Moorahs Posted September 1, 2017 Share Posted September 1, 2017 So as you can see from the pic, the "ground cover" side of things is pretty well underway. What I'm after some opinions / advice on, is what to choose for the pimp slots - I've left them empty deliberately because I know as the tank and I both mature I will want something other than just zoas and mushies. Got some small acans and blastos coming next week which will take care of the bottom of the tank. Lighting is pretty weak (12w total now) but also in the mail is a 72w LED so by the time I'm ready to do this, I should have enough light for the LPS I want to be able to keep. From the top of the tank: 1. You can't gauge depth off this pic but there is a nice flat spot behind the branching LR. I think I want to put a frogspawn or hammer up in there to add some movement. Thinking branching so it has the height to not rub against said branch? 2. This ledge is half shaded by the structure above it. It *should* be possible to place something on the edge so it is in the light, and isn't irritated by the LR. Thinking something along the lines of: scoly, cynarina, lobo or trachyphyllia - I know some tend to be placed on the sand bed but I'm wondering if anyone has had success with appropriate on-rock placement? 3. **feature coral** I chose and scaped my live rock specifically to create this platform. The picture I had in my head (and tbh one of the serious motivators for setting up the tank) was an elegance. Much reading later, I am now terrified of even trying ? - so anyone got any suggestions of a jaw dropping, show stopping, focal point that I'm less likely to kill? Any and all comments, feedback, suggestions welcome. I've been stocking this thing in my head for months, it'll be nice to get an outside opinion or two! Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 2, 2017 Share Posted September 2, 2017 Lps like moderate light. Some can handle higher light but some will burn or shrink up. Lobo, scoly, etc do best on sand beds as the LR can tear the flesh when they expand. Fungia plates are cook too but definitely on sand bed Acan, favia, chalice, euphyllia, even the blastos will all work in those areas. Maybe save the top for a monti when you get to that point. Monti's are really nice. I have a red superman and it's a fast grower- stands out too. Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 2, 2017 Author Share Posted September 2, 2017 @Clown79 thanks! The ledge smack bang in the middle worries me the most because of sweepers - the wrong choice there will have firing range on literally the whole tank. Currently in love with this: any thoughts on whether it would be too aggressive? http://marinefishdirect.com.au/product/product?product_id=4303&limit=100 I'm thinking that a nice euphyllia can be my "elegance substitute" on the rhs. And yeah, good call to save the top till last, I don't think aesthetically it *needs* anything in the short term and god knows what I'll end up aspiring to for up there Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 2, 2017 Share Posted September 2, 2017 The pectinia is very beautiful. It is similar to chalice. Moderate flow and light. The ledge would be a good place for it. If you want a torch, it needs a lot of space because it has long sweepers. Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 2, 2017 Author Share Posted September 2, 2017 Yeah the torches don't do it for me thankfully ?. Some AMAZING golden hammers crop up here from time to time. One of my kinda-local fish stores gets a weekly Cairns Marine order, the nice thing about that is you can stalk CM direct on Facebook and tag your LFS to get critters you want with their regular order. Perks of the Great Barrier Reef in your backyard... Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 2, 2017 Author Share Posted September 2, 2017 And then this is the sort of WYSIWYG stuff cairns marine puts up. Wonder why I'm so infatuated... *tells self sternly that euphyllia are just as pretty in their own way* ? Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 2, 2017 Share Posted September 2, 2017 I love golden hammers. I have one that looks like a rainbow, the gold has an irridescent effect. I also have a gold tip hammer. I love hammers and frogspawn. I have 7 different ones in my 15g? I love elegance but won't bother since they apparently can be difficult to keep. I like torches but in small tanks it limits the space. I love my green nepthea in my 10g. The green just pop's, it's lime. Ya, being near the GBR must be really awesome. It's one place I'd love to see! Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 2, 2017 Author Share Posted September 2, 2017 Drooling over your tank now the last lot of fts you posted - is that a frogspawn on the left edge of the rhs rock? The sorta turquoise transparent looking one - it's amazing! Quote Link to comment
Flexin Posted September 3, 2017 Share Posted September 3, 2017 22 hours ago, Clown79 said: Monti's are really nice. Hi Clown, when they get big do you just break them to get them smaller? I was worried if I break them they will detach from the rock. I guess I can just glue it back. They grow like crazy for me also, thinking of replacing my orange one with something else and frag it. Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 3, 2017 Share Posted September 3, 2017 2 hours ago, Moorahs said: Drooling over your tank now the last lot of fts you posted - is that a frogspawn on the left edge of the rhs rock? The sorta turquoise transparent looking one - it's amazing! This tank? The centre ledge near the blue fungia is a light green Octospawn(frogspawn) it's very different in colour. 1 hour ago, Flexin said: Hi Clown, when they get big do you just break them to get them smaller? I was worried if I break them they will detach from the rock. I guess I can just glue it back. They grow like crazy for me also, thinking of replacing my orange one with something else and frag it. I've never fragged mine yet but I moved it from one tank to another. I carefully snapped it off the rock. It's regrown in my 15g very quickly. 3 Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 3, 2017 Author Share Posted September 3, 2017 8 hours ago, Clown79 said: YES DEAR GOD YES THAT RIGHT THERE Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 3, 2017 Share Posted September 3, 2017 Thats a green octospawn. It's a lime green, different than my other euphyllia. ? There are gold and peach ones too I believe from Australia Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 3, 2017 Author Share Posted September 3, 2017 God how do you learn restraint in this game... sooo many pretties... Re colour range - this is some of what a LFS has at the moment Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 4, 2017 Share Posted September 4, 2017 Lol. Restraint is hard. I have 7 euphyllia's! They are my favourites. I started with a 15g. 2 months later got a 10g. 2yrs later upgrading 15g to a 25g. Quote Link to comment
