is the system experiencing an overload?

[OceanicApe]

Got a few questions about your lighting setup. You've got T5 lighting with 2 actinic bulbs, but what's the total number of tubes you're running? How many of those are white ones? And are they each equipped with their own reflector?

ok so craftyx is my buddy we live in florida same state he's got that t5 lighting thingy with 2 white bulbs 18k each not 16k like i thought and i told him straight up the anenome's gonna kick the bucket and take all his fish with it 'cause the lighting just ain't enough but he won't listen to me says it's all good my tank's only 2 feet deep so maybe that's what he's thinking if ur tank's like super deep then yeah it's gonna die for sure and btw i know the people who gave us the free fish not him so yeah i got the firtideflow and 2 chromis those are mine i asked for 1 purple firtideflow 5 chromis and a yellow eye tang and i gave him the yellow eye tang and the firtideflow for now 'til i cycle my tank and i'm not taking the yellow eye tang back and yeah he asked for the frogspawn and 2 clownfish with the anenome they're like best buds or something and um so is he right about the anenome being okay with just 2 bulbs 'cause he won't listen to me

[rileyon]

No way it'll survive at 2 feet, that's basically the max depth T5s can penetrate with any decent amount of light. The anemone will probably just crawl up the rockwork to the highest point, searching for more light, and then slowly wither away.

[felinxo]

I'm with Ben on this, the carpet anemone's gonna be searching for a brighter spot, and it'll likely cause chaos in its wake. If you've got coflakes, they'll probably get damaged, and with powerheads, the anemone might end up stuck and smashed. One possible solution is creating a cave at the top of the tank, but it's a carpet anemone, so it'll want to be on the bottom with its foot in the sand and on rockwork. You could try making a cave with sand, it's worth a shot, but honestly, I'd try finding a more suitable home for it.

If things go wrong and the anemone dies, do a massive water change ASAP, and run some activated carbon too. I reckon you'll feel pretty bad when you realize the anemone shouldn't be in your tank to begin with.

[OceanicApe]

I've got a 55 gallon reef tank that's been running for 6 months - that's about 250 liters for those who think in metric.

My tank's got a few inhabitants already:
- A juvenile blue spot (naso?) tang - don't worry, I'm upgrading to a bigger tank in March.
- 2 peppermint shrimp
- 1 arrow crab with no claws - a wrasse tore it to bits, but it's still kicking after 3 weeks
- 1 small hammer coflake frag
- 1 small zooanthid frag
- 1 mangrove tree bud

I recently scored some free fish and corals from a neighbor's 225 gallon reef tank. I reserved:
- 2 mated pairs of percula clowns with a host carpet anemone
- 1 firtideflow or dartfish
- 5 chromis
- 1 huge frogspawn coflake
- 1 yellow eye tang

Now I'm worried I might've bitten off more than I can chew. Will adding all these fish and corals overload my tank and cause a spike in ammonia and nitrite? Should I add some to my main tank and some to my hospital tank, wait a week, then transfer the fish from the hospital tank to the main one?

I'm glad he's getting called out on this - he said the anemone was only 8 inches in diameter, but I know it's at least a foot, maybe more. It was in a huge 225 gallon tank, so I know it needs a lot of space and light. I really hope he'll listen to you guys and give it to someone who can actually care for it, it would be a shame if it died in his tank. I'll try to convince him to give it away, thanks for the advice.

[Falcon9]

In a tank as shallow as 2 feet, I'd say you're looking at a minimum of 250W halide lighting for a carpet anemone, but to be honest, 400W would be a safer bet. These carpets are notorious for being one of the most light-hungry nems out there, and they have a pretty dismal survival rate to boot. And when they do thrive, they can be a bit of a handful - they'll happily snack on any fish that stray too close, including their clownfish hosts.

Unless you've got a major lighting upgrade in the works, and I'm talking a serious investment of around £600 for a decent new setup, I'd strongly advise against keeping the nem. It's just not worth the risk.