Ball Sponges - what say you, reefers?

[yourmom]

LFS has an orange ball sponge that I’m considering. I have a 40 AIO which is still new- about 10 weeks or so. No corals added yet. One clown, a bicolor blenny, rainford goby, cleaner shrimp and a conch. Would this be a good addition or should I scrap the idea? They had red ball sponges a couple of months ago that sold and I loved the look of them. Is there any difference in care or rarity? If I am not fond of it, would it work in my 20 or 10 gallon FOWLR tanks with stock lighting?

 

[StlSalt]

It's a filter feeder, I'm no expert so this is just my experience/opinion, there might not be enough stuff floating around in a 10 week old tank for it to eat. I doesn't need light.

 

[yourmom]

My 10 gallon is an established tank but no fish, only live rock and a couple of snails. I use it for quarantine and may eventually add some pin cushion sea urchins. Is that too small? Sponge is about the size of a baseball. Also, is light a problem for it or just unecessary? I knew they didn’t need much light but didn’t know if light was a problem for them.

 

[StlSalt]

Low light, they are not photo-synthetic though. Apparently a small amount of algae grows on the surface of the ball sponge and that needs some light. Also they can't be exposed to air at all. Personally I'd only keep one in a tank that was fed some kind of phytoplankton daily.

 

[Devaji]

I tried one a few years ago in a 20L macro algae tank. it did not last long.
I think your tank is to young. spend the money else where God knows there always things to buy in this money pit....I mean hobby.

 

[Timfish]

While cryptic sponges are almost impossible to keep from growing I have yet to have any longterm success with ornamental sponge species. The ball sponge probably will do ok for a year, maybe two but I wouldn't expect it to thrive long term.

 

[danieyella]

I've hesitated with ornamental sponges myself, I currently have a purple plating sponge that I got as an add-on CHEAP and it appears to be growing, but it hasn't been in my tank for too long so I can't truly speak for longevity. I do run phyto daily.

 

[dennis romano]

I have a NPS tank with at least six sponges. One of my favorites is my yellow ball sponge. I have had it so long that it has attached to a rock. They require a darkened area with moderate flow. Being non-photosynthetic, they have to be fed daily. If kept in a well lit area, algae may grow on it. This is bad because it blocks the way that it feeds. Sorry, but your tank is no where near being old enough to keep it alive. My tank is 20 years old.

 

[yourmom]

I really appreciate everyone’s input! I’m deciding against the sponge, and I will add color with corals! No reason for me to try to add anything that isn’t going to thrive. Thanks again!

 

[Casket_Case]

I've had great success with sponges I just do less water changes and use bubble scrubbing every now and then. That's why I think they do well they've got more to filter out.