5g nano with a 29g sump

I am thinking about setting up an Anemone tank. I have an extra 5g tank just laying around and a extra 29g.There is no challenge to setting up a 29g, so I am setting up the 5. I am going to make it a Species only Anemone tank with some clowns. So I will use a overbox or possibly drill out the 5g and install overflows, not sure yet. Use a 70w MH pendant so that should give me 14wpg.

Any comments?

 

Go for it, Id love to see pics when its done

 

Brian after thinking about it for awhile, I wouldn't do it! A 5gallon tank is way to small and as you know anemone's are very difficult to keep in a large tank, and putting them in a 5 gallon will nto allot you the parameters to keep them IMO.
I may be wrong it just seems that the tank will be too difficult to keep stable temp, water parameters, constant enchange of CO2 and DO, and the waste produced by the anemone, not to mention your Clowns, through respiration etc. I don't think can be reconciled!
Maybe try it in your 29gallon and use the 5 gallon as a small sump/ refugium>
Just a suggestion dude!
Let us know what you decide!
TOM

 

Yea but he's going to have the 29G sump. So that's a total of 34Gallons. I think you should be ok.

 

if the tank turns over 20+ times a hour, i think it should be fine on the paramets. The 29g is for the stability. fill it up about 23 gallons, leave room in case the tank decides to totally drain, and have live rock and macro algae in the sump/refugium. The sump would be like a total other tank minus waste. Have the heater, skimmer and everything else in the 29, so really the 5 would be just a side part of the 29, but its all that will be seen.

 

Oh, I thought you were just going to set up a 5 gallon tank!!!!!!!!
that is a different story!

 

PM Jason McKenzie - he had a 40 hex tank like that if I recall for a while.

Tom is right to be concerned as anemones are delicate. An important question is what kind of anemone? Or how long will you break in the tank before adding the anemone?

If you take your time with it and add a hardier anemone down the road it could work I think..

MY EXPERIENCE - I tried a difficult to keep anemone in a 20 hex with a Remora and a 150w halide and a TetraTec surge going on. The tank was not quite a year old. The anemone did not live. Point is - hardware is not the whole picture.

Hope this helps...

 

Since you said that you are looking for a challenge, it sounds like a good project. I would love to see which animals you choose to keep. As well as monitor your progress. Sounds very interesting. ;D Do it Do it.. You wanna do it? lol

 

To tell the truth I keep anenomies just fine in a 5 gallon tank. I've had some for six months... Just anenomies and crabs in there very pretty. It has no filtration at all. Just an oxygen stone. The tank is fully cycled BUT all the water in there comes from the sea. I don't even top it up with RODI water... when the water evaps I just pour everything out and refill the whole tank with natural sea water. Oh the lights I might add are just household flourescent bulbs plugged into the standard 5Gal fishtank hood.