Type of corals

[shrimpandram]

What are some cheap and easy to take care of corals? Pictures would help

[Rexxaroo]

Mushroom coral, star polyps, and xenia have always been easy to rear. You'll have to give more specifics on your tank, lighting, and other equipment to see what fits your tank

Cheers,
Rexx

[shrimpandram]

Originally Posted by Rexxaroo

Mushroom coral, star polyps, and xenia have always been easy to rear. You'll have to give more specifics on your tank, lighting, and other equipment to see what fits your tank

Cheers,
Rexx

Thanks for the quick reply. I have 29 biocube with 36 watt white and blue stock light. I also run blue moonlight led light during night. The tank is currently cycling btw.

[Rexxaroo]

Excellent. So your lighting should be able to handle most corals in that type of set up. Moonlighting honestly effects very little as far as growth as far as I'm concerned (though it's controversial, but I digress)

Anyway! Do you have live sand and live rock? Live rock on its own can produce some cool coral on its own if you have good stuff. I got some neat little zoos last tank I had from Fiji LR.

Soft corals probably will do best with your lighting, though towards the top of your tank you probably can do hard coral if you have the bravery lol.

I'd stick to xenia and stars for the bottom areas, but xenia will grow about anywhere lol.

Middle ground is great for zoos and mushrooms, leather coral and trumpets.

Higher ground will be needy corals like plates, branch, staghorn, and most sps.

Like I said, softer coral is easier in the beginning and start cheap so you can learn. I always say xyz, Xenia, Yellow stars, and Zooanthids.

Cheers,
Rexx

[Rexxaroo]

Also you may want to consider upgrading your light in the future, wattage should be about 2x per gallon (10 watt min for a 5 gal for example, though this can be debated if you want lower demanding coral)

[shrimpandram]

Originally Posted by Rexxaroo

Excellent. So your lighting should be able to handle most corals in that type of set up. Moonlighting honestly effects very little as far as growth as far as I'm concerned (though it's controversial, but I digress)

Anyway! Do you have live sand and live rock? Live rock on its own can produce some cool coral on its own if you have good stuff. I got some neat little zoos last tank I had from Fiji LR.

Soft corals probably will do best with your lighting, though towards the top of your tank you probably can do hard coral if you have the bravery lol.

I'd stick to xenia and stars for the bottom areas, but xenia will grow about anywhere lol.

Middle ground is great for zoos and mushrooms, leather coral and trumpets.

Higher ground will be needy corals like plates, branch, staghorn, and most sps.

Like I said, softer coral is easier in the beginning and start cheap so you can learn. I always say xyz, Xenia, Yellow stars, and Zooanthids.

Cheers,
Rexx

I do have live rocks and sands. When can I start putting corals? And what do I feed them? I heard zooplankton is the best food for them but I wanna hear people's opinions.

[bribo12]

They don't need food l, they get all the energy they need from your light. As long as the tank is cycled you can add corals

[Rexxaroo]

Wait until your tank is completely cycled otherwise there is a good chance everything will die and start another cycle.

You might want to get a cheap fish or some cheap snails to start adding more biology to your tank. I always say wait always least always month always tater adding fish to get coral. That way your cycle should be finished by then.

There's always different types of food to feed, my favorite is Coral Frenzy. You feed by dosing the corals themselves with a pippet/ baster type tool, or dosing the water column.

If you dose water column, I turn off the pumps for about 5 to 10 minutes while feeding and then turn them back on so the food doesn't just get sucked away.

Some corals like a dosing of brine shrimp on occasion, again best to do the direct dosing for this to be sure they are fed properly.

Be sure you look into getting the correct supplements for your corals as well, like calcium, potassium, etc.

I know this is kind of overwhelming lol I apologize, just want to set you up for success!

[Rexxaroo]

Originally Posted by bribo12

They don't need food l, they get all the energy they need from your light. As long as the tank is cycled you can add corals

Most coral benefit from water column dosing or direct dose feeding. Some coral do get most energy from lighting, but feeding doesn't hurt at all.

[shrimpandram]

Originally Posted by Rexxaroo

Wait until your tank is completely cycled otherwise there is a good chance everything will die and start another cycle.

You might want to get a cheap fish or some cheap snails to start adding more biology to your tank. I always say wait always least always month always tater adding fish to get coral. That way your cycle should be finished by then.

There's always different types of food to feed, my favorite is Coral Frenzy. You feed by dosing the corals themselves with a pippet/ baster type tool, or dosing the water column.

If you dose water column, I turn off the pumps for about 5 to 10 minutes while feeding and then turn them back on so the food doesn't just get sucked away.

Some corals like a dosing of brine shrimp on occasion, again best to do the direct dosing for this to be sure they are fed properly.

Be sure you look into getting the correct supplements for your corals as well, like calcium, potassium, etc.

I know this is kind of overwhelming lol I apologize, just want to set you up for success!

Thank you for the detailed informations. Can't go wrong with a lot of informations

[Rexxaroo]

No problem! Hope it really helps, I think your tank will be beautiful soon!

[shrimpandram]

Originally Posted by Rexxaroo

No problem! Hope it really helps, I think your tank will be beautiful soon!

Btw do you use any circulation pumps?

[Rexxaroo]

Depends on the size of a tank. Some corals like high flow.

My 90 gallon had 2 power heads in addition to the output from the pump.

For a tank your size, if you have a high power pump you should have plenty of flow. You'll probably see "dead zones" in your tank where detritus likes to collect. If that happens, you can always angle your output nozzle to create more flow through the tank. It's kind of one of those things you have to play with

[Sniperhank]

Every system needs powerheads. It helps stabilize pH through carbon dioxide exchange as it brings in fresh oxygen. This will also prevent uneaten food and poop from settling in the tank.

[shrimpandram]

Originally Posted by Rexxaroo

Depends on the size of a tank. Some corals like high flow.

My 90 gallon had 2 power heads in addition to the output from the pump.

For a tank your size, if you have a high power pump you should have plenty of flow. You'll probably see "dead zones" in your tank where detritus likes to collect. If that happens, you can always angle your output nozzle to create more flow through the tank. It's kind of one of those things you have to play with

The good thing about mine is it rotates as water goes out.

[shrimpandram]

Originally Posted by Sniperhank

Every system needs powerheads. It helps stabilize pH through carbon dioxide exchange as it brings in fresh oxygen. This will also prevent uneaten food and poop from settling in the tank.

If I do get it, which pump do you recommend?

[Sniperhank]

Hydor Koralia are cheap and durable for the price.

[bribo12]

Originally Posted by Rexxaroo

Most coral benefit from water column dosing or direct dose feeding. Some coral do get most energy from lighting, but feeding doesn't hurt at all.

You're right it does benefit but it also makes maintaining water parameters harder to maintain especially in small tanks. I feed my corals but I don't reccomend it to beginners because it can easily crash a tank if you overdo it