"grown-in tanks" - reefs with more natural coral placement

[kentmoney]

Hey there,

 

Long time reefer here just getting back into it after a 4 year hiatus. However, this time I've added planted tanks to my obsession along with nano reefs.

 

As you know, the planted tank scene has changed dramatically with Amano's influence and I know reefers are starting to pick up on his style cues. The idea of scaled down, natural representations of reefs seems to be catching on.

 

 

I was hoping to start a thread to post tanks with this design aesthetic in mind. So many reef tanks look more like frag collections and I was hoping to highlight some tanks that place the coral directly on the rockwork and allow it to grow in naturally. I know this many lead to less flexibility down the line with coral placement, but with enough foresight it could be beautiful.

 

Anyone feel me?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rev138]

Perhaps an example?

[kentmoney]

*edited first post

[Chadf]

I'm working on it, give it about 6 months.

[SeahawkReefer]

I think what you are describing is what most reefers' have in mind for the end goal for their display tanks.... with fresh water, the plants grow really fast compared to corals, so it takes much much longer for corals to grow and fill in. Also most reefers don't have dedicated frag tanks to grow out frags in to colonies and buying full grown colonies is usually cost prohibitive... soo really apples and oranges imho

 

P.S. spell check owned me...

[gonzalez78]

I think what you are describing is what most refers' have in mind for the end goal for their display tanks.... with fresh water, the plants grow really fast compared to corals, so it takes much much longer for corals to grow and fill in. Also most refers don't have dedicated frag tanks to grow out frags in to colonies and buying full grown colonies is usually cost prohibitive... soo really apples and oranges imho

I believe you mean reefers lol

[Scorched]

I feel you.

 

I've had this same style planned since it was set up almost a year ago. Corals are picked based on color and shape and they are permanently (ish) attached to the rocks so that when they fill in it will create a more natural mini reef.

 

I try to find corals of all different colors and shapes and place them scattered around. I don't want two similar colors or shapes to be next to each other. This leads your eye around the tank and nothing is out of balance.

 

But like Seahawk said, creating these types of tanks takes a LONG time. Planted tanks can mature in a few months. Many good reef tanks take years. And buying all large colonies right off the bat is expensive and in my opinion not very rewarding when the main fun in the reefing hobby is buying or trading cheaper frags and watching them mature to real beauties. Some really nice corals are also extremely expensive so even buying a small frag of lots of these "high end" corals can quickly eat up your budget.

[metrokat]

Click on my signature for links to my tank

[crouton]

I don't think any of those tanks are natural looking, they are aesthetically pleasing though. A lot of them have a "Decorated Christmas Tree" vibe..

[SeahawkReefer]

^agree... not "natural" looking, but can be very beautiful if planned well and allowed time to grow

[Nano sapiens]

One can only get so close to 'natural' in a small glass box of water. I think that the tanks pictured have a 'grown in' feel which many will equate with 'natural' since just about every nook and cranny on a natural reef has something living on it.

 

And yes, it certainly takes time to get a grown in feel. I've got five years on my Nano with most corals started from fingernail (or smaller) sized frags, so it may be fully grown in by the ten year mark

[MeepNand]

I like to have more macroalgaes in my tanks; they grow fast, are cheap, and IMO give a much better and more natural look to reefs.

Due to my limited coral budget, my future tanks will likely be more "grown in" than most because I simply cannot have more corals.

[Nano sapiens]

There are some stunning Macros around, so adding them to the tank can work out very nicely.

 

One solution to the coral issue is to frag your frags and place them in various locations. Do this a couple times and you can fill out a tank faster as well as having some insurance that you won't loose the coral species/type due to an accident (frag falling off the LR, etc.).

[Psychosis]

Can any one post a link to Amano's build thread? Ohhh that's right...freshwater. All well.

 

Don't attribute a grown in tank to Amano. We've been doing that for years, all by ourselves. Minimalist rock work wasn't exactly his brain child,either.

