Buying coral from Craigslist for the first time

[Just John]

Here is a picture from a craigslist seller. This is going in a new tank. From what you can see of his tank are there any "that algae could be a disaster!" type things that pop out?

 

[RobB'z Reef]

Oofff... Sounds like you should spend some more quality time reading and leaning.

 

[Phil D.]

I see a lot of Xenia that will grow like weeds and take over your tank

 

[codycolina707]

I see a lot of Xenia that will grow like weeds and take over your tank

Good advice I didn't think in my wildest dreams this stuff would spread like it does im talking patches like 4 feet away from the rock I put in covered found a good way to kill them though use siphon hose to scrap and suck up the dead pieces that peel up

 

[LegendaryCG]

I’m not as negative as some people are on soft corals like xenia. Frankly, it’s one of the most beautiful coral under the right conditions in my opinion. Just be aware that if you place that coral in your tank it prefers low flow and it will rapidly spread so don’t expect to play coral pokemon. I love pulsing Xenia.

 

[codycolina707]

I’m not as negative as some people are on soft corals like xenia. Frankly, it’s one of the most beautiful coral under the right conditions in my opinion. Just be aware that if you place that coral in your tank it prefers low flow and it will rapidly spread so don’t expect to play coral pokemon. I love pulsing Xenia.

Wish mine was pulsing xenia but its antheli which almost looks the same

 

[LegendaryCG]

Wish mine was pulsing xenia but its antheli which almost looks the same

Yeah very similar anthelia likes being in some flow because it doesn’t pulse. I love pulsing Xenia in a nano tank, easy to keep, cheap, grows well and looks awesome.

 

[Tiki Reef Joshua]

Weird. I kept it for a long time. Grew fast but never left where I put it. I just got rid of it for space. I think it’s a great beginner coral. Just put it on its own rock you can remove easily enough. Nothing looks alarming in the tank.

 

[Phil D.]

I read some years ago in Coral Magazine, that there is a crab called a "Xenia Crab" that eats Xenia but will leave enough to grow, basically "gardening" it. But have never found one in an LFS.

 

[codycolina707]

I read some years ago in Coral Magazine, that there is a crab called a "Xenia Crab" that eats Xenia but will leave enough to grow, basically "gardening" it. But have never found one in an LFS.

Kinda like harlequin shrimp do with starfish sounds cool

 

[HWY61]

I’m not as negative as some people are on soft corals like xenia. Frankly, it’s one of the most beautiful coral under the right conditions in my opinion. Just be aware that if you place that coral in your tank it prefers low flow and it will rapidly spread so don’t expect to play coral pokemon. I love pulsing Xenia.

Big sps dominated tanks are beautiful, I love looking at euphyllia, but hands down my favorite tank is Inappropriate Reefer’s 17g mangrove softie tank. I don’t know what it is about it. It’s just xenia, some macro, and a variety of common leathers but it looks so nice.

100% agree about xenia being one of the nicest corals under the right conditions

 

[SaltISlife]

To answer the question the frag plugs and rock looks cLean. But dip them anyway and visually inspect them. My recomendation is to get a qt tank for corals.

Also how much are these on ebay ? Xenia and that purple nepthea tree are corals you generally find in the 5-10$ section in a local fish store.

 

[Tamberav]

Here is a picture from a craigslist seller. This is going in a new tank. From what you can see of his tank are there any "that algae could be a disaster!" type things that pop out?

looks good to me. They are attached to a plug which is a huge plus when buying something like this as they can’t be glued down. Should probably only cost about 10 bucks though.

 

[Just John]

To answer the question the frag plugs and rock looks cLean. But dip them anyway and visually inspect them. My recomendation is to get a qt tank for corals.

Also how much are these on ebay ? Xenia and that purple nepthea tree are corals you generally find in the 5-10$ section in a local fish store.

Haven't seen in a lfs for awhile and this guy is close by for $10