so i've been thinkin about adding nps into my fowlr

[djberg]

so i have my mean fish tank, it's kinda sat by the way side since i acquired my 75 gal reef. well after doing some research on nps and really liking what they are. i figure it would be easiest to just put nps in there, they're pretty and i wouldn't have to change anything other than probably adding a sump into it.

BUT THERE'S ONE MAJOR QUESTION.....

What about my Green brittle star he's about 12" across. will he knock everything around or can i leave him in there? he came with my reef and spent his life in the sump. i dont really want to put him back in the sump, he's too cool not to have in a display.

 

[Shan69743]

just make sure the corals are secure on the rocks or sand and you should be fine.

 

[bues0022]

i figure it would be easiest to just put nps in there,

Doesn't seem like there's much easy about NPS. Dedicated care is required. If your current tank sat by the wayside, what makes you confident just because you pop a NPS coral in there it won't also go by the wayside?

If you are looking for directions of things to do that are easy, why not do a seagrass bed or softies? Make a specific biome or dedicate it fully to something different.

 

[djberg]

not looking for easy, more just looking to keep me interested in it, 55 is pretty limited to what fish that are not reef safe, the lighting on there is sub par for anything else coral wise(3 hardware store t8 fixtures side by side), and i would like to spice it up a bit. and i've been researching nps, like the way they look a lot, i have a couple of sun corals now, so the cheapest way to add fun stuff to me was by adding a sump(will have a pump for it since i just ordered a bigger one for my 75), though i will have to aquire a overflow box since i smashed my other one by accident. i have a mini skimmer/fuge on the back of it now, so that will get integrated into the sump. and yeah that's my thoughts, though i wish i could drill the 55, but 3/16" glass would leave my to believe it's tempered, bummer.

 

[GoingPostal]

I know quite a few people with big star fish in their reefs, place stuff securely and you should be ok. They can't be any worse than some fish and urchins for moving things. Personally I would go for some dendros, bright, large so easy to feed and they tend to be open most of them time.

 

[djberg]

dendros, i think i saw those at a salt shop in erie, definitely beautiful, and yeah way more open than my suns for sure, but $80 a head is a bit crazy. i'll have to see about finding some locally. thanks for the pointer.

 

[GoingPostal]

That's crazy priced, you should be able to find them from a reefer in your area or online for much cheaper, $15-$25 a head. Most types grow quite quickly and often you'll find people getting rid of colonies, tired of feeding them or adding extra waste to the tanks. For that reason though a lot of nps tend to be in poor condition, you have to learn what looks recoverable and what to pass on but in general most of the lps types are fairly hardy and bounce back if you are willing to put the work in.

 

[djberg]

thanks postal, so now the search begins. even google isnt really pulling anything good, of course i want the hardest things to find lol.

 

[Art13]

I just put in an order on reefs2go.com for a head, I think it was 20 bucks

 

[brcb7tuner]

Please post a pic when you do get it from reefs2go. I have been wanting to get one from them since everyone else is charging $50 per head if you can even find them. Just reefs2go hasn't had the best reviews lately so I have been hesitant to try them.

 

[Art13]

He is in my tank now, not open yet, but ate a piece of brine I gave him yesterday. I could take a pick for you but it would just look like an orange stump right now. All the other coral I recieved from them are alive and well as of now, an open brain, two acans, war coral, and hammer, the only one I'm waiting on to open is the meteor.

 

[Art13]

I also got an email from them about reorganization in order to serve their customers and do better on livestock shipping to correct the problems they have been having. Not sure if that will help your confidence or not, I can post picks of all the coral if you like.

 

[brcb7tuner]

Please do post a pic of it when it opens back up for you. Thanks

 

[Art13]

Will do, not sure how long it might be though as I've heard they can be stubborn sometimes, he didn't come out when he ate, just pulled the food in his hole.

 

[Art13]

This is about the most i've seen on him yet after he ate a mysis.