need coral help

J

Joshua

New Member
Hey

So i havent got a tank yet but am pondering getting a red sea max 250. Ive done my homework on the spec and on the fish but I just cant get my head round corals. I just want to learn as much as i can before I start, just some of my questions are
What does sps mean?
Which corals are easiest to grow?
What type of corals would you recommend for begginers?
Do you have to feed corals or is light and water flow enough?

Thanks in advance for any help you guys give, much appreciated
 
C

clownfishrule

Member
mushrooms they grow in anything!! seriously they grew with Florissant lights (the cheap ones that come with the tank usually)and went through my cycling tank and they are alive today with t5 lights and thriving. and for your last question you have to do your research because some corals only use the lights to grow and others have to be fed stuff 2~3 times a day and don't use the lights (some gorgonians are filter feeders like the yellow deepwater gorgonian) corals need pristine water quality and STABLE water conditions. you know that you have to have good lights right like LED's or VHO t5 lights or metal halides. also welcome to rs
 
nanoreefing4fun

nanoreefing4fun

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/just-starting-out-sw-beginners/49019-acronyms-abbreviations.html

Here a few...

FO - Fish Only
FOWLR - Fish Only With live rock
SW - SaltWater
FW - FreshWater

....

Here a few more...

Saltwater Acronyms

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SW - SaltWater
FW - FreshWater
FO - Fish Only
FOWLR - Fish Only With live rock
LR - Live Rock
RO - reverse osmosis (filters)
DI (De Ionisation (filters)
W/gal - Watts per Gallon
NO - Normal Output ((fluorescent lights)
PC - Power Compact (fluorescent lamps)
VHO - Very High Output (fluorescent lamps)
MH - Metal Halide (lamps)
P/I - Photosynthesis/Irradiance
LPS - Large polyped Scleractinian (stoney coral)
SPS - Small polyped Scleractinian (stoney coral)
LFS - Local Fish Store
PM - Private Message (Seen in the buy/sell forums)
UV - Ultra Violet (you should know this already)
DSB - Deep Sand Bed
RDSB - Remote Deep Sand Bed
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
AC activated carbon, chemical filtration media / alternating current
AFM Aquarium Fish Monthly, magazine
AGA All-Glass Aquarium, Aquarium manufacturer
AL Aqualink, aquarium bulletin board
ATS Algae turf scrubber, reef setup technique
BOD Biological oxygen demand
CC Counter current, type of protein skimmer
CSL Custom Sea Life, lighting manufacturer
CTA Cellulose triacetate, type of RO membrane
CUC - Clean Up Crew
Cyano Cyanobacteria
DC Direct current
DD Downdraft, type of protein skimmer
DI Deionisation, type of water purification
DIY Do it yourself
DKH Degrees of carbonate hardness
DSB Deep Sand Bed
FAMA Freshwater and Marine Aquaria, magazine
FFE Flying Fish Express, Mail Order Company
FO Fish only
FOWLR Fish only with live rock
FW Freshwater
GBR Great Barrier Reef
GPH Gallons per hour
GSP- Green star polyps
HO High output fluorescent light
HQI Mercury (Hg) Quartz Iodide, a type of metal halide lamp
IA Inland Aquatics, mail order company
IMHO In My Humble Opinion
IMO In My Opinion
IO Instant Ocean, brand of aquarium salt
IR Infrared
Kalk kalkwasser, German for calcium hydroxide solution or limewater
LFS Local fish store
LHS Local hardware store
LPS Large polyped Scleractinian (stoney) coral
LR Live rock
LS live sand
MACNA Marine Aquaria Conference of North America, held annually
MASNA Marine Aquarium Societies of North America
MD Marine Depot, mail order company
MH Metal halide light
MJ Maxijet, powerhead manufacturer
MM Miracle Mud, method of aquarium filtration
MO Mail order
MTS Multiple tank syndrome
NO Normal output fluorescent light
NSW Natural seawater
PA Premium Aquatics, mail order company
PC Power compact fluorescent light
pH Powerhead, water pump
PVC Poly vinyl chloride, used for piping / plumbing
RC Reef Crystals, brand of aquarium salt
RDO Reefs.org ("reefs-dot-org"), aquarium bulletin board
RK Reef Keeping, on-line aquarium magazine
RO Reverse osmosis, type of water purification
RO/DI Reverse osmosis, followed by deionisation, type of water purification
RR Reef ready, aquaria with pre-drilled holes and overflows
RTN Rapid tissue necrosis, protozoal infection of corals; can be rapidly fatal if not treated
SG specific gravity
SPS Small polyped Scleractinian (stoney) coral
SW Saltwater / seawater
TBS Tampa Bay Saltwater, Mail Order Company
TFC Thin film composite, type of RO membrane
TRT The Reef Tank, aquarium bulletin board
TWP Tap Water Purifier from Aquatic Pharmaceuticals
UGF Undergravel filter
UV Ultra violet light
VHO Very high output fluorescent light
W/D Wet-dry (a method of aquarium filtration)
WD Wet-dry (a method of aquarium filtration)
 
nanoreefing4fun

nanoreefing4fun

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
another good :read: ReefSome - What are the types of corals?

