sps success!!

[coralreefer]

i just bought a monti cap coral. ive had it for about a week and a half, and its doing great

! what other sps could i have in my tank? i have 4x54 watt T5 hood. also, do more colorful monti caps require more light?

 

[meemmoo]

Which color did you get?

 

[worshrag]

how big is your tank?

 

[nycbob]

if u keep the sps near the top, any monti will be fine under that t5 fixture. just give it good flow and proper calcium level.

 

[coralreefer]

i got the cheapest kind which was the brown one. (i was just trying out monti cap) my tank is 75G

 

[coralreefer]

also could i have any species of acropora

 

[nietzsche]

post all your parameters, i doubt youll have any ammonia, nitrite, so post Temp, Salinity, Nitrates, Alkalinity, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphates, and how much flow you have in the tank

 

[nycbob]

yes u can try some of the easier staghorn acros. try to buy aquacultured tho bc they r much hardier.

 

[paintballer768]

Originally Posted by coralreefer
http:///forum/post/2495346
i got the cheapest kind which was the brown one. (i was just trying out monti cap) my tank is 75G
That should color up given time. Brown means stressed out and such for a number of potential reasons. Give it some time and stability and you should have a nice beautiful monti. BTW it can grow and not color up.

 

[coralreefer]

my parameters are as follows:
nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia are all zero.
calcium: 440-480
alkalinity: about 8-9
PH: 8.2
i have two powerheads

 

[coralreefer]

the monti cap's color IS brown. it wont change colors

 

[tizzo]

digitadas are easy first corals.

 

[paintballer768]

Originally Posted by coralreefer
http:///forum/post/2495546
the monti cap's color IS brown. it wont change colors
Oh ok. Bad assumption on my part. I would go for a Slimer or Digitata. Something along those lines. Generally speaking, but not always accurate, the cheaper corals are sometimes more hardy than those really expensive ones.

 

[nietzsche]

Originally Posted by coralreefer
http:///forum/post/2495545
my parameters are as follows:
nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia are all zero.
calcium: 440-480
alkalinity: about 8-9
PH: 8.2
i have two powerheads

sounds good. you might need more flow if you dont have a lot. but you can start out with something like a green slimer. i know when i first added SPS to my tank the slimer was the one that browned out and began to STN. probably had too many phosphates, but since i added a phosphate reactor it turned a bright green color and regained tissue and encrusted

 

[coralreefer]

thanks for the advice

i bought a small frag of acropora at the LFS yesterday.