SPS - Clues to "good" frags?

Buying from a guy off of craigslist. Purchasing SPS, which will be my first SPS additions to the tank. I have an ATI sunpower 6x54 over my 55 gallon tank. Built a frag rack yesterday to get ready for this addition today.

What should I look for when buying SPS? What should I watch out for?

Here is what I'm purchasing:

ORA pearlberry 1.5" frag
ORA green staghorn 2" frag
Orange Digi 2"+ frag
ORA redplanet 1" frag fully encrusted
Palmers purple Acro 1" frag
Armour's Tri-color acro 1.5" frag
Blue tort 1" frag
Idaho Grape cap 2"+ frag

Honestly I had to look up what some of these are supposed to look like as I hadn't personally seen these except for pictures. So how should I inspect these to make sure everything is ok? What are some things I should watch out for.

Could you possibly ballpark a rough estimate of what this coral pack would run price wise? I want to make sure I'm not being taken. Thanks.

 

Retail for a black plug frag of most of those is almost $50+ a piece. Buying from private, I would pay up to $30 a piece.

Are these being shipped to you, or will you be able to inspect before you buy?

Look for good encrusting on plug. You do not want a fresh cut frag. They are more prone to RTN during shipping.
Check for parasites. Red Bugs, AEF Acro Eating Flatworms, or anything that might just be riding.

 

I will be able to inspect personally. Im meeting the person today.

I will also be using Coral RX dip before placing them in my tank. That should take care of any red bug or acro eating flatworms right?

What is RTN?

 

Inspection would be looking for dead areas or RTN/STN areas, good polyp extension and color if you see them before buying. Check the tank out for pests like red bugs, flat worms and nudibranchs. Do a 15 minute dip with ReVive or Coral RX before placing in your tank.

I would guess $350 to $400 from an online site.

 

sounds like a nice pack there... I would price it at about 150-250. If you dont mind me asking, how much is he charging? My prices may be on the low side however because I am used to getting stuff mostly from friends at very cheap prices.

By the looks of the frags offered you can assume that this person is an experienced reefer. This means that they are probably not going to have a tank with bad nutrient levels. One thing to always keep an eye out for is pests... Ask him if he has or has ever had acropora eating flatworms or montipora eating nudibranchs. Then if the general condition of the mother colonies and the tank looks nice you can be sure that it wont be an issue to add them to your tank.

Quarantining new stuff is always the safest route though...

 

Definitely want to do some sort of preventive bath before you put them in your tank.
Here's what I did for a home made lugol's solution bath:

http://www.3reef.com/forums/coral/new-corals-11-11-2010-updated-pics-98557.html#post1008168

Hope it helps!

 

RTN is Rapid Tissue Necrosis.

 

it wil take care of adult AEFW, not the eggs or the juveniles that are burrowed into the skeleton.

It doesnt kill red bugs. interceptor is the only thing that kills them

 

Rapid Tissue Necrosis (RTN) - good information on it over at ReefHQ


Those sound like some great frags! Good luck and certainly dip, dip away.

 

ReVive works well on the red bugs IME. I think it stuns them more than anything else so a vigorous stirring or blow off in the water is necessary.