How to safely keep Soft Corals with a Dominant SPS System?

[Reef264]

Hello Fellow Stik Fans,

I am wanting to add some leathers to my SPS dominated system, maybe 5 or 6 all together.(Colts, Sinularia, Toadsools, pineapple tree, Spaghetti).

Now have any of you ever done it successfully together combined with SPS, and Kept the SPS just as healthy as if the leathers weren't in the system?

Did the Leathers Thrive in the same environment that the SPS thrived in?


What was your Carbon Set up?


I'm just wanting to maybe add some Lower Light Corals for the parts of the tank that aren't illuminated enough with light for SPS Placement.Plus...I kinda want some movement.



Anyone done it?Successfully?If so...how?

-Ray

 

[93Foxstang]

I would pick one or two for that size tank 1 colt can take up 12-14 inches plus. Also run carbon all the time

 

[mr.maroonsalty]

I've seen plenty of long polyp leathers like the tyre labelled one in sps dominated tanks. I have a leather they call the green Nepthia that tranfered into my build; I'm worried about it as I start stocking sps corals, but it came back to me from a frag out of a mostly sps tank. Rich Durso was a local club member who had an amazing tank, but he blamed his extra large Gorgonia for what troubles is sps did have. Torches add a ton of movement and do fine in an sps environment. Xenia if it can be contained to the back wall or isolated rocks that they can't creep from I believe are completely meek chemically and love light and movement.

 

[mc-cro]

I have had a large green nepthia in my tank for years, and various toadstools. I dont have any problems, the sps grow and color just fine.

I do run carbon in a reactor 24/7

 

[Reef264]

Alright, I will try only one or two to start out.

Thanks a million guys.

-Ray

 

[Dexters Reef]

I have a large (7"wide, 8" tall) Toadstool leather in my tank with my SPS, and for a while I had an equally large kenya tree coral in my tank and never had any issues with my SPS. I did recently move the kenya tree to another tank, but only because it was growing rapidly and fragging itself all the time.

As for carbon, I only use 3 bags of chemi pure elite in my sump just prior to the return

 

[Nanook]

It can be done, but I wouldn't recommend it. I have 375g and 470g tanks plumbed on common system. The 375g is all softies and the 470g was all acros. I have over-sized skimmer, run carbon and GFO and about 2 years ago, I lost all my SPS. There were several possibilities for why they died out, but my theory is that all the leathers I had could have created some chemical warfare. It could just have been the fact that I added a friends 24" leather toadstool to the acro tank and that did them in...that coral is now greater than 3 feet in diameter. Bottom line, it can be done, and carbon will help, but if you start seeing death or decline, you will always wonder if it was the leathers.

And, for the record, I ran an 8x24" GEO reactor full of BRS carbon fluidized and changed it out every 3-4 weeks....we are talking mega doses of carbon.

 

[Bigcefa]

Sinularua is one I'd never keep with sps, I think toadstools are much safer

 

[mc-cro]

And, for the record, I ran an 8x24" GEO reactor full of BRS carbon fluidized and changed it out every 3-4 weeks....we are talking mega doses of carbon.

:eek1: that is a lot of carbon.

Sinularia or nepthia, I really dont know which I have, I have often heard that they can be very toxic to other corals, but I dont think I have ever experienced it. And if I did, I didnt know that is what it was.

 

[Reef264]

Nanook,

Thanks for the input.You're making me kinda rethink the whole thing.I may just go with some kind of Euphyllia, or something of that sort.

Thanks guys!
-Ray

 

[JPMagyar]

How's this for being indecisive . . .

I personally took out my leather coral because I felt it was causing trouble in my tank, but my good friend who owns an LFS has a huge leather in his display tank with no apparent trouble and if you dive on the GBR you'll see plenty of leathers growing right smack in the middle of groups of acros.

So like Nanook said for sure it can be done, but some of us are really hesitant.