Starters

I am looking into corals in the future. The softer corals catch my eye. Are there any tips you guys have? And are there any really good starters for me?

mushrooms and xenia are really safe softies to start with.

They dont require much light correct? Should i introduce a BTA first?

+1 on mushrooms, but the ricordea seems a little fussy, and xenia can be a little also if there is 0 nitrates in the system........ star polyps, trumpets (lps), kenya trees to name a few were tolerant of me, and my system starting out. A lot of people say zoas to start, but thy weren't happy til my system was more mature.

no on the nem. In my opinion you need to have an established tank. i'm talking 6 months to a year old. before you take on a nem. They also have higher light requirements than softies.

You would more than likely need t5ho or mh lights. I did it once with pc lighting but it was always moving around and I fed it a couple times a week.

Oh yeah I'm going to wait till January to do the nem and corals. I read the tank needs to be atleast a year old. I just want to get all my ducks in a row and learn as much as possible so I'm ready and know what I'm getting into. I'm purchasing a used T5HO today. Was going to wait till the end of the year but made me an offer I couldn't refuse! Thanks for the tips guys. It's hard not to just go out and buy them though. One thing I read that I can't figure out, on one sitei read the BTA always has to be in water. When you finish acclimating you can't just grab it out of the bag or container and stick it in the tank? Can't touch the air? It sounds confusing when I read it hope you guys understand me haha.

sounds like someone's getting antsy for reef goodies eh?! ...I think the hardest part of this hobby is patience!
IMO I'd stay away from xenia and GSP - - while both are very pretty, they grow like weeds and are really hard to control! if you're not careful, they can easily take over .....I'm a lps/softie gal myself.......even with the issues we've experienced, our hammer, torch and frogspawn continue to thrive.........another hardy and easy coral for us is the toadstool - which our 3 clowns have hosted for more than 4 years now......all of these come in different colors and shapes too and are EASY to frag!

There are lots of softies out there that are great starters. You can also get a lot of them for cheap because they grow very fast. Sounds great but some of the starter corals will literally take over a tank. So that one small piece of kenya tree you love right now you might despise in 6 months because it is now every where and its blocking light from other corals.

Are the clowns hosting them because they are nems? If so, that's why you should wait a year or so?

Its recommended to wait a year for a few reasons. First, even though a new tank can typically cycle in a month there are still chemical and biological processes going on that will effect water quality and chemistry. After 6 months to a year things start settle down. Its just good practice to wait till the tank settles in before you drop $80 on an anemone. The last thing you want is to rush it and then watch that $80 shrivel up and melt away.

I think the next reason is that the people that most often ask these types of questions are new to the hobby. No offense to any nobbies but nobbies tend to mess things up They dont quite understand the importance of water quality or chemistry. It can take new hobbyists a year or more (some never get it) before they realize that they really should be testing for Alk, Mg, Ca, No3 and Po4

Haha I understand no offense taken. I know that as much as you guys joke this is serious biz and that criticism will onlymake us more knowledgeable. I have done alk myself and also taken it to work and they have tested it. When we got into this the store we went to first, that took us for a ride, said ph, ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite. But we only need to worry about the first two after the tank was established. The others I know about but have not done.

You shouldnt need to test for ammonia anymore either assuming your tank is cycled.... it only shows up during the cycling process

Nitrates will tell you when you need to do water changes ....

PH is good to monitor, just so you know you are doing things right, and is a good indicator of your ALK... BUT, if you have ALK and CA balanced, then your PH is just fine... haha its funny how finding the suspended mineral "balance" actually makes your life easier!!

Ohhh, and on the things clownfish host - while in the wild they host anemones, in our tanks, they will host just about anything.... pumps, clams, soft corals, lps... whatever suits their fancy

So if I do regular water changes do I need to test for anything other than PH regularly? My clown seems to be a host whore. One days he's on the rock the next it's the pump, and every once in a while he goes back to the heater haha. When I do get a nem in the future there isn't any guaranty he will host it is there?

There are no guarantees in this hobby. Not when it comes to the behavior of the animals. That is one thing I know for sure. I would test for Nitrates and Phosphates also.

Originally Posted by b_radusilton

So if I do regular water changes do I need to test for anything other than PH regularly? My clown seems to be a host whore. One days he's on the rock the next it's the pump, and every once in a while he goes back to the heater haha. When I do get a nem in the future there isn't any guaranty he will host it is there?

Yes i would still test even with regular water changes. Test for Ca, Alk and Mg at the least. Knowing what nitrate and phosphate are at is good to know but you need special test kits for these. Dont waste your money on titration kits for phosphate. Spend the extra $ and get one of these for phosphate. http://www.ocreef.com/hanna_instrume...category_id=38

thanks for the tip on the Phosphate tester. I hate doing, the ten drips of this and shake and then ten more and wait five minutes. then have to determine what shade of red you are looking at to get a number. I am not sure i see red like everyone else since my little bro is color blind.

I have found that if you get a captive breed clown they will have no idea what a anemone is or that they will like it. it took mine 3 or 4 weeks to go near it. I have heard of other taking longer.

Yeah those test suck. I have a competitor with mine and depending on what light you hold it up to, sun or ceiling light, it will be a different shade. Good test but not for this. They just aren't accurate enough. I figured there was a chance he wouldn't. I don't blame them really they look overwhelming to them I'm sure.

Basically clowns will host what the clown wants to host and where it feels safe and "at home". Like was said before, sometimes it's an anemone, sometimes a toadstool, sometimes a powerhead, sometimes a clam, heck I've had one try to host in my hand while I was working in the tank.

I've neevr heard about anemones not being exposed to the air, and over the years I've been doing this have probably acclimated and transferred 7-8 different nems. Sponges on the other hand can not be exposed to the air or they will die.

Can't wait to get one! So why can't the sponge touch air and how do you get it in the water? Is it just one of those times you have to pure the aclimation water in?

If a sponge is exposed to air the air gets into its channels/pores and it will die from the inside out. If you drip acclimate it then there is very very little of the original water to go into the display tank. This is one very good reason for a quarantine tank also.