Softies "Grow out" tank?

[roostertech]

I've been lurking/reading to get ready for salt tank. Seems best place to start is softies. I want to do a "practice" tank to get familiar with things before buying a proper display tank. This will also serve as the place to grow coral frags into decent size for DT

What I pondered about is how to transfer the grown coral from one tank to DT beside ripping out rock since I might want to go with different rock for DT. Is is possible to relocate large colony of zoa or xenia?

 

[Kardjunkie]

Softies "Grow out" tank?

I am in the process of this same thing. Didn't have any experience in aquarium keeping in the last 20 years so I bought a neglected BioCube 29 for next to nothing. Nursed it back to health and added several corals that growing out. I am building a 75 with a bunch of used equipment. I am planning on doing a change over from one tank to the other after the other is done and cycled, slowly of course.

I think the important part is if the new DT is freshly cycles to take it slow, no huge increase in the bio load or the cycle won't be able to handle it. Everything should able to be moved but plan ahead, placement for warfare, in small phases, etc. I plan on acclimating from the grow out tank to the new tank just like I would a new addition, except maybe QT.

Just my $.02 and my plan for a similar situation.

 

[roostertech]

I am in the process of this same thing. Didn't have any experience in aquarium keeping in the last 20 years so I bought a neglected BioCube 29 for next to nothing. Nursed it back to health and added several corals that growing out. I am building a 75 with a bunch of used equipment. I am planning on doing a change over from one tank to the other after the other is done and cycled, slowly of course.

I think the important part is if the new DT is freshly cycles to take it slow, no huge increase in the bio load or the cycle won't be able to handle it. Everything should able to be moved but plan ahead, placement for warfare, in small phases, etc. I plan on acclimating from the grow out tank to the new tank just like I would a new addition, except maybe QT.

Just my $.02 and my plan for a similar situation.

Are you keeping each coral on individual rock in grow out tank for moving purpose later? Essentially a frag tank?

 

[Kardjunkie]

Softies "Grow out" tank?

Yes, most are on frag plugs but a couple are over growing the plugs and I have fragged a couple zoas on to a rock that I plan on growing out and moving to the 75. I am using it as a frag tank but it has live rock and sand, CUC and fish. A complete tank but plan on moving everything over to the new tank when done and cycled, again in small phases to allow the bio filter to keep up.

 

[toothybugs]

Don't worry about needing to put them on new rocks after "grow out" - the time needed for them to get truly huge is likely far longer than you will want to wait before you upgrade to a proper DT.