Rearranging live rock

[msbreton]

I got a new green carpet anemone over the weekend and place it in the center of my tank not realizing just how big it was. In a few weeks, after I'm sure it's well adjusted, I'm thinking of adjusting my live rock layout to make more room for the new carpet anemone and also maybe build up one side higher and have more exposed sand bed. Any suggestions as to how I might get the carpet to lay flater with folds vs fully spread up verticaly? Looking for some folds for the clowns to hide in as well as maybe have it take up a little less space and not cover up so much of the rock

Also, how stressful will moving the rock around be on the fish?

Thanks!

-Mike

[TheGodParticle]

I don't know if there is a definitive answer for your question. Nems will lay, fold, go, and move wherever and whenever they want. You can try various things but in the end it will do what it wants and there is pretty much nothing you can do about it.

[Donkeykong]

How new is the tank? if the tank is fairly young moving rock around wont be to much stress as long as you limit stirring the sand. If it is over a year old, what I would do is have a 15-20% water change ready. Then after you move the rock around you can do a good water change which will remove alot of the floating debri. As for the anemone, it is going to do what it wants, that is true in it will lay how it wants to and also it will walk where ever it wants to. So even if you place it in the perfect spot it might just decided that it wants to be on the other side of the tank, that is the bad thing with anemones.

[worm5406]

Originally Posted by Donkeykong

....that is the bad thing with anemones.

If you were over 150 years and split in half to make a clone of your self wouldn't you be bad too? hahaha

[neurosis05]

How much live rock do yo plan on moving? I had a ton in my old 75 gal and the hardest part was stirring up a lot of debris making it difficult to see what I was doing.

I can't remember how many fish I had in there. But I was once told that basically every tank has ich, it just lies dormant until you stir it up and stress out the fish, which is essentially what your doing. However depending on what kind of fish you have it probably won't be an issue (tangs can be very susceptible).

And +1 on what the others have said about the anemone. I've had a lot of bulb nems but they would always move on me

[mnchartier]

Know matter what you do make sure any structures you make out of your rocks are secured and stable. Not sure on the carpet type you have but if it is a haddoni, their foot is extremely strong and will move rocks to get the footing that it wants. Yes in the wild they are seen in the sand bed but in our tanks they have a habit of footing to the glass under a rock. Mine moved my entire left rock structure (not just one rock the whole left island) to the front pane of glass.

[Mavrk]

Originally Posted by neurosis05

But I was once told that basically every tank has ich, it just lies dormant until you stir it up and stress out the fish, which is essentially what your doing.

This is incorrect. If you QT your fish properly, you will not have ich.

[mnchartier]

Originally Posted by worm5406

If you were over 150 years and split in half to make a clone of your self wouldn't you be bad too? hahaha

Not all anemones split,carpets (haddonis and gigantea) do not split/clone

[worm5406]

Originally Posted by mnchartier

Not all anemones split,carpets (haddonis and gigantea) do not split/clone

I know but it sounded funny... Just like the ex-wife... her way or the highway...

Anemone... It's way or it will float around until you watch the powerhead all night long.