New to corals

So i am wanting to add a coral to my tank. I have t5 lighting but i dont want a light demanding coral because i want my lighting to be enough for it to thrive, I also was curious about feeding.... zooplankton, do i need to dose that or does it come naturally with my tanks age or what? Or if i have it all backwards feel free to tell me haha

 

There is plenty to read out there, so I'll keep this short. Your tank will never develop much in the way of zooplankton. That can be compensated for, but when you're just starting out, you mostly want to forget anything that requires you to do so. Your question is what coral will thrive in your tank. What we really need to know is more. About your tank.

If it turns out your tank is healthy and clean and your lighting is sufficient, a zoanthis colony, or some durable mushrooms may be good choices to start. Give us a lot more detail on your tank however, and better guesses can be offered.

 

Many people, myself included, never dose zooplankton. it adds to the nitrates and the results are... debateable. If you insist on dosing, do it with target feeding and with moderation. Do way less than the label. They are just trying to sell more product.

Focus on salinity, magnesium, calcium, and alkalinity. If you keep those in check, you will have incredible growth.

Don't buy any "snake oil" or put ANYTHING in your tank that you cannot test for.

 

Agree with these statements.

I now have 20 different kinds of coral in my DT which included softs, LPS, and SPS. I have other stuff like anenomes, but they're not coral.

I have NEVER dosed anything, and all my corals are thriving, etc.
Depending on the coral, the light source, and what's in the water (that you can't see) is all they need to thrive in a healthy tank.

I started most of them on PC lights too. I still can't understand when people get so elitist about their light source and what it can and can't grow!

Go for it, you should be fine.

 

I second the comment about lighting. Truth be told, metal halides are a complete overkill for most hobbyists. The one exception being people with tanks deeper than ~24 inches. I do enjoy the shimmer of halides but, this can be imitated by supplementing with small LED's.

When I had halides, they were a huge headache to get set at the proper height. I always had to move my corals around to stop them from getting burned. You don't need a flamethrower to cook a marshmallow.

T-5's are pretty much plug and play... Just my opinion.

 

Thanks guys. I have a 55 and it has only 8 lbs of live rock and im adding 50 lbs of dry rock mid next week. Should i wait til the dry rock is seeded or does it really matter?

 

No need to wait for the rock to be seeded. If you have a 2 bulb T5HO fixture you are go to go for most corals as long as they are properly placed based on their light needs.

 

Doesn't matter if the rock is seeded. You do need to wash your rock tho. I would put the rocks in a trashcan / tote and rinse them thoroughly, then change the water and do it again until the water stays clear. I use tap water.

If you really feel like it, most people would suggest "cooking" your dry rock. But, I never have the patience to do that.

google: cooking dry rock

 

Cooking rock?

Oh, you're talking about the stuff in the DT.

J/K- I couldn't resist ;-)

 

Just rinse your dry rock with some RO... no need to "nuke" perfectly good dry rock