Which coral to buy?

[BKT]

Hey,

Need ideals of coral for new tank. The coral should be hardy, colorful and able to stand being in 75 gal tank.

I was thinking of putting tang, angel fish, puffer, eel, and not sure what else in with the coral.

The light is an odyssea pc 260 watt and the tank is 48". Is this light in the category of moderate to high lighting for coral? Just wondering so I can make better decisions.

Brian

[hammondegge]

light is on the low side, 350-400w moderate and 750w high for a tank of that size. i think that mushrooms should do ok, but they might not like the puffer.

[Ross]

shrooms,zoos,xenia,different polyps should all do great

[miked78231]

man if 350-400 is on the low side then my 45w would be what now? lol

[carlinsa]

man if 350-400 is on the low side then my 45w would be what now? lol

nite lites for most peoples tank :innocent

i have 1060 on my 125 and thinking about adding another 250mh to that\

[hobogato]

nite lites for most peoples tank :innocent



yep, i have 40 watts of moonlight. about 1500 total watts on a 240 gal.

[BKT]

Soooooo, 260 is not ideal for hardly any corals??

[GaryP]

There are some corals that need no light.

Sun corals and chili cactus come to mind. Your real issue is going to be waste from the predators in your tank. Those are all messy eaters and unless you have one heck of a filtration system, you are going to have a hard time keeping your nitrates and phosphates under control in a tank that size. Many of those fish shouldn't even be in a tank that size, much less all of them in the same tank. I would suggest doing some planning on your filtration, nutrient export, and stocking. For this reason, very few corals will survive in a heavily stocked predator tank. You might want to contact Don in SA. He's the man when it comes to aggressive reef tanks.

[hobogato]

there are some corals that also like water that has lots of "nutrients" in it like xenia. also, i know it is horrible to suggest, but some mejano type anemones have cool colors and do very well in lower light high nutrient environments.

[GaryP]

The problem with Xenia is not having enough light. They don't do well in low light conditions.

[hobogato]

well, i have some in a fuge with only a 15 watt pc 50/50 light and they are doing fine. i used to have lots more xenia in my first reef tank which was only PC lights and not nearly as clean as my current tank. they will move all the way to the top of the rock, but they can go crazy. i saw a 125 gallon setup once that just had a few PC light fixtures, and the xenia were bigger than i have seen in any other tank.

[BKT]

Ok, lets go about it this way...

I was only suggesting those fish because I thought they were compatible..which I believe they are.
Which type of fish would some of you recommend in a reef tank?

The eel is not an issue...if it means trading him in for different fish. I really just want a nicely decorated, colorful, "LIVELY" saltwater tank for now, until I become more familiar....(active tank)

Right now there are three damsels, starfish, featherduster, hermit crabs...

I have a 36" coralite that I had on my planted tank I can add or I can just see how much a light for a 75 gal tank will cost...(48") What wattage is sufficient for what I want to achieve or where to get it?

thanks..

Brian

[alton]

I feel like like I am disagreeing with God here because he has taught me so much but, Gary I have Xenia that grows under 2 watts per gallon and the tank is 25" deep. My 200 has 384 watts of PC's but plenty of waste due to the large fish that are in there. Depending on which Angel, the Zoo's could end up being food. I have never had anything that ate Mushrooms. GSP's might be a nice choice also. Make sure 50% of your lighting is 03 actinics (Coral Life) and the other half 10K/ 6700 (Current). Frogspawn might work if you keep it high in the tank. I have all these in my 75 with PC's and no problems with chemical warfare.

[hobogato]

i have a frogspawn in my tank in my classroom that is doing very well, and that is a 29 gallon tank with a 96 watt pc light. it sits about mid level in the tank. it actually has more color than a frag of the same one that lives in my big tank with lots of light. the eel will eventually be a problem because they will knock things over in the rocks to arrange them the way they want and they just make a lot of waste. many people on here (garyp.. :innocent ) really hate damsels, but i think the right kind are ok. i have two schools in my big tank, green chromis and three stripe humbug. the humbug are starting to annoy me a little, because one of them now defends his pile of rocks by moving things he can and biting me whenever i am close. the puffer will eat a lot of types of coral, and again is a high waste producer - i know, i really would love to have one in my reef tank also, most personality of any fish i have ever had. the angel, depending on the type will also eat corals and sponges. if you get a pygmi, like a coral beauty or flame, they are supposed to be more reef safe, but i have heard horror stories.

ok enough rambling for now.

[hammondegge]

i think you may be able to get away with most all of the soft corals mentioned ( i too have xenia in my sump under 65w - it survives but is lankier than that in the display ). Some will not thrive as they would under much more light. all of those fish may do fine with the corals. Some angles and puffers might like to snack on the softcorals some wont.
You may have to get a flashlight so see them though ;) :P
i have some anthelia that would be fine in there if you want some

[pilot_bell777]

On my first reef tank I ran 4 x 96watt 50/50 PCs on a 75gallon that was 48" long.

I kept:
Xenia, Mushrooms, Hammer, FrogSpawn, Fungia, Zoos, an open brain, a bubble coral, blastamusa (sp).

[BKT]

Pilot

If I add a 36" coralife to that I guess it will work better? I'll have to see the pics of those to see what they look like...hey, if you get a chance can you call me? I live in south austin...cell #
632-3431, Brian...if i don't answer leave a msg and I'll get right back to you..have a few (hundred ) questions..

thanks
Brian