Need advise to start coral tank

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kar081773

Guest
We purchased a 210 tank and have live sand and live rock. Here is a list of fish:
2 Sandsifting Stars
1 Yellow Tang
2 Clowns
2 Pajamas
1 Picasso Trigger
My parameters are all good, except nitates are at 10, which I am sure is because of overfeeding so I will cut back and do water changes to lower. I only test salinity, PH, nitrates, nitrites and ammonia. For lighting we have 3x150 MH, 4X96W Power Compact Actinic Lamps w/8 lunar lights. We want to purchase corals (absolutely LOVE brain coral), but don't know where to start. Tank has only been up 6 weeks and don't know how long the tank should be established before adding any coral, what to test for or how long to run these lights. ANY suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
 

grumpygils

Active Member
https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/264597/a-list-of-extremely-helpful-threads-for-all-hobbyists/40
I think you will find this thread useful. It has a ton of info. I know you want to start packing it with corals but you really should wait at least a few months. In the mean time, I would start with some frags and see how they do. Zoas, xynia, finger leathers, Anthelia frags ect... Then add bigger ones after 4-6 months. this will let you figure out what does well and what doesn't.
I did not wait. Too Type A. Myself (like many others) started out by buying large corals on a new tank and lost a lot of money. As far as lights.
I would go with for starters:
PCs on at ~noon off at 10pm
MHs on at 1 off at 9.
Nitrates at 10 is not bad. You will have to supplement with CA+ as you add corals or do frequent water changes.
Welcome to SWF.com.
Mc
 
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