Which coral for starting?

[Absolut]

Hi all again. I am planning to add some coral to my FO aquarium in a month time. I wonder which coral is the best for starting and also for later.
Thanks

 

[1979camaro]

mushrooms and polyps are good...what kind of lighting/fish do you have?

 

[supahtim]

soft corals would be your best bet.

what kind of fish do you have?

Tim

 

[55gSW]

It would be good to know what size tank you have, and what kind of lighting you already have on the tank.

Even though mushrooms and button polyps can make do with lower light levels....they do have their limits!!

 

[allthingsanimal]

What are we talking about low light levels. I have 160 watts on my 55g. would that be enough for them to flourish? I do not want anything in my tank that is not as healthy as possible.

55g
70lbs live rock
sailfin algae blenny
brown surgeon
ocellaris clown
various crabs, snails, starfish

 

[supahtim]

i had 40w of NO florescent lighting on my 30g tank at one time and my corals were doing good. they weren't growing at any speed, but they stayed alive for about a week. then i got my 2 55w PC bulbs, and i'm getting Metal Halides put in after the new year.

you could have 160w of lighting on a 55g and still not have enough. it depends on what kind of bulbs you have and what kinds of corals you have.

Tim

 

[offish]

The lighting is really gonna determine what you can and cant have, the rest is down to water quality.

For starters try any leathers, mushrooms, toadstools, etc. For lower light levels you could also try a sun coral - very nice looking and will cope in (relative) shadow.

The depth of water is very important when choosing also. for halides 150 watt should punch through to about 18", 250 watt to c.24-30" and 400 watt for reall deep tanks.

 

[1979camaro]

i wouldnt reccomend sun polyps as the feeding regimen is fairly intense for a newby

 

[supahtim]

did you set up your tank yet? what type of lighting are you going to use? how big is the tank?

Tim