What are the types of corals?
Learn the requirements and how to identify the main groups of corals!
In the hobby there are many different types of corals you can get for your aquarium, but with thousands upon thousands of species knowing the requirements for each one becomes nearly impossible. Fortunately almost all of the corals we have access to in the hobby can fit into a few large groups with mostly similar requirements across each group. By learning the different groups you can understand new coral's general requirements without knowing exactly what species it is.

The types of corals:
For the most part, we can group almost any coral into one of three groups. We have the SPS (Small Polyped Stony) corals, LPS (Large Polyped Stony) corals, and soft corals. These groups are not really taxonomical groups, but rather convenient groups for the hobbyist. Within these groups they are usually divided into the coral's family or genus and eventually species for the specific corals. There are many variations within species as well, similar to variations in dog breeds within Canis familiaris. For simplicity it this article will just cover the large groups which all the corals may be placed in. Just knowing these groups can provide great insight into the placement and requirements of corals and could make the difference between their death and propagation.

SPS (Small Polyped Stony) corals:
SPS corals are most easily identified by their namesake. They are corals which have very small polyps (flowery looking dots covering the coral) on a hard "stony" skeletal base. These corals do not move with currents in the water and very hard to the touch. Their skeletal base is made out of calcium carbonate and grows fairly slowly compared to plants. Depending on thickness of the coral branches it can be easily broken into smaller pieces, which given the right conditions will grow into a new colony. These corals are the reef building corals. As they grow upwards trying to reach the light they will shade out and kill other corals leaving behind their calcium carbonate skeletons. These skeletons eventually trap sediment and form rocks and substrate which other corals can grow from. Live rock is almost always ancient SPS and LPS corals which have died and become rock.

Requirements:

Generally SPS corals will require the most light and flow of the corals. If you do not have very strong lighting like metal halide or many T5 flourescents with individual reflectors you will have a very hard time getting them to grow. They also prefer to have strong flow blowing across them. When determining flow, it's often too much if you can feel the flow underwater, but too little if small particulates in the water are not moving past the coral. Water quality is extremely important to SPS corals and extended paramaters must be tested to keep them. They typically will not do well unless Calcium, Alkalinity, Magnesium and Nitrate are regularly tested.


LPS (Large Polyped Stony) corals:
LPS corals are great for beginners with adequate lighting on their tanks. They are fairly easy to keep and can handle poorer water quality than SPS corals can. They are easily identified for they will be the only corals with large fleshy heads but a hard skeleton underneath. They will often sway with the currents in the water retract when agitated. They may grow a lot of skeleton and branch frequently or you may not see hardly any skeletal growth depending on the genus and species. SPS are more difficult to see feeding, but LPS corals can often be easy to feed. Typically there are a set of a tentacles surrounding the centrally located mouth. These tentacles will often come out when food or nutrients are in the water or at night when they are least likely to be nipped by a fish.

Requirements:

LPS corals require greater lighting than standard fluorescent lights found on fish-only tanks, however they do not require as bright of light as SPS corals. Some species will do great under metal halides or other bright lighting, while other prefer shady spots in extremely well lit tanks. They are not as picky about water quality as SPS in some regards, however since they still have a skeletal base water parameters should still be tested occasionally. Calcium, Alkalinity and Magnesium are important factors to test for since they are required to build the corals skeleton. Nitrates can be significantly higher than with SPS corals and testing is not always as important unless they become excessively high. Nitrates should be under 20ppm for LPS corals.


Soft corals:
Soft corals are can be identified by their lack of skeleton. They are often most responsive to water flow and are some of the easiest corals to keep. They come in many different shapes and coloration, however they often have the same requirements as each other.

Requirements:

Soft corals can be kept under low lighting and even standard T8 fluorescent depending on species. They do not require the water to be tested for the extended parameters and will only require basic water maintenance. Nitrates may be higher than for LPS or SPS corals, but still should not be excessively high. They often have a low flow requirement and do not necessarily like having a lot of water flow that a SPS corals would. They are good beginner corals, however they can be difficult to remove later, so thoughtful placement should be used.


Summary:
Knowing the basic groups of corals will hopefully simplify placing corals in your tank. Knowing the high requirements of SPS corals and low requirements of soft corals will make it easy to know if that pretty coral at the local fish store is right for you. If these groupings are still new to you, go ahead and check out the gallery and try and guess which corals belong to which groups!

There can be some variation in requirements within each group, so don't be afraid to ask the seller what conditions that specific coral does best in!
 
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