Starting SPS

[Uncle99]

I wonder if people who know SPS could give some info?
I have a 20g which I increased to 65g full of softies, clams, shrimps, black Ocellaris.
I left this 2 foot wide space in the middle which I would like to add SPS, say Acropora or the like.

I can sustain perfect saltwater parameters in my tank, have varied good flow, and super lighting, say 600 Par Peak, 350-450 top average.

I'm I missing something for SPS?
Do you feed them? If so, what and when? Phytoplankton?

I have heard SPS are very hard to keep and while I have good success with other corals I am a newbie to SPS.

Would appreciate any input!

 

[DaveK]

I wonder if people who know SPS could give some info?
I have a 20g which I increased to 65g full of softies, clams, shrimps, black Ocellaris.
...

This is a very big maybe. It's not that you can't do it, but it's going to be tricky.

Soft corals and SPS corals tend not to like each other and often get involved in "chemical warfare" between each other. Consider filtering with carbon to help keep this under control.

You have a fairly small tank, this is going to make maintaining the water quality you need for SPS difficult, but not impossible.

That being said, there is no reason not to give SPS a try. Get one or two small, inexpensive frags, and try them in the area you have set up for them.Keep them for awhile, say 6 months, and watch for growth, color, health and so on. It they are looking good at the end of this time, go ahead and add additional SPS corals you want.

If they don't work out, don't try them again, unless you can point to a specific problem or reason they failed. Just about everyone has something they can't seem to keep, even though it should be easy. As a note, I can never seem to keep green star polyps, even though for some it's a weed in their tank.

 

[Uncle99]

Thank you DaveK for your advice, I am glad I asked.
I run the carbon, but I don't want to wreck what I already have
Yup, I will try just one like you said and see if it works, if not, I'll fill the new space with more softies.

Appreciated, your quick response!

 

[Uncle99]

Found a small frag of green acro for 20 bucks.
Going to add to the upper layer above 6 inches from the top.
It will be on its own, 1.5 feet away from everything but good light and varied flow patterns.
I will advise what happens.

Btw...do I have to feed it in the column? I feed phyto now for my clams. Is that sufficient?

I see what you mean, tanks are not usually both soft and hard.