So whats next ?

[JimmyOrangeSeed]

This is what I have:

 

10g tank

96W Coralife Light 50/50

Penguin Bio-Wheel 150 (no wheel or filter)

Bubbler

Sand for substrate

~13 pounds of live rock

 

There is 3 Blue Legged Hermit crabs and 3 turbo snails

There is 1 Coral Banded Shrimp

And I just got 1 mushroom polyp. I have no idea what its actual name is but its purple with little blue spots and its about a quarter in size.

 

So, whats next ?

 

I would like to get more polyps of course but I want to make sure I have enough light and filtration. My tank has been set up for around 4 months now with perfect water quality. I also still get tons of algae growing on the glass so I was wondering if I should get some asterina starfish's to help and if they would be compatible. I am also going to get more live rock but I will get it with the polyps attached when I get more polyps.

 

Also, how often should I be doing water changes ? I have to add water everyday because of the amount of evaporation. Should I also be taking water out and adding fresh salt water mix ? I do it every now and then but should I do it more now that I want to have polyps and other corals ?

 

Well, thanks for the help and ideas in advanced. I will try to get some pictures taken and post them.

[basiab]

I have a similar setup. The bubbler is not doing much but if you like the way it looks that is fine. You have plenty of light. You can add more mushrooms as it is now. There are plenty of very nice colorful ones around. Another easy to care for coral is candy canes. Keep in mind that corals fight with eachother chemically so even if you keep them from touching they still give off chemicals to harm the other corals. In a small tank this is critical since there is very little volume of water to dilute it. So water changes are important. And the less different kinds of corals you have is also important.

Your water movement is minimal but ok. I recently added a small powerhead.

 

Do you want any fish in there. A neon goby or clown goby fit well as well as a firefish.

 

I change one gallon every week. Remove a gallon and replace but make sure your saltwater is mixed ahead of time preferably by at least 24 hours. Asternias are not going to help you algea problem. Snails are your best bet. And even with snails you are going to have to clean the front glass yourself. Topping of evaporation with unsalted water does not count as part of the changing water since evaporation does not remove any salt or polutants. But replacing evaporation is important since evaporation will result in a higher salt density and in a small tank it can really make a difference. So the more often you replace evaporation the better.

[Hekim]

As your water level drops due to evaporation you need to refill the tank with freshwater. Once a week or so, do a partial water change. Drain approx 10 to 20% of the tank water and refill with fresh saltwater. This helps lower nutrients such as nitrated and phospahtes and replenishes trace elements your corals need.

[circusordie16]

agreed with the above on water changes. you might want to add more flow like mentioned above also.

 

if your water quality is remaining good and your current inhabitants are doing well then go ahead and add more corals and dont be afraid to slowly branch out into different types of corals besides mushrooms (zoas, rics, candy canes, gsp, etc). chemical coral warfare is exaggerated i think. i have about 10 different types of coral in my 2.5 gallon and havent had any problems so dont worry about it.

[JimmyOrangeSeed]

Ok, sweet ! I am super excited about researching different corals to put in there. I have a small jet that used to be in the tank that I can put back in there.

 

Also, the banded coral shrimp is being fed frozen brine shrimp. Anything else I should be feeding this guy or the polyp / polyps to be ?

 

Also, if I decide to add starfish just for fun, will they bother anything in the tank ? I have always wanted a starfish, so even if they don't really do anything, I would be ok with that

[circusordie16]

you should feed the shrimp something more nutritious than brine, search on here for ideas, ive never kept a coral banded before. your corals dont need food, only if you start adding lps would i start feeding any corals.

 

as for the starfish, i dont think very many are good for a nano but im not sure.