Lost my anenome today

Why not just try something easier than an anemone? Don't give it up because of losing an anemone. Try fish only with live rock for a while. You'll succeed.

 

What kind was it? Mine is doing great in my bio.

 

Nitrates are not good on Nems. Nanos are not the best place for Nems, but it can be don't don't get me wrong. You are just going at it too quickly. How long has the tank be running?

 

Nems should only be placed in a tank that has been running for 6 months to a year IMO. 12g is too small a tank for them as they will outgrow it quickly if cared for properly. Begin slowly. Add a fish or 2, nano fish, and after getting water params stable for a few months, then add some softies like shrooms, a zoa or 2, etc... The margin of error is minu'te with a 12g because of such a small amount of water.

 

Get rid of the damsels and replace them with something you can enjoy for a long time. A couple of clowns, a bicolor blenny, a gobie or two and you are in business.

 

I like damsels myself.

 

just so you know

clownfish are damsels.

 

I used hydrogen peroxide to spot treat rocks then removed the other algae manually. Here is a thread that I followed that walked me through the process. It was a nano thread so it would be perfect for you 12g.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2082359

 

Invest in an RODI unit and you'll have great water, that would be a good start imo. Or you can keep lugging water from a store, but that get's old fast + expensive. Invest in a decent skimmer. Do regular water changes of ~10-25% of your total water volume. Do them weekly or every other week until your parameters are stable. Get a decent test kit and test your parameters weekly. Good water, stable parameters = healthy tank, THEN you can consider adding something. LTA can get big, if you have your heart set on an anemone, consider something that doesn't get so large. They also need a lot of light, turning your lights off for 2 days was it(?) surely put the nails in the coffin for your anemone :/ Back up, get the above under control, and your algae problem should diminish.

 

Don't give up man...thats what this hobby teaches us..we learn from our failures and eventually the failures become knowledge on what to do and what not to do. I have had luck target feeding my anemone a little rod's foods every now and then and he loves it...the next day and it is fully extended and vibrant. As far as water paramaters... I am new at the whole saltwater thing but pick a good salt meant for reef tanks and get a schedule down on water changes and be religious about it...thats what I have done and my water parameters just seemed to come naturally. I have a 120 gallon and do bi-weekly 15% water changes but I imagine a smaller tank like your will probably benefit from weekly changes. Also like a previous memebr suggested...maybe try a FOWLR for a little while and get your parameters in check and then move up to some easy to keep inverts and corals. i had a FOWLR from May of 2012 up until zSeptember 2012 and am just now getting into inverts and corals as i am getting my confidence level up on my water parameters and tank husbandry skills. Again...don't give up on this.