Did I just make a mistake?

[ItsAName]

So, I got a little over zealous and bought a bunch of coral from a website to take advantage of their sale. I bought 20 coral to be exact, mostly zoas, LPS, and softies. My tank is 10 months old, 90G, very stable now, and the 10 pieces of coral I have in there now are striving.

1. Will I crash the tank by adding so many coral at one time?
2. What should I watch out for after adding them? Any maintenance things I should do?

 

[mcarroll]

Consider the extra demand on nutrients (NO3 and PO4) as well as minerals (alk, ca, mg). None should be allowed to dip.

If you have algae growing but no nutrients in tests, then judge that demand based on the algae. You should not lose algae outside of where the corals go unless you start seeing some dissolved nutrients on tests.

Other than that you should be fine.

Adding fish at that rate would not be so pretty.

 

[XNavyDiver]

So, I got a little over zealous and bought a bunch of coral from a website to take advantage of their sale. I bought 20 coral to be exact, mostly zoas, LPS, and softies. My tank is 10 months old, 90G, very stable now, and the 10 pieces of coral I have in there now are striving.

1. Will I crash the tank by adding so many coral at one time?
2. What should I watch out for after adding them? Any maintenance things I should do?

I think you'll be good. Just monitor you alk/cal to meet the new demand.

 

[tsav87]

Consider the extra demand on nutrients (NO3 and PO4) as well as minerals (alk, ca, mg). None should be allowed to dip.

If you have algae growing but no nutrients in tests, then judge that demand based on the algae. You should not lose algae outside of where the corals go unless you start seeing some dissolved nutrients on tests.

Other than that you should be fine.

Adding fish at that rate would not be so pretty.

Correct

 

[tsav87]

I will add, until your new arrivals settle-in, you won't see a new demand for calcium or alkalinity. Might take a few days to a week (or longer) before they settle-in. Just monitor it.

 

[Greybeard]

20 coral frags, at the size most vendors are selling frags these days, will have little impact. I'm no scientist, but from what I've read, most healthy corals are a net nutrient sink anyway... the coral animals and their zooxanthellae are pretty efficient at using waste products produced by their symbiants.

 

[mcarroll]

20 coral frags, at the size most vendors are selling frags these days, will have little impact. I'm no scientist, but from what I've read, most healthy corals are a net nutrient sink anyway... the coral animals and their zooxanthellae are pretty efficient at using waste products produced by their symbiants.

They can eat everything and anything by seemingly every strange mechanism available, true. But established reefs in the wild are apparently nutrient-positive. Pretty cool!

It'd be fun and interesting to know if any well-estblished reef tanks had acheived something similar.