Suggestions for new SPS Keeper

[EBaerresen]

Hey everyone, I have been keeping a fairly basic lps reef tank over the last 5 years, recently after changing from my SUNBRITE Led lights to some Radium MH I have been more interested in trying out SPS corals. I am a little apprehensive however because I have never really had to do much with the LPS corals and I hear all these horror stories when it comes to SPS. I was hoping for any advice on some easier SPS corals to begin with, what I should be watching and testing for most importantly and any other advice to be successful at this my first attempt.
Thanks!
~Erik

 

[Allmost]

Hello,

SPS care alot about Stability, of KH, CA++, and MG, and S.G., so a good test kit for these is needed. and they should be constant throughout the day and week.

easier SPS are Monti caps, I would start with a frag of those, as they are really easy to keep. and would tell you alot about your system. if you keep the parameters mentioned above stable, monti cap will grow like crazy for you. then you have to check its color, if dark/browning, then you have too much nutrition in tank, which needs to lower [no3 and po4].

Millies would be next in my book, as they are hairy and you can tell how they are doing by PE, and so on.

and always remember to light accilimate them, start low on sand, and after a week or so move them higher.

HTH

 

[Reef264]

Birdsnest's are pretty Simple, and not as demanding, and very pretty SPS.

 

[chrishayes]

Birdsnest is my most difficult coral. I agree with almost, his words are where its at. lol Good luck

 

[dsmhero]

Birdsnest was my first SPS, in my experience they are pretty easy.

 

[jamey1015]

I would say one of the bigger things people forget sometimes with sps is to make sure you phosphate is/stays low. Softies don't mind as much.

 

[pulit]

the best advice i can give you is USE Kalkwasser

 

[acro-ed]

I used Kalkwasser for many years before switching to dosers. If you want to keep it really simple you can mix kalk into your top off water (presuming you have an auto top off...which is definitely a good idea for stability).

My recommendation would be to skip that phase and go with 2-part that you add daily.

You need: Calcium test kit, Alkalinity test kit, Calcium Chloride, Sodium Bicarbonate, Magnesium, some decent salt (I use Reefcrystals), and a refractometer (hydrometers are not very accurate).

Then you need lots of flow, some MH lighting, and a good skimmer.

It really isn't rocket science. You test you levels, get the CA up around 420 and the Alk up around 9.6dkh and you experiment with how much of each of the two mixes to add until you know what needs to be added every day. Once you get sick of dosing every day you can buy a doser. The Mag I would just "glug" in once a week.

There is no "right" way to do it, but the above is simple and effective. I suggest finding MH bulbs that are appropriate for your tank and have good PAR readings. There are plenty of crap bulbs out there with great marketing behind them.

If you describe your tank a little more I'm sure you will get some more advice as to equipment that would be suitable.

One word of advice is "patience." You will be infinitely better off by purchasing frags from a local hobbyist that is diligent about treating for pests. Let them grow and be amazed with how much better your tank looks in the long run. Don't buy maricultured/commercially aquacultured/etc. until you have a good handle on things.

Hope that helps,
Ed

 

[EBaerresen]

Thanks everyone for the replies! I went ahead and purchased a Purple Montipora today, I got this from my LFS for about $10 and its the size of a quarter. I was told these are one of the fastest growing SPS corals, and they are relatively easier to keep than most other SPS corals. I did also pick up some Kalkwasser as suggested, my pepermint shrimp has been slacking lately on keeping the aptasia in check so I got a hypodermic needle and plan on injecting them one-by-one... At least until I can get another peppermint shrimp or two. I'll provide some pictures of what I am dealing with fairly soon...

 

[toothman]

buy a boat it is cheaper

 

[scoly]

What made you switch from the sunbright? They are very capable of growing sps.

 

[myaerica]

I would recommend kalk its A 2 part in one,its the simplest way to maintain A low to medium demand tank.Its also A phosphate binder.

 

[EBaerresen]

I did not care for them at all, the price per bulb was about $250 and they didnt support the growth of SPS corals very well unless you had all the bulbs. For the housing unit and three bulbs I think I paid $1200. I still was required to get 5 more bulbs which would have costed way too much. I have now switched over to three 250 MH lights and my corals are diong very well, I have noticed a huge improvement in the tank overall.