First corals

[Paul101]

I just received my first corals from Live Aquaria. They're all in the tank now but what a chinese fire drill getting them in. I had all the equipment ready, I floated the bags for half an hour, I dripped aquarium water into the bags for half an hour, and I dipped them in RO water of the right temperature for a few minutes or more. Then I put them in the tank and moved them around to where I like them, for now. They're all rated as "easy" to care for, and a good thing too. My question is, are they supposed to be so small? A couple are just bumps on a plug. The description says an inch and a half or more. The only thing remotely that size is the plug. Secondly, how do you know if they are alive? They have a guarantee but when they're so small, who can tell? Finally, assuming everything is all right, how long till they start growing to recognizable corals, something I can ooh and ah about?

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Give them a little time to relax and feel at home and they should open up.
If they don't open in 2 days I would be a little more concerned.
What corals did you get?

 

[duke62]

What Did U Buy.no One Can Answer U If They Dont Know What They Are

 

[crox99]

What kind of corals did you get?

 

[alfani]

what kind of light do you have

 

[DevIouS]

Fresh Water dip on corals?
I would only do that on zoos.

List your coral purchase.

 

[Deanos]

I'd guess it's one of these "beginner" frag packs that LiveAquaria sells.

 

[Paul101]

I avoided the beginner packs because of the advise on these forums and because I spend enough time on the internet and I take notes. What I got is: Taro tree, Lemon tree, Purple lennalia, Evergreen starbust and Blue spruce caulestra. The RO dip was with the advise of the vendor.I spoke to someone at Live Aquaria and they also said give it time and go very easy on the lights. My lighting is a Maristar fixture with 2 250 10K plus 2 actinics. Needless to say, it hasn't been on yet with the corals. I do have a bit of reflected light from my refugium lights. I was just wondering if the tiny size is to be expected.

 

[digitalreefer]

Ummmm.... corals generally won't open without light unless they're night feeders (usually not beginner corals). Also, the freshwater dip probably shocked them, so they may take a while to open even with the lights on. The size they give you is the size when open, so yes they should be pretty small when closed.

 

[PalmTree]

Yeah I think in time they will all open up. I would also put your lights on a timer if you haven't done so already. That way it is one less thing for you to have to turn on and off.

 

[SuRFeR BoY]

we have some good vendors that sell nice corals on this website and they are great people too. you may get better deals and bigger pieces and can prob get you anything you want.

 

[Paul101]

I'm happy to report that all the corals appear to have survived; as soon as the lights came on they stood up and are bigger than I first thought, not that they are big, small to tiny is more like it, but they do have shape. My lights are on a Reefkeeper ll. I unplugged one of the MH so there is only partial light now and I set the timer for only one hour of MH and four hours of Actinic. Right now, the water flow is constant, pretty high, I think, from a 480 GPH return pump split into two eductors, a Vortech which I have set low cause it puts out quite a bit, and a couple of smaller powerheads for circulation. I'm thinking of rerouting the return pump to a Sea Swirl. I got some Kent Phytoplex and a 34" long eyedropper thing and wondered when I need to start feeding?

 

[Paul101]

By way of follow up, four out of five of the "first corals" have survived and are growing, fast. The Purple Passion Tree didn't. Subsequently, I got two bigger ones at New World and wrote Live Aquaria a note. They refunded the money on the three that were really small. I made the pilgrimage to Deepwater, an hour and a quarter by train, for a Torch, three Zoos and a Frogspawn. I stopped at PetAqua to get a silvery "tongue". They have some giant corals in what looks like an ancient tank, but the colors are dull. The plan is to get through the summer with softies then try some Acropora in the fall when my tank is more mature. What I have are doing well which is encouraging.

 

[SuRFeR BoY]

pictures please :tongueani

 

[Paul101]

First attempt at internet pictures. 70G tank first saw uncured live rock on Jan. 13.

 

[Josh]

Looks nice, but don't add too many more things right now. Make sure everything is doing well before increasing the bioload.

 

[Paul101]

I'm trying to keep bioload down, just two fish, albeit tangs. Asking me not to add more just before the frag swap is probably more than I can handle. Most of what you see is live rock, 120 pounds, some of which will move into the sump.

 

[reefman]

is that a lemon peel mimic tang? i was looking for 1 of those. Nice!

 

[ReeferGoneMad]

Be careful with the tongue coral. They are very strong when it comes to stinging another coral. Matter of fact the will kill anything that touches them. Just be careful I had to banish one to the section in the back of my tank. Its gorgeous though and I can't get rid of it.

 

[Paul101]

Thanks for the warning on the tongue. Yes that is a mimic tang which I paired with a Kole Yellow Eye tang. They are peaceful fish, get along together just fine, and are not supposed to grow too much, although they may outgrow my tank eventually. I got them from Mark at Blue Zoo Aquatics with whom I have had good luck.