what should i get?

[beelzebob]

im lookin at my first lps purchase.

my LFS gots new stuff. i saw PINK frogspawn, normal green frogspawn and a 3" blue lobo brain.

i really want the brain, but worry about my inexperience.

like the pink spawn, because ive never seen it before.

the green looked kinda torn, had white at the base.

whadda yall think? i want some advice before i buy anything.

also, there are some really sweet candy canes, but....
they have this red algae on the rock with them. can i expect my clean up crew to take care of it, or wold i just be introducing a problem to my tank?

should i dip these things?

any LPS protocall advice would be great

 

[WendyMc]

Frogspawn is a great beginner LPS, but absolutely avoid the one you suspect is torn because LPS are very succeptible to brown jelly infection at the site of physical damage. There is a very low survival rate when a coral has this infection. It can also spread to healthy tissue on other corals in your system.
Also, keep in mind their sweeper tentacles according to Dr. Ron Shimek can reach up to 12"...this is alot of tank space to sacrifice in a 18g set up. They will not war with other euphyllia like hammers or anchors so they can share space with them w/out harm.

If the Lobo looks healthy you should not worry about your inexperience. They have shorter sweepers so will not require as much clearance as the frogspawn. They are hardy & easy corals as long as you avoid touching thier fleshy polyp - only handle by the skeleton.

Yes, do dip your new corals. Have you had a good coral dip recommended to you yet?

On the Candy Canes...Are these Caulastrea or an Acan of some sort. The red algae could be a # of things, some more apt to be problematic than others. Is it a red caulerpa? Or is it slimy &/or bubbly?

 

[jasper24]

I would proceed slowly and look around. I made the mistake of buying corals on impulse. Soon after my tank was full. Now I am in the process of weeding out the "ok" looking corals for ones that I really like. Do it right the first time and take it slow.

 

[beelzebob]

some dude in the newb forum jumped on my case like DO NOT DIP YOUR CORALS.

No, i have not had anything as far as a dip suggested to me, and have no experience what so ever wit it.

i have no intention of adding any fish (beyond the dam damsels)

so i just need a break down of WTH i should do.

i really like the brain....

but the pink froggy seems rare, but indeed i will sacrifice a lot of space for it....

a brain scares me, what are they most succeptible to in a newbs tank?

how do i feed it? and what. ive come to find that things i really want scare the hell outta me.

its $40.00 too, is that decent?

a dip idea would be greatly appreciated.

im really taking my time with what i put in there, ive had the tank approaching 4 months, and only have a couple frags of zoa's, intense gsp, and 2 mushies.

but this lil brain, or the pink frog pass the oober cool test

 

[chrisstie]

For $40 I'd say chance it and go for the brain as it would be a learning experience! Just be very cafeful when acclimating and as advised try only handling the skeleton.

I'd say a nice blue one is more rare than the frogspawn if it is rarity that you like. It is also easier to get more pink colored corals than blue in some cases I think. at least, in LPS i think anyway.. or maybe I just like brains. I haven't had success with them in my tank but others have had resounding success.

I'd say pick the healthiest dang looking thing there and see how it goes and SHOW US PICS!

 

[beelzebob]

how do i dip it?

 

[WendyMc]

I like this when I'm acclimating a healthy new coral:

1st, Flatworm exit in a bowl of tank water (after I acclimate the coral slowly to the salinity/PH etc of my tank water - I use rapid drip method for this)

http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=SF5111 directions are 4 drops per gallon of water.

Then rinse in a separate bowl of tank water.

Then in a 3rd bowl of tankwater I separately dip with this:

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produ...&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=0&Nty=1 the directions are very straight foward & easy.

FWIW, if you have known tissue damage or have just fragged a coral, you should always use this:
http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=KM3611

While I don't use Lugol's during acclimation of a healthy specimin, because it is harsher than the coral dip, I do always have it on hand in the event of physical damage to the tissue of LPS it is a life saver. HTH! (and sorry if i have just made you neurotic as I am...I've had my share of pests in the 10 yrs I've been doing this and I feel you can't ever be too careful).

 

[Riona]

My brain is doing well in my tank, and I got one that was bleached. They're super easy to feed. Usually mine won't eat until I see its feeders out(then again I wasn't feeding it anything juicy at that feeding) but once it grabs its food it will take it with no problems. I say go for it

 

[matttaylor]

I agree, go with the brain. Especially if it even has a hint of blue. That would be really cool as a centerpiece.

 

[WendyMc]

Also, on feeding it, make sure your food pieces aren't too big. I wouldn't chop them much bigger than a frozen Hikari Mysis or 2. They can & will take in pieces much, much larger, but if you watch them for the next few hours they will throw up the majority of it undigested. Then they will actually be at an energy deficit - expending more energy attempting to digest it than they actually gain from what they were able to digest before giving up & puking.

If I were you I would attempt to feed the day after acclimation. Feed your fish. After a few minutes if it hasn't extended feeder tentacles (if it has extended them you just give the food to them & they will take it to the mouth), turn off your pumps & place a small chunk of food on its mouth. It may take it a few minutes & you'll want to guard it so nothing comes & steals the food - if they try (fish & inverts will all go after it) then shoo them away with a net or turkey baster or your hand. It will react to the food by swelling up around it, & may even swallow it w/out even extending any feeder tents at all. If after 5 min it hasn't eaten the food, remove the piece & try the next day. It may be in too much shock to eat just yet, but you should keep trying because the sooner it starts eating, the faster it will recover from the trauma of changing systems. & you'll get a better looking coral out of it.

Do you have any inverts w/claws?

 

[WendyMc]

"some dude in the newb forum jumped on my case like DO NOT DIP YOUR CORALS."

Haha, that noob who jumped your case probably thought you meant FW dip...& if he didn't think that, he obviously has never had an invasion of parasitic inverts, flatworms, or misc infections caused by physical damage of transporting a coral from one system to the next. Hitchikers can hide very well on your coral & sometimes a dip is the only thing which will show the 'mystery ailment' for what it is. But never a FW dip!

"a brain scares me, what are they most succeptible to in a newbs tank?"
Besides physical damage/brown jelly infection, brains are succeptible to warfare by other corals especially softies. Make sure they are at least 5-6" away from all other corals you already have & you'll be fine. If you ever see any algae growing over their skeleton or touching their flesh of any kind manually remove it. Also, if a sponge starts growing on its skeleton you will want to manually remove that, too, if it grows up to the fleshy part it can harm it. Another common issue they face is inverts w/claws going up behind you after feeding (sometimes waiting for hours or until night to do their dirty deed) & using their pinschers to rip the flesh to dig out the piece of food...BAD JUJU!

" ive come to find that things i really want scare the hell outta me."
Good! This means you will save yourself a lot of trouble down the road by not giving in to impulse & doing your research. You are a model noob & a credit to hobbyists in general

its $40.00 too, is that decent?
In my area, that's how much we would be asked for a poo colored one. I think if it has blue & any other color besides brown, that is a GREAT price. Have you checked online to see what similar colors go for? A good starting point is liveaquaria...


"but this lil brain, or the pink frog pass the oober cool test"

HEhe, you just passed my Oober nerd test

 

[danch]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9022867#post9022867 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by beelzebob
some dude in the newb forum jumped on my case like DO NOT DIP YOUR CORALS.

I saw that. You'll notice though, that it wasn't one of the regular helpful people who try to shepheard us newbs, and that they didn't give a reason why. Goes straight into the noise bucket at that point.