Newbie to corals

[msujohn]

I'm new to corals and have been doing alot of reading. My plan is to start out very slow with softies and LPS only. I have a 90 gallon tank and would like to add some corals in the next couple of weeks. Here are some of my questions:

- What does it mean when corals are referred to as "weed" corals?
- Can you give me an example of what type of corals these would be?
- What are some good colored, easy corals to start out with?
- When I start to add corals, do I only had 1 at a time and wait 3 or 4 weeks to add more?
- Do I do a "dip" for all corals?
- What "dip" do I buy to do this?
- Any tips or advice would be appreciated

 

[kurt_n]

You're probably going to get many differing opinions on this, but here are my thoughts...

* "Weed" corals are really more or less like "weed" plants. Plants that we consider "weeds" are plants that grow regardless of how we treat them, and in the end we don't really want in our gardens. I planted "Forget Me Nots" in some of my planting areas one time because I liked the look of them in photos I saw. I didn't realize they self-polinate and spread *everywhere* and you can NOT get rid of them. *That* is a weed. It's no different with corals. "Weed" corals will be anything you think you want, but decide against at a later date - but can't get rid of. Examples might be xenia, clove polyps, green star polyps (GSP), certain zoanthids - often referred to as "ugly brown zoas", and anything else that spreads by a creeping mat.

* Easy "starter" corals many folks often recommend are also "weed" corals. They're good starter corals because you can't kill them. HOWEVER... they're *not* good starter corals because you might not really like an entire tank of them. My advice is to research your corals, and only put in your tank the corals you want. Getting corals just because you can't kill them isn't a good reason to buy them. Buy what you want to look at - only you can decide what that is.

* You can add as many corals as you want at once. They don't add bioload like fish. But you might want to take it slow - just in case your water isn't as good as you thought it was. That way you limit your $$ loses.

* Dipping is done by many, but not by all. I don't dip my coral, but I trust my sources. Your mileage may vary.

* Advice... research *all* purchases before buying. Don't buy a coral and then wonder where to place it. Make sure your tank can support what you're buying.

 

[dahos]

+1 on kurt_n's advice.

Have you looked at mushrooms, ricordea or lobos. There are some with great coloration. You may also look at torch or hammer corals. There are a lot of variations on all of those so I would research what you like before you buy. I think Feather dusters and coco worms also look nice in a tank.

 

[msujohn]

Thanks for all the advice. I will research everything before I buy it. Just wanted opinions of those that are experienced.

 

[QPWithCheeseQP]

+1 on kurt_n's advice.

Have you looked at mushrooms, ricordea or lobos. There are some with great coloration. You may also look at torch or hammer corals. There are a lot of variations on all of those so I would research what you like before you buy. I think Feather dusters and coco worms also look nice in a tank.

+1 euphyllia are awesome coral and can be forgiving of less then perfect conditions... Or really unforgiving

 

[Reefer07]

Acans too. Acans are one of the nicer LPS IMO and I've seen pretty much a bare skeleton come back. They dont need much light either. Though they will look nicer with better light.

 

[snorvich]

+2 on kurt_n advice. Also, you should research and understand alleopathy as it applies to soft corals competing biochemically with other corals.

 

[nathan1986]

If you buy hammers/frogspawn or octospawn be sure to buy branching types!

 

[msujohn]

+2 on kurt_n advice. Also, you should research and understand alleopathy as it applies to soft corals competing biochemically with other corals.

Thanks for this tip. It has me rethinking my strategy and my stay away from a heavy softie tank.

 

[ichthyogeek]

Also look into "coral wars," the sweeper tentacles on some of the LPS can get quite long and damage corals in range. If you get a weed coral, try to segregate it onto a small island of rock, rather than the main structure, so if the coral spreads too much, you can just clip off the growing edges, or sell and replace at a later date. This applies to encroaching corals, as kenya trees have been known to drop branches that get everywhere. I personally like mushrooms and green star polyps, the xenia have never really liked me for some reason. If you can, go for a coral with a "mouth" or multiple mouths that are very visible. That means that you can give the coral mysis shrimp and large meaty items. msujohn, you never mentioned if anything was in your tank. Some fish are obligate corralivores, and will target the fleshy LPS. Others will just eat the corals, no exception.

 

[msujohn]

Ok, so I started putting in a few corals. I have a Torch, frogspawn, zoa's, and an acan. Everything seems to be doing ok. I've added 3 fish as well (2 clowns and a long nose hawk fish). I'd really like to get something with more color purple, pink orange. I know there are alot of color options with zoa's. What options are there to add some color. I'd like to get something that can be placed higher up on the rocks, everything I have is either on the sand or lower rocks. I'm using reef radiance DM 165+ LED's if that matters for my coral selection.