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Ryno

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North Jersey
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I have been having good success with keeping some of the "easy" SPS and have been wanting to start keeping some acropora. I was hoping someone could give me some recommendations as to some acro's that are good to try first. I have a 90 gallon and am running 2 x 175 MH. I currently have a few pocillipora, stylophora, digitata, caps, a birdsnest, and three RBTA anemones. Thanks.
 

Ryno

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North Jersey
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I do really like the look of staghorns. I have a purple stylo that is doing well ( I know it's not an acro though). I don't think I've seen an acro in the LFS labeled just "staghorn" is there a certain species that this includes? what are the common ones?
 

Ryno

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duke62, thanks for chiming in. your posts along with "jackson6745" posts and pictures are some of the ones that are really inspiring my interest in acros. I really enjoy your pics and discussion. I hope to be on the level of you guys some day.
 

adamt

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westchester ny
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Just be careful if you already have softies in the tank because some of them emit chemicals designed to inhibit sps growth, and other have sweeper tenticles that will sting the Acro and cause damage. I agree that stag horns (bali Slimers, blue stags, evergreens, etc.) are good first timers, and if you aren't hung up on it being an Acro, birds nests, cats paws, and montipora are all relatively easy sps to start off with. I would just avoid any of the deep water acros or echinata and make sure that whatever you get is a well established frag that's encrusted the plug. It's amazing how much easier it is to start with a frag that's already growing on the plug than to go with a fresh cut piece. Just make sure it's securely attached and is in an area with relatively high light and strong random flow.

Every Acro sp. is going to act differently in different tanks, so a little trial and error may be necessary to find what works best for you. Just don't keep it out of the water too long and once you place it, don't touch it! Read up on acclimation and dipping too, it's important to add it to your system the right way the first time. While they can be a little more pricy, I happen to think that Ora red planets are great beginner acros. They grow quickly and can handle a wide range of lighting scenarios (in slightly lower light they actually keep a beautiful green color on their skin). Just get a healthy frag and if your system is sufficient you'll be fine! Good luck and welcome to the addiction lol.
 

Ryno

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North Jersey
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Thanks! Yeah it is a little bit of an addiction/obsession. I have slowly phased out all of the softies in my tank and have been collecting some of the easier sps for some time now to get my maintenance regimen nailed down. I have been very disciplined in dosing, water changes etc. so I think I'm ready. Just nervous to go for it because of all the talk about acros being so sensitive. I am mesmerized by some of the nicer acros though so I have to try eventually
 

Ryno

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North Jersey
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My birdsnest and montipora is what was making me nervous that I wasn't ready. For a while if I looked at my pink birdsnest wrong it would bleach out. And I was having a tough time with my montis but I traced both issues back to lighting and acclimation so that's finally behind me.
 

Ryno

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North Jersey
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I went to the LFS on Friday with the intention of picking up a stag horn but they didn't have any that I liked so I picked up this tri-color tenius. They felt that it is about as easy as a stag horn and I liked the way it looks.
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. Let me know what you guys think.
 

Ryno

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North Jersey
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oh ok. The guy at the store must have thought that maricultured was the same. I probably wouldn't have picked it up if I knew that. I have heard bad things about maricultured stuff. I have my fingers crossed.
 

Ryno

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North Jersey
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I have never been in the market for a maricultured piece so I didn't know what to check for. What can I do with a maricultured piece to increase my chances? I know people generally say they are tougher to keep. I floated the bag to match temp, put a couple drops of flatworm exit in the bag and dripped to match salinity. Alk was exactly the same from store to my tank.
 

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