Coral placement and infighting

[Lavey29]

I'm always amazed at some of these beautiful tanks that have different varieties of corals right next to each other with no issues. I lost a yuma shroom last night and appears my helio fungia may have zapped it. I have a rasta torch shrinking back and the big green ausi torch seems to dominate it.

Do you intentionally place corals next to each other in close proximity knowing there could be coral war at some point? How often does it go to blows versus living in peaceful harmony? I know certain corals get along with each other but I'm always in awe seeing some of these amazing tanks with full grown corals on top of each other like a beautiful garden.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I make it a point to space 2.5-3" apart and helps to know who potential stingers are

 

[ninjamyst]

Usually same type of corals can touch and coexist. That's why most people create gardens of the same species. Zoa garden, acan garden, etc. There aren't a lot of corals that can touch other species.

 

[Sean Clark]

I take flow into the equation too and try to keep those sweepers downstream. It's a delicate balance.

 

[Lavey29]

Usually same type of corals can touch and coexist. That's why most people create gardens of the same species. Zoa garden, acan garden, etc. There aren't a lot of corals that can touch other species.

Yes of course but just seems like on some of these very established systems there almost isn't any coral wars and things are touching all over the tank that one would think wouldn't work together.

 

[Lavey29]

I take flow into the equation too and try to keep those sweepers downstream. It's a delicate balance.

Well that's smart but most of us have flow that alternates both directions to.

 

[Lavey29]

I take flow into the equation too and try to keep those sweepers downstream. It's a delicate balance.

I woke up the other morning and my torch had this extra long tentacles attached to my ricordia and it was against the random flow to. It was stuck there like gum on a shoe. Half the ricordia died.

 

[Sean Clark]

Well that's smart but most of us have flow that alternates both directions to.

True but my hard hitting sweepers only come out after lights out. You can still have random alternating current during lights on and then at lights out add in your strategic flow plan.

I woke up the other morning and my torch had this extra long tentacles attached to my ricordia and it was against the random flow to. It was stuck there like gum on a shoe. Half the ricordia died.

I have been here before more than once.
I do get jealous when I see the kind of tanks that you are talking about. Wall to wall touching corals.

 

[aggrofish]

Indo torches often don't get along with torches from other regions. It's easiest just to separate by region. Also dont put torches next to hammer or frogspawn.

Some corals need space and dont play well together like certain favia / favites. I had a turbo snail knock over a chalice and it landed on a favia. Instant death for the favia.

 

[Lavey29]

True but my hard hitting sweepers only come out after lights out. You can still have random alternating current during lights on and then at lights out add in your strategic flow plan.

I have been here before more than once.
I do get jealous when I see the kind of tanks that you are talking about. Wall to wall touching corals.

I just dont understand how they accomplished the wall to wall environment?

 

[Sean Clark]

I just dont understand how they accomplished the wall to wall environment?

Either do I; but I will keep on trying to figure it out.

 

[JGT]

I space my corals 3-5” apart but they grow quickly and this becomes a royal pita. Then having to move the corals is always problematic, esp with encrusters. Coral growth/aggression is one of the underrated issues in maintaining a reef tank IMO.

 

[JGT]

I woke up the other morning and my torch had this extra long tentacles attached to my ricordia and it was against the random flow to. It was stuck there like gum on a shoe. Half the ricordia died.

That seems to be the tell-tale sign with torches. If the tentacle sticks, it’s stinging. If it doesn’t, stick it’s not stinging.

 

[Sean Clark]

I space my corals 3-5” apart but they grow quickly and this becomes a royal pita. Then having to move the corals is always problematic, esp with encrusters. Coral growth/aggression is one of the underrated issues in maintaining a reef tank IMO.

This is one of the main reasons that I chose the rockscape that I did. Dealing with this in the past was a huge problem for me.
All of those one peice NSA aquascapes out there will have trouble dealing with this too.
I have 13 individual bommies that I can twist, turn, relocate, or remove based on coral growth.

 

[Lavey29]

I space my corals 3-5” apart but they grow quickly and this becomes a royal pita. Then having to move the corals is always problematic, esp with encrusters. Coral growth/aggression is one of the underrated issues in maintaining a reef tank IMO.

I kind of figured mother nature would settle it. The more aggressive dominant coral would get more reef space and the less aggressive coral would concede it. I didn't anticipate quick and complete death in some of these contacts.

 

[JGT]

I kind of figured mother nature would settle it. The more aggressive dominant coral would get more reef space and the less aggressive coral would concede it. I didn't anticipate quick and complete death in some of these contacts.

Right, that’s the down side. Mother Nature doesn’t care about our wallets.

 

[ninjamyst]

Yes of course but just seems like on some of these very established systems there almost isn't any coral wars and things are touching all over the tank that one would think wouldn't work together.

It's just the angle of the photo that makes it seem like they are touching but really they are not.