thinking bout corals

[angelsj247]

What exactly do you need to start keeping corals.. i wouldnt get them til much later, i need to save money and my tank needs to mature.. its only 2 months so far.. but what would i need.. is it very difficult? my aquascape looks pretty boring.. id like to be looking at some prettier things.. thanks for the help.

[CarmieJo]

I'm upgrading my lights now so that I can keep some corals.

[graveyardworm]

It all depends on where you want to start. It would be easiest to start with soft corals like, leather, mushrooms, star polyps, ricordia, zoanthids. Their lighting requirements are fairly simple PC, T5's, VHO, and even NO flourescent. They dont require alot of flow. Most are tolerant of fluctuating parameters. The best thing to do is research and ask questions.

This would be agreat book to purchase prior to getting any corals.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1890087483/ref=ase_reeflink/103-5570488-8534257?s=books&v=glance&n=283155&tagActionCode=reeflink

[saltfever]

With a 20gal you could probibly find a metal halide light for the same amount as power compacts t5 or vho. And you wouldnt be looking to upgrade down the road if you keep corals. I have a coralife aqualight advanced series hang on tank it is 150w HQI it was about $250 and I love it great light. It would work great on a 20. But first you need about 20 or more pounds of live rock. If you do 10% water changes weekly you shouldnt need a skimmer. Good pumps or powerheads are a must for proper flow in the tank to avoid dead spots. Let us know what you have now it will be easier to point you in the right direction.

[angelsj247]

well I have 5lbs of live rock for right now.. i will be getting more soon as the money comes in.. and ive got one powerhead 145 gph, cascade 100 power filter, i got my light from my bfs mother she said the bulb isnt floresent its a step higher, but doesnt remember what it was called. I do water changes weekly, i dont have a skimmer.

[saltfever]

You will need about 15lbs or more of live rock to add. you should get one more powerhead. You wont need a skimmer or new or bigger filter as long as you do weekly water changes. Sounds like you may have eather t5 or vho lights ( what length and wattage are they? ) Depending on what lights they are you might not need to do anything more then new blubs to keep some lower light corals. You will want more snails and some blue legged hermits. Just remember this before you get corals from your lfs make sure and do some research on what corals you are going to buy. Dont trust your lfs to tell you what will work. Not that you cant trust any of them but some will tell you what you want to hear not what is going to work in your tank. Also in no way is my opinion the only one out there. So take in all the information you can and try to make the best decision you can.

[gtriamy]

sooooooo... it looks like u need to get ur research on. don't do anything untill u have the info, going into corals blind is like spending 200 grand on a car that u'll never use. also, blue legged hermits are probly not the best to get, crabs eat meat, so if they get too hungry, they start munchin on the 20 and 30 dollar animals in ur tank.

[saltfever]

How long have you been in reef keeping --------GTRIAMY-------- blue legged hermits and plant eaters and reef safe!!!!!!! Will not eat coral sounds like you need to get your research on!

[Blinkgyrl2987]

well I had hermits at one time and they ate my snails.... so I dont know about all that. Just telling my experience... they ate the snails and then stole there shells!

[troynorman]

Getting a Calcium reactors make a big difference when trying to keep corals,

[pikachusalad]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7134367#post7134367 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Blinkgyrl2987
well I had hermits at one time and they ate my snails.... so I dont know about all that. Just telling my experience... they ate the snails and then stole there shells!

Well...they do do that...that's how they get bigger shells when they need them...unless you leave them some empty ones...then they'll just use those.

[Blinkgyrl2987]

yeah the only reason I said that was because it was said that they are plant eaters... so in my case I guess they decided that they wanted snails instead of plants... I dont know I'm just being stupid... Anyone who keeps the hermits will figure out on thier own what they eat and whether or not they want to keep them.. I got rid of mine though... I enjoy the snails more.

[saltfever]

If they are blue legged hermits they will not eat corals ive had them for 17years in every tank ive had. If you dont trust me check any site that sells them and you will see reef safe in there description. No retailer would put that in the description if they were not. Lets get back to what this thread is about not a discusion about hermits. As for coral the biggest thing you need to buy is lighting this is the one thing to spend good money on.I dont recomend using normal florescents for any kind of coral. Yes mushrooms will live under them most of the time but its not good for them. If your water quality is good then you should be in good shape for corals after you upgrad a few things. I have never had a calcium reactor to much money when kalk, a good calcium supplement or weekly water changes do just as good of a job. Best way to setup a tank is to find what corals you want to keep find there requirments and upgrade your tank to keep them. I do highly recomend going with MH lighting because you wont need to upgrade your lights down the road if you decide to keep high light corals saves money in the long run.