Reef Discussion

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
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35
not sure, i want them to be reasonably hardy, colourful, mixed types if possible, non aggressive and don't need spot feeding. from previous posts i'm guessing softies are my best bet?

ideally i am looking at a few corals, maybe 3-5 on the left boomie and 2-3 on the right, maybe a few on the sand and then a couple of extra fish and hopefully i'll be pretty much there. until i start mucking around again of course.
 

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
48
35
i currently am running T5s but am thinking about upgrading to radions but that might be a while away yet.
 

Agent M

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Oct 21, 2011
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You're up to the really fun part now. Start adding in corals from now on, gradually as you find things you want to buy. Your tank is still going through its algae phase, which new tanks do - so just be aware that over the next few months some coral additions may not do as well as you would like them too, results vary from tank to tank. Once your tank is 'established' or older though, it will get much easier to keep everything happy.

From your pics there is one thing I've noticed that would be worth looking into - you have a decorative seaweed in your tank called Halimeda (on the left hand side). And you also have a purple calcerous algae called Coralline algae on some of the rocks. I would encourage both to grow so they can compete a little bit with the less desirable algae - to do this they need calcium. Do you have a test kit for calcium? I'm not personally into dosing the tank with many things - but calcium is a very beneficial one. Its very easy to drip feed calcium into the sump, buy a supplement to dose manually or there are other high tech ways (such as a calcium reactor). Or you can just rely on water changes. You want to keep your calcium above 350ppm, up to 440ppm is ideal.

Some reading for you:
Halimeda - http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-04/nftt/
Coralline algae - http://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/388860/snakes-methods-for-growing-coralline-algae
Kalkwasser - the simplest method I know is using hydrated lime from Bunnings - http://atj.net.au/marineaquaria/kalkwasserdripping.html

For corals - a nice well thought out mix of low maintenance LPS coral, soft coral and things like corallimorphs, zoanthids and star polyps would all go nicely in the tank. If you want a more established look, go for a few larger pieces that are talking points first and go from there.

Some of my favourite LPS corals that are quite forgiving and keep their colour even when in less than ideal conditions are Acan lordhowensis, Scolymia australis and Blastomussa wellsi. I would suggest an Elegance coral but I'm not sure how one would go with the lions - the Elegance get quite big, can sting and have been known to (very rarely) eat the odd fish. They are a magnificent looking coral though. With all of the decorative fins on the lions I can just see an Elegance and a lion brushing past each other regularly and am not sure if that would cause a problem for either.

A large brightly coloured colony of Acan lordhowensis on the sand bed at the base of a bommie would look fantastic. If you can't find one large enough, you could group a few smaller ones together of different colours.

If you would like a list of possible suppliers shout out and we can all pitch in with coral vendors we'd recommend.
 

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
48
35
Hi AgentM

I really appreciate the input, i am doing a regular weekly testing for ph, hk, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate but dont test for calcium, i will pick a test kit up this weekend, and start dosing if needed.

Would be very keen to hear of any suppliers you guys can recommend. when do you think i can start adding corals? should i give it a few weeks to fully settle down?
and i assume i add them slowly over a month or two?

rgds
 

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
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35
Hi had a look and really like the three suggestions....
Acan lordhowensis, Scolymia australis and Blastomussa wellsi

i think thats definitely the right place for me to start, and all three are peaceful, which is a very good thing.
 

NiCd

Lead Moderator
Jul 29, 2011
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The only things you really need to worry about are alk and calc and then your phosphate and nitrate if you are getting algae issues.
 

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
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35
thanks, my diatom bloom has disappeared since i added my live rock so i assume thats a good thing. my ammonia and nitrite are fine but nitrate was 20 so did a big water change yesterday. i also changed my antiphos to see if that would help.
 

MichelleShocked

Moderate ;)
Jan 7, 2012
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Your tank is looking really great. I would suggest, as a fill-in coral, morphs (Corallimorphs) - they grow quickly, come in many colors & are tough as old nails. Agent M has pretty much covered the rest! Look 4ward to your upates!!
 

holly

Member
Jul 10, 2013
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Melbourne
You could go with a cataphilia? I am under the impression that they don't extend as much as an elegance (and that they were different variations of the same genus?).

Agree with above - acans are stunning, zoas will do pretty well, grow and look amazing @Fragalicious or @Loony's Frags
@Capital Corals has some super looking morphs (rhodactis and discosoma) at great prices plus there's a 10% discount at the moment (thereefuge)
I'd toot my own horn but I won't have stock ready to sell until December :(

Morphs are generally more economical when purchased on a large rock so you get extra live rock plus corals! Be wary of where you're putting your softies too - they all don't play well with each other generally. It's a bloodless, constant war with them.
Good luck!
 

MichelleShocked

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Jan 7, 2012
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Re: the coral chemical warfare: this can be counter-acted by using activated carbon in your filtration system. Corals with sweeper tentacles are usually best kept away from soft corals - most soft corals can be kept together safely.
 

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
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35
appreciate the help everyone, thanks!

will post again when i've done more research, cheers!
 

firebird

Member
Aug 2, 2011
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@holly-I don't think there is a coral called Cataphyllia- I think that they are all Catalaphyllia which is what we know as Elegance coral
@toby4 -acans can be aggressive-don't let them touch other corals but they are stunning corals
 

NiCd

Lead Moderator
Jul 29, 2011
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from my experience acan lowdhow cant really sting anything, I have it butted up against scollys, trackys, gsp and other bottom dwellers and they seem to get on fine, i generally find they are on the whipped end of any battle, the bowerbanksi, echinata and so on, i definitely agree they are machines at destroying everything in their path
 

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
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35
This is a bit off subject but had a bit of scare today. My coral beauty disappeared and after much hunting I've come to the conclusion that one of my lionfish must have eaten her. The thing is she was about the same size.

I am obviously quite upset but also a little bit impressed. I never thought she was in danger. These lionfish are way more predatory than I had thought.

So am looking for suggestions for a couple of large fish that can go in with my two lionfish and my blue tang and are coral safe for all the softies I am gonna get.

Cheers!
 

toby4

Member
Sep 23, 2013
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35
When I got her she was twice the size of the lionfish and that was only a couple of months ago. These guys grow really quickly.
 

MichelleShocked

Moderate ;)
Jan 7, 2012
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When I got her she was twice the size of the lionfish and that was only a couple of months ago. These guys grow really quickly.
Sorry about your coral beauty :(
Lionfish are simply flamboyant members of the Cod/Grouper family. This family will eat anything they can fit in their mouth. I recall a report from FNQ some years ago about a grouper that, when landed, disgorged a human head.
When i lived on a yacht, we had a cod living under our boat that came up to eat our cat's discarded food.
These fish are scavengers AND active hunters - they will consume anything that strays, falls or drifts into their territory.
Due to this ability to eat almost anything, the Lionfish is extremely successful & has now become a noxious pest in Florida US & the Caribbean.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080717164319.htm

I'm not sure there's too many large fish you can add to your tank without overstocking & smaller fish are out of the question.
Perhaps a different species of Tang? A Scopas or something?
 

NiCd

Lead Moderator
Jul 29, 2011
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triggers and wrasses tend to be good with lion fish, but most will outgrow your tank, as long as you have an ability to move them on its not soo much of an issue, but something to be wary of.

Usually the fu manchu's are a better choice for the lionfish lovers