Flexin Posted September 4, 2017 Share Posted September 4, 2017 3 hours ago, Clown79 said: Restraint is hard. Glad it's not just me Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 6, 2017 Share Posted September 6, 2017 No It's not. Many of us have multiple tanks. I have 3, 2 reefs and a planted betta. If I had a house, I'd have more.? 1 Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 6, 2017 Author Share Posted September 6, 2017 Hahaha I was looking at my (usually switched off) tv last night thinking about how much potential aquarium space it takes up... 1 Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 7, 2017 Author Share Posted September 7, 2017 Note to self: it matters not how many forums you read and YouTube vids you watch, you *do not* know wtf you are doing when it comes to gluing and mounting corals. You will be having a panic attack and you will get fumbly and shaky and yeah, you're gonna keep dropping the poor bastard on its head. This will make you more nervous and even clumsier. Your crowning glory moment will come when you drop your pretty new acan frag and a big stream of superglue will drip down the top of it. You will panic and try to pull the glue off the polyps, and now your glove is superglued to it. You will clean it off best you can, dump it in the tank any old how, forget the perfect placement you had in your head and spend the next little while staring in horror at what, just a few short hours ago, used to be a beautiful living thing and tell yourself that you should sell the tank and take up scrapbooking 1 2 Quote Link to comment
Flexin Posted September 10, 2017 Share Posted September 10, 2017 Oh no, hang in there... I want to remove my montis today and sit them on the back wall for now. Worried I will frag them on accident.. All I can do is try 1 Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 10, 2017 Author Share Posted September 10, 2017 Good luck Oh and happy ending to the story: acans are *amazingly* resilient, today you can't even tell where the carnage happened! Quote Link to comment
JillianAG Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 I'm having a placement dilemma as well!! I have this awesome 14 g biocube .... incredibly stocked - thanks to a new friend - but I have only two things in the top 1/4 of my tank!!! I have a full spectrum led about 8" off the water surface - top rock isonly about 3" below the surface and to the side .... I have an awesome reef tech monti cap and a piece of xenia with a strong will to live (doesn't spread I guess because of the strong lighting) - but I have naked rock up there otherwise :-( can anyone give advise on an encrusting coral that that can withstand and thrive in strong lighting and high flow?? thanks guys - your all awesome. ?? Quote Link to comment
Moorahs Posted September 11, 2017 Author Share Posted September 11, 2017 Hey Jillian, sorry but I (CLEARLY lol) am not much help to you... if you don't get any takers on an answer in this thread you may be better off starting another one. One of the nicest things about this forum is you don't see pleas for help go unanswered! Good luck 1 Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 4 hours ago, JillianAG said: I'm having a placement dilemma as well!! I have this awesome 14 g biocube .... incredibly stocked - thanks to a new friend - but I have only two things in the top 1/4 of my tank!!! I have a full spectrum led about 8" off the water surface - top rock isonly about 3" below the surface and to the side .... I have an awesome reef tech monti cap and a piece of xenia with a strong will to live (doesn't spread I guess because of the strong lighting) - but I have naked rock up there otherwise :-( can anyone give advise on an encrusting coral that that can withstand and thrive in strong lighting and high flow?? thanks guys - your all awesome. ?? Xenia like high light and a lot of flow. The lower the light the darker they get in colour and the less flow, the less happy. Entrusting corals Lephastrea Cyphastrea Entrusting monti 1 Quote Link to comment
JillianAG Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 ?? I really like lephastrea but read moderate to low light - because the rock is so close to the surface, I wanted encrusting - have you had luck with lephastrea under high light? the chunk of xenia that made it up there was grown from a large frag I had up there before I upgraded my lights last year - it attactched itself so I left it when I moved the rest. The larger colony I've dragged several times to keep it under control - but the little one up high stays healthy as heck but doesn't spread .... which is good! Lol thank you for your replies ??? Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted September 12, 2017 Share Posted September 12, 2017 18 hours ago, JillianAG said: ?? I really like lephastrea but read moderate to low light - because the rock is so close to the surface, I wanted encrusting - have you had luck with lephastrea under high light? the chunk of xenia that made it up there was grown from a large frag I had up there before I upgraded my lights last year - it attactched itself so I left it when I moved the rest. The larger colony I've dragged several times to keep it under control - but the little one up high stays healthy as heck but doesn't spread .... which is good! Lol thank you for your replies ??? I don't have entrusting corals in my tank. My tank is full of euphyllia, birdsnest, monti, acans, and a Blasto. There was no room for entrusting corals. Lol. Quote Link to comment
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