What coral should I start with?

I

Ian14

Member
I have a 220 gallon tank with a 75 gal sump running almost two months now. It is stocked about half of what I plan so far with reef safe fish.

I have good flow and lighting with reef breeders LEDs. What corals should I start with? Should I put in one at a time or do a decent amount at a time?

I don't plan on dosing regularly but I am doing regular water changes using reef salt.

This will be my first experience with coral
 
With a 220 you can put a small assortment at one time. Eventually you may need to dose to keep the corals satisfied.
 
The easiest corals are softies. They are not demaning and require little maintenance. Give them light and flow and they will thrive.

Regarding stony corals, the easiest sps are going to be any variety of Montipora, such as digitata, Capricornis, etc....seriatopora (birdsnest) pocillopora, and Stylophora are also good choices. Sps corals do require dosing to maintain stable Ca/dkh/mg

Easier LPS would be Duncans, euphyllias, favia, etc....they however should be fed weekly to maintain their fleshy polyps. Duncan's are the easiest because they are basically 100% photosynthetic and just catch random particles in the water column.

You should add specimens slowly and gradually learn what your tank needs for dosing so you can accommodate the additions as they are put in.
 
I also strongly suggest photosynthetic gorgonians like Eco-gorgs. All they need is sufficient light to thrive. They grow quickly and add a unique movement to your tank.
 
start with some softies
softies- toadstool, kenya tree, colt coral, xenia (on seperate island), mushrooms, leathers, any softie

then after having the softies start with easier lps
lps- frogspawn, hammers ...

then for sps- montipora


When you get them just add them to the sandbed for the first week, and slowly move them up, so you don't bleach them out under your lights, or turn down the brightness on the leds.
 
IMHO, you first need to decide which direction you want to go - either soft corals OR stoney corals. It is much easier to keep your tank happy if you don't mix the two too much. Maybe some zoanthids or mushrooms at first although either can spread. The problem with mixing them is that there will be chemical warfare between the two types. (Search "Allelopathy")

If you want to go with stoney corals, the suggestions above are very good. They all tend to be fairly tolerant and easy growers. I prefer to buy small frags of whatever so that they can then grow in to the tank. I think it looks more natural than tyring to put larger (and much more epensive) "show" pieces in together. Sure, it takes longer, but in the end looks much better.

JM.02
 
if dosing isn't for you then stay with softies and a few lps. my 120 gal. is filled with them and I don't dose anything. sps are something else. eventually you will have to dose.
 
Try a birdsnest for SPS and torch for LPS.

We had a really bad issue with phosphates and nitrates (due to bad tests) and those two didn't get nuked. Other's all pretty much died.
 
The key to running a successful reef is truly understanding nutrients. You want to severely limit them, yet add them back in thru proper portioning. Too many people focus on starving nutrients from their systems, only to watch their reef suffer.

I run a quality GFO thru a reactor along with a mini refugium I self made from acrylic within my sump using fern caulerpa and red mangroves I picked up off the beach in the winter ( I live in FL so I have that luxury) along with feeding my fish semi heavy and lightly feeding my corals daily with planktonic foods like reef chili, also a meaty selection like Rod's coral food which the fish love also.

The GFO eliminates a large portion of the phosphate, and the refugium picks up the remainder along with acting like a nitrate sponge. The feedings from fine foods supplement the trace amounts of nutrients your corals are asking for all while eliminating the excess that you don't want. The fish benefit from the feedings while their waste fuels the biological filter within your live rock.

Starve your system of phosphate too much...and your reef will suffer. Feed it too much...and you fuel algae outbreaks. Finding your happy medium is the key to success, growth, and coloration. We are always happy to help you create a thriving ecosystem in your home.
 
A neighbor of mine offered to give me some frags so ill see where that takes me. He has a similar tank (220) and it's been up for 10 years... same fish and coral. It's very lightly stocked and has no protein skimmer on it. Doesn't dose anything just water changes. Says he has variety of soft lps sps so we'll see when I pick them up
 
Quick Question... say I get frags from an established tank, immediately placed it into my tank, would I still have to turn my legs way down and slowly raise them over a period of a few weeks?

Why would I have to warm the frags up to light if they were just under a light with full intensity?
 
Hey guys, an update. My neighbor gave me 10 frags of able 7 or 8 different types of coral. Mostly Softies and lips but a couple sps. They've been in the tank for a week now some seem to be doing fine, a few are taking off.

I really don't know the names of all of them lol. They are ones have done well in his tank for about 10 years now so i can't imagine they are too difficult. He doesn't dose, only water changes.
 
Ian14 said:
Hey guys, an update. My neighbor gave me 10 frags of able 7 or 8 different types of coral. Mostly Softies and lips but a couple sps. They've been in the tank for a week now some seem to be doing fine, a few are taking off.

I really don't know the names of all of them lol. They are ones have done well in his tank for about 10 years now so i can't imagine they are too difficult. He doesn't dose, only water changes.
Click to expand...

Don't be too afraid to lean on him for advice. Reefers love to help other reefers. Some pics would get you identifications if thats something you want.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

B
Left Tank for a long time, now want to reboot
Replies
8
Views
381
SantaMonica
S
R
Getting back into the hobby.
Replies
3
Views
3K
Cjs305510
C
A
First SPS coral. Is this bleaching?
Replies
6
Views
610
apavlik2
A
M
Back to this wonderfull hobbie after 10 years
Replies
4
Views
299
griss
griss
beckya
for a 40 gallon breeder
Replies
2
Views
215
griss
griss
Back
Top