[Chadf]

Can any one post a link to Amano's build thread? Ohhh that's right...freshwater. All well.

 

Don't attribute a grown in tank to Amano. We've been doing that for years, all by ourselves. Minimalist rock work wasn't exactly his brain child,either.

 

Yea I think that's been the goal since the start of reefing.

[kentmoney]

I like to have more macroalgaes in my tanks; they grow fast, are cheap, and IMO give a much better and more natural look to reefs.

Due to my limited coral budget, my future tanks will likely be more "grown in" than most because I simply cannot have more corals.

 

Yes! I think starting to integrate more macroalgae within displays will also add to the natural impact. I just picked up some dragons tongue and it really is quite beautiful...will be posting pictures of my custom system soon.

[rev138]

I don't think any of those tanks are natural looking

Indeed. Natural reefs just look like a random jumble of corals, and they're usually pretty drab.

[Veng]

While I like a lot of the grown in tanks in the OP, I wouldn't call them natural, just grown in.

 

The recipe for above is really simple, but hard for people to follow:

1) Be a knowledgeable enough in the hobby to keep a healthy, stable tank.

2) Spend a couple thousand on equipment and corals

3) Wait 1-2 years for it to cover everything and grow in and then you can start trimming the garden to make it look nice.

[Spirofucci]

There is nothing natural in those tanks. I dare you to find to find a pic looking anything like you listed above.

 

Having said that, those tanks are just beautiful and stunning and some were an inspiration for my tank!

[JamesHL88]

None of our tanks look natural to me. Im pretty sure that each square foot of rock doesnt contain 32 types of coral on a reef. Of corse thats no fun. IMO if u want a natural looking tank then u should pick out two or three choice corals and let them take over your rockwork. Think a plating coral, a tables ng coral, and either a softy or LPS for movement. Simple but extremely grown in

[ward827]

Islandoftiki's pest tank is what I would consider close to being an all 'natural' tank.

But I agree with the above posts, the full, grown in tanks are what always come to mind

and are a true inspiration. W-

None of our tanks look natural to me. Im pretty sure that each square foot of rock doesnt contain 32 types of coral on a reef. Of corse thats no fun. IMO if u want a natural looking tank then u should pick out two or three choice corals and let them take over your rockwork. Think a plating coral, a tables ng coral, and either a softy or LPS for movement. Simple but extremely grown in

After my crash, that's what I'm left with and I've discovered that I like the simplicity of it.
Now the 5 zoa colonies have to grow even more.

[metrokat]

To me a natural scape incorporates macros. This tank is still young, only a 15 months old. The growth and encrustation I see in the corals is both fun and vexing. The more they cover the rocks the more they fight. Sometimes it is difficult to let nature have their way rather than get in there to fix things.

 

At 12 months

 

 

This is at 15 months

[penfold2]

It looks to me like the tanks in the OP simply have a lot of open sand space. I definitely think that looks better and more natural, but coral selection is just as important as placement in creating a natural looking reef. There's nothing natural about mixing lagoon corals with high energy reef corals. But it's very difficult for most people (myself included) to deprive themselves of a beautiful or interesting coral simply because it doesn't fit with their tank's zone. I think the solution is to have multiple tanks dedicated to different zones, but even with multiple tanks, many people tend to mix things up. It requires a lot of discipline and patience to create a natural looking tank and I guess that's why they're so rare. They're beautiful when you see them, but I think most people wonder how that person managed to resist the urge to add some chalices, zoanthids, or other coral of choice.

[skimlessinseattle]

I think the idea here would work best with a minimalist biotype. However,those tanks are few and far between. Amano's tanks look really nice, but i think many reefers collect corals rather than creating an artistic representation. Amano plans his tanks inhabitants and design with rediculous detail. Too obsessive an approach for me.

[rev138]

IMO if u want a natural looking tank then u should pick out two or three choice corals and let them take over your rockwork

 

For added realism, choose brown ones.