayn said:
also there is no guarantee that the clowns will host in anything :) .. So rather just tell yourself that they werent gonna host anyway..




When the Nennie got placed in the Tank..the Nemo's went to him straight away, but of cause he was all curled up....

I'm not a stubborn person but neither do I just give up...I've only had negative input regarding my Nennie...Is everybody seriously telling me that I'm just to plain stupid to care for a Nennie...??? Trust me...no offense taken...!!! I'm a "worst case scenario" person by nature...hence my 5 almost 6 month "cycle...I get that I'm inexperienced and hence everybody's feedback leaning towards "taking it back"...but I'm a SAHM...all the time in the world to take whatever Tests I need to take to ensure it stays alive...multiple times a day if I need too!!!

So can I please have all the reasons why I need to take it back as it has not crossed my mind yet as the Nennie is "family" now and I have to adjust according to his needs and learn...then if I feel that I'm truely to inexperienced I will take back to the Shop...
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belindamotion said:
I'm not a stubborn person but neither do I just give up...I've only had negative input regarding my Nennie...Is everybody seriously telling me that I'm just to plain stupid to care for a Nennie...??? Trust me...no offense taken...!!! I'm a "worst case scenario" person by nature...hence my 5 almost 6 month "cycle...I get that I'm inexperienced and hence everybody's feedback leaning towards "taking it back"...but I'm a SAHM...all the time in the world to take whatever Tests I need to take to ensure it stays alive...multiple times a day if I need too!!!
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Its all down to the inadequate lighting!!

Your cycle was perfect, and if the conditions are correct for an Anemone they will be fairly easy to care for....But your lighting is too weak and it wont do well under it and cause greater problems for you down the line...Rather safe than sorry
 
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Nennie

Well said - go for it - some of the guys on this forum only want to criticise!
We all end up doing our own thing & some times wed learn from our mistakes -
I have a rock of scrooms & will try to frag for you.

Listen learn & then do what you want!
 
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Save yourself the pain and take the nennie back if you can. They are wonderful strange creatures but VERY hard to keep alive if you a new to the game. I lost my nennie after 3 months and I was heartbreaking, nothing you can do but to watch it wither away and die and I had a halide on my tank. And my tank was 6 months old!
 
eric.f said:
Well said - go for it - some of the guys on this forum only want to criticise!
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I will take it that includes me as i agreed with Crispin, maybe we just trying to avoid another potential disaster and as that tank stands at the moment its not if but when.
belindamotion said:
Is everybody seriously telling me that I'm just to plain stupid to care for a Nennie...??? Trust me...no offense taken...!!! I'm a "worst case scenario" person by nature
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Uhm, no, not at all, but experience does count for something in this hobby. In a worst case scenario consideration would be given to the lighting in the system, the age of the system to support a nenny and the covering of the inlet of the circulation pumps so the nenny does not become mince meat and kill all other live stock in the tank. Research would show that a a nenny would settle where it is happy with water flow as well as lighting conditions, so by switching the pump off it may be happy with lighting but looking for more water flow, which it wont find at the moment. Now a nenny may settle for a while but i can almost guarantee you that it will move again(especially the Bubble Tips) as conditions change in the tank and it normally does it at night, so watch those pump inlets. If your lighting is insufficient the nenny will die a very slow death over the next 6months to a year. Really at the end of the day advice here on MASA is meant to be given, it doesn't have to be taken. I can assure you no offence or negativity was meant, only concern for the well being of your livestock.
 
It doesn't have anything to do with skill, the fact is, your tank is not mature enough. Its like keeping a camel in Canada. The conditions aren't ready yet.

I'm sure you can keep the nennie at the LFS and pick it up again in 3 months time...
 
Or untill you get test kits as well as better lighting ,once you have this and you still want to keep it,that is if no one can change your mind then proper feeding will need to be done to sustain the nemmie.My thoughts.
 
you got a Boyu TL 450, with
one for the "blue light" and the other one for the "white light"...I was told in the store that both should be on together...my problem is that my Fan only works if the "light" is on....
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Bubble tip anemones, generally they need less light than other anemones. Carpets etc, need better light. So unless you change your canopy to have at least a 150W metal halide over the tank, (or one of those new LED units that is pricey but they give same PAR as 150W MH), then yes, your lights lack the punch needed to keep anemones. Seeing that it already moved up the live rock stack already indicates that its searching for more light.

Other option you got is to up the light you got, maybe fit another T5 unit, if you can. With 4 tubes, you might be able to have enough PAR to keep the anemone. But you need somebody with PAR reader to come around and confirm what is your reading on top of your LR stack.
 
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Thanks guys...I do appreciate the Feedback and now atleast I know "why" you suggest I take it back instead of just saying "take it back"...ok...my biggest problem is my pump(mince meat)...can I remove it...? Would my "rainbar" supply enough "flow"...? I only added the pump in the first place to help bring Temp down as the previous place could easily reach 30 degrees...new place averages around 24 degrees in Summer...My question then, if "rainbar" flow is not enough...can I do a mod and increase it...?

Second problem and also major problem...lighting sigh...anybody with my Tank and has done a mod on theirs...please feel free to add input and steer me in the right direction to find the extra lights that I need and how I can remove my "brackets" in my Hood...sure I saw some guys do that...I would appreciate help in that before having to break off my Hood...
 
To break things down a bit, water movement is needed by all corals and nenny's for respiration, they can literally suffocate in their own waste if there is not enough water flow. Light is used as a source of food as the nenny needs to be able to photosynthesize (without going into too much detail about the zooanthelia etc) and is an important part of the well being of the nenny.
 
Alan said:
To break things down a bit, water movement is needed by all corals and nenny's for respiration, they can literally suffocate in their own waste if there is not enough water flow. Light is used as a source of food as the nenny needs to be able to photosynthesize (without going into too much detail about the zooanthelia etc) and is an important part of the well being of the nenny.
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So the "rainbar" flow would not be sufficient...? Again..can a person do a mod on it to increase flow...? Atleast that route it won't ever become mince meat... I'm also now worried that my SEIO Pump might be to strong for my TL-450...hate to see the Shrimp go flying...
 
hey belinda,I just got your pm and replied before I had a look here,I know some of the guys have come across as doomsday speakers lol but I really believe they only have good intentions.

Like I said via pm there are 3 main problems with keeping nennies in such small tanks.

1.Lighting is insufficeint and when enough is provided it then leads to heat issues.
2.Power head inlets and even the inlet to the back wall need to be made nennie proof...this is usually done by increasing the surface area or making special chambers for the power heads,look at my magnifica cube thread for how I done mine....in the small confines of a nano this might be extremely diffcult and WHEN(i agree 100% with alan here,as ive kept nemmies for years) it moves it will becomes mince meat and kill itself and your tank.
3.Water parameters in a nano are just too hard to maintain consistently in such a small volume and anemones are sensitive to this,more so than other corals.SPS are also sensitive hence very few people are successfully keeping sps in nanos.(The analogy posted by a member here is almost correct lol like keeping a camel in canada,you going to need lots of heaters)in this case you will proberly require ALOT of water changes maybe even once or twice each week.

It can be done,but I personally dont think its worth the effort hence when I had my kitchen nano I didnt keep any anemones even though i had a 150w mh because of the other two considerations.look at my other two tanks they both have anemones(infact ALL my other marine tanks in the past always had anemones).

Good luck if you decide to keep it,make sure all three bases are covered.
 
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