How much light?

InvaderJim

Coral Junkie
I ordered a Coralife 96w quad fixture for my 10g nano and I was wondering what (if any) sps I could keep in it? I'm quite fond of a few kinds Montipora so that's why I am asking. It says they need moderate lighting, which is the same as some of the LPS, so I was wondering if they would do ok under that fixture. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks
 
I don't like to give advice that I don't have first hand information on, sorry. People seem to say that Monti Caps are less forgiving then montipora digita and so I would assume that digita would be ok as well, but you should check with more experienced people on that issue.
 
it won't hurt to try out frags first to test your system... if you can keep a 1'' frag alive and have it grow under PC's, you can experiment with other types. IME, monti digis and monti caps can survive and grow under PC's, but eventually lose some color.
 
Ok I will try out a few frags. Do they lose a substantial amount of color? Or is it more of just a slight loss?
 
I actually have the same set-up (10 gal with 96 w) that I am playing around with to eventually be my stony coral quarantine tank. In this tank I have gotten orange Montipora "digitata" to color up and grow. I havn't had the Acropora long enough to make any real claims to the 96w effectiveness but so far they have kept their color and look very healthy. I have grown in other tanks (36 gallon with 2 x 65 w pc) orange Montipora "capricornis", green Pocillopora, and Seriatopora. I have seen other people grow a small frag of Acropora sp. into a good size colony displaying amazing blue coloration in a 10 gallon under 96 watt powerquad pc. The tank is very shallow and the powerquads are pretty bright so I don't think you will be limited by the light.

First off please reallize that there is much more that goes into the health and coloration of stony corals than light. Also reallize that "sps" is a useless term that groups together many corals that don't necessarily have similar needs or do best in the same conditions.

As the others have stated I would start with an aquacultured frag of Montipora sp., Pocillopora sp., or Seriatopora sp., and see how they do. I have found the orange colored Montipora's and green colored Pocillopora to be some of the easiest to keep their coloration under a wide range of conditions. Once you do well with these you could try a frag of the Acropora that are sold as "green slimer" or "Acropora millepora" as these tend to be among the hardiest members of the genus Acropora. I would personally only put about 3-5 corals maximum in that size aquarium; all stony corals of similar needs and minimal aggression towards eachother using alleopathic compounds and sweeper tenticles (not to say coral competition and aggression won't be present).
 
I should also mention that it will require quite a bit of work and monitoring to be successful in keeping such a small tank with fast growing stony corals such as Montipora sp. Maintaining the KH and calcium is of critical importance and in many cases will require daily additions and monitoring.
 
Well that's good to know that someone has had success in keeping them in the same setup.

I am however very aware that coral health and coloration has a lot more to do with just light. Right now I am just doing research, as it will be quite a while before I add any corals to my tank.

Right now I am only going to try 1 or 2 Monitpora frags because the tank will be mostly Ricordea, Zoos, and a Hammer, and see what success I have with those.

Thanks a lot for all the information. :)
 
Back
Top