Excited Beginner!

[Shelby Rose]

Welcome, I would slow down, nothing good happens in the hobby fast. I hope your anemone makes it as they need an established tank. I would wait another 3 months before I added anything else. Good luck and enjoy this great hobby.

I hope it does too! After hearing everyone's opinions I agree that I should slow down and not get coral yet. I've gotten a couple of fish at a time and waited a couple of weeks in between getting more, so I can do the same with purchasing coral since I don't plan to get any more fish only wait months instead of a couple of weeks.

 

[larawynn]

Welcome! I too started like 4 months ago! Wow I was taking it super slow and only have a clown fish and couple chromis. Can you share your neighbors tips and what setups were done so I may copy? [emoji847]

 

[skybears]

Welcome to reef2reef this is a wonderful atmosphere while getting to learn the Salt Water World there are many people here that are full of information and like to take the time to help us beginners. Please ask as many questions as you like, no question is ever stupid. Also we love pictures that I say we love pictures anyway welcome to reef2reef and enjoy the site

 

[Webslinger]

Slow and steady wins the race. Give your system time to adjust to any changes and to mature.

 

[Shelby Rose]

Welcome! I too started like 4 months ago! Wow I was taking it super slow and only have a clown fish and couple chromis. Can you share your neighbors tips and what setups were done so I may copy? [emoji847]

Of course! I may have moved a little too fast, however my tank seems to be in good shape. First I bought the tank, protein skimmer, filtration system, etc. and filled the tank with salt water and added a biological filter and live sand. After that, I let it cycle without anything in there for three weeks, then I added some live rock and nothing else and let it cycle some more. After about five weeks all of my levels were where they needed to be (gravity, pH, nitrates, nitrites, ammonia). I brought my neighbor over and he told me to go buy a damsel and put it in the tank. The damsel lived by itself for three weeks, and then he told me to start adding more fish. He told me to add peaceful first, then semi aggressive fish, and then more territorial and aggressive fish. He said with adding the peaceful and semi aggressive fish first, that would let them establish "hiding spots". One thing that I've noticed is that everyone starts out differently. I did a bunch of research on salt water aquariums before I even bought mine and there's a lot of conflicting opinions on what to do and what not to do. Hope this helps you some!

 

[Eva Rose]

I'm a newbie as well. In general there are soft corals. Then hard corals - LPS and SPS corals. Soft corals are easiest but some can be invasive. Hard corals take more maintenance and you have to dose Ca, Mg and Alkalinity to maintain levels.
Again very general info but corals have specific requirements just as fish do.

LIGHTING, FLOW, PLACEMENT IN TANK, PLACEMENT IN RELATION TO OTHER CORALS (some corals sting each other /some do not)
Corals prefer certain light (low, medium or high), water flow (low, med. or high) , feeding (some get what they need from tank - fish poop, microplankton, some you have to feed etc.).

Some corals require special handling - like zoas and palys which have palyotoxin (a very potent toxin) - you should only handle them using gloves. You need someone to teach you how to handle these corals safely! If you have younger siblings in your house I would not put them in your tank at all.

Usually it is easier for a newbie to see what their tank 'likes' and focus on those corals. This can make things easier for you to maintain. So if your tank runs a little 'dirtier' soft corals and some LPS would handle that tank better. SPS corals prefer a 'cleaner' tank and die off quickly in less pristine conditions.

Your tank is so new that your water parameters can swing a lot. LPS and SPS don't like swings in pH, Alkalinity etc. So here is my advice:
KEEP A WEEKLY LOG OF WATER PARAMETERS
1- Keep a log of your water parameters. For future hard corals especially you need to know these levels: Calcium, Magnesium and Alkalinity
2- Also log Salinity, Nitrites, Nitrates, Ammonia, Phosphate and pH

Track those water parameters so you can see how your tanks runs. Take your time so you can track swings or see what your range your tank settles into over time. Then you can give R2R staff members your average readings so they can suggest corals that would do well in your tank.

Your tank sounds beautiful! You have some gorgeous fish stocked in it! Take time to look at corals in other tanks to see what appeals to you. You might hate quick spreading corals like "Green Star Polyp" or you may love them. Take time to see what you like, log parameters and then submit a list to R2R staff for advice!

 

[Shelby Rose]

I'm a newbie as well. In general there are soft corals. Then hard corals - LPS and SPS corals. Soft corals are easiest but some can be invasive. Hard corals take more maintenance and you have to dose Ca, Mg and Alkalinity to maintain levels.
Again very general info but corals have specific requirements just as fish do.

LIGHTING, FLOW, PLACEMENT IN TANK, PLACEMENT IN RELATION TO OTHER CORALS (some corals sting each other /some do not)
Corals prefer certain light (low, medium or high), water flow (low, med. or high) , feeding (some get what they need from tank - fish poop, microplankton, some you have to feed etc.).

Some corals require special handling - like zoas and palys which have palyotoxin (a very potent toxin) - you should only handle them using gloves. You need someone to teach you how to handle these corals safely! If you have younger siblings in your house I would not put them in your tank at all.

Usually it is easier for a newbie to see what their tank 'likes' and focus on those corals. This can make things easier for you to maintain. So if your tank runs a little 'dirtier' soft corals and some LPS would handle that tank better. SPS corals prefer a 'cleaner' tank and die off quickly in less pristine conditions.

Your tank is so new that your water parameters can swing a lot. LPS and SPS don't like swings in pH, Alkalinity etc. So here is my advice:
KEEP A WEEKLY LOG OF WATER PARAMETERS
1- Keep a log of your water parameters. For future hard corals especially you need to know these levels: Calcium, Magnesium and Alkalinity
2- Also log Salinity, Nitrites, Nitrates, Ammonia, Phosphate and pH

Track those water parameters so you can see how your tanks runs. Take your time so you can track swings or see what your range your tank settles into over time. Then you can give R2R staff members your average readings so they can suggest corals that would do well in your tank.

Your tank sounds beautiful! You have some gorgeous fish stocked in it! Take time to look at corals in other tanks to see what appeals to you. You might hate quick spreading corals like "Green Star Polyp" or you may love them. Take time to see what you like, log parameters and then submit a list to R2R staff for advice!

Thank you so much[emoji4] That's wonderful advice! I'll figure out what corals I think I might like and then submit those and my parameters like you said!

 

[nervousmonkey]

In the end, though, it will all be what you like and don't like. Everyone here could give you advice, but learning about SPS this early on won't help; it is your opinion what is beautiful and what isn't. That being said, most people like hammers, torches, frogspawn, or Euphyllia, as they add some movement and grace to your tank. Just cruise through some sites like liveaquaria.com and ask a ton of questions here. People know what corals will work for you, then you decide what you like to see living in your tank.
Just have fun, that's bigger than any piece of equipment or livestock you have. As long as you can stand in front of your tank and smile, you are here for life.

 

[stevo01]

I'm not a fan of stocking peaceful and aggressive animals together. In the end I just don't think it's thought out well enough.

 

[Dextereef]

Welcome! Nice fish list you have there! Like others have said take it slow, test your water frequently, stay up on your water changes, and enjoy yourself!

 

[Philip Chin]

Welcome to the website, Shelby! I recommend mushrooms and zoa's to start.

 

[Goby-won]

Welcome to R2R! Congrats on the new tank.

One piece of advice that I learned the hard way...quarantine your fish (everything really) before you put them in your display. Ask you neighbor about it or read up here. This will save you a lot of grief and heartache (I personally lost 4 fish) in the future.

Good luck and enjoy.