Corals for beginners

[j_wishbone]

hi

what would you guys suggest the most forgiving corals if you have had no experience with them at all

I want to put them in a small tank (35litres) with a mantis shrimp).

looks pretty bare with just rock in it?

thinking of putting a live rock, corals, small protein skimmer and also a mechanical filter, weekly water change.

would this set up be sufficient to sustain its livestock?

[mike_cmu04]

Your going to need a light for them There are different options just look under the lighting section and there is a sticky explaining lighting options.

[j_wishbone]

Your going to need a light for them There are different options just look under the lighting section and there is a sticky explaining lighting options.

yes of course light as well of course.. hehe I forgot sorry

[mike_cmu04]

Xenia, mushrooms and zoas are probably a few good beginner corals

[Mounda]

candy canes too

[TitansFan]

what kind of light do u have?

[j_wishbone]

what kind of light do u have?

just a normal one that comes with the tank... I guess

but I can invest in one... once I know what to stock the tank????

[j_wishbone]

obviously you feed these guys

do they create bioload? or is that a dumb question?

[jnbrex]

you dont feed any of those...

[j_wishbone]

you dont feed any of those...

ohhh? :hmm3:


so what do they need to survive?

lighting, proper water chemistry... 0 nitrates??


in my FOWLR tank I could keep ammonia and nitrate down.. but always have a trace of nitrite??? ...

[jnbrex]

It goes Ammonia --- Nitrite --- Nitrates. With easy corals you could probably have up to 10 nitrates. Do you know what pH is? You need stable pH, stable alkalinity, calcium if you want to keep hard coral, and other things. You should probably read a book about coral. Saltwater Aquariums for Dummies is a really great book and helped me so much when starting out.

[100%hydrophylic]

corals dont "need" to be fed unless they are non photosynthetic (like the one in jnbrex picture) but dont mess with those yet.

i would suggest getting a good t5 light system. that way you can keep a wider range of corals (based on lighting requirements).

easiest corals from my experience:
-Xenia
-Zoanthids
-mushrooms
-montipora caps (duller ones are easier to keep from my experiences atleast)
-kenya tree
-Green star polyps
-Euphyllia (torch corals, hammer corals, frogspawn) <-these guys like being fed but
its not necessary
-yellow polyps

heres what Dr fosters and smith consider easier corals:
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/aquarium-fish-supplies.cfm?c=597+2856&count=32&s=ts

[twiggyb]

If you're keeping a mantis in the tank, just make sure whatever coral you get is secured to the rock well otherwise the mantis might use it for decor for its burrow.

[j_wishbone]

It goes Ammonia --- Nitrite --- Nitrates. With easy corals you could probably have up to 10 nitrates. Do you know what pH is? You need stable pH, stable alkalinity, calcium if you want to keep hard coral, and other things. You should probably read a book about coral. Saltwater Aquariums for Dummies is a really great book and helped me so much when starting out.

ok kewl.. i will do more research..

the ph in my FOWLR sits around 8.0 .. should it be higher with corals?

[j_wishbone]

thanks guys.... those are great advise


I think I know where to start now....!!!