[ZBT3091]

I just finished cycling my 75 gallon tank. It has been cycling for about 2 weeks. I have about 60 lbs of LR and i plan on adding until i have around 100. I plan on adding just a few fish, consisting of maybe 1 tang or 1 bfly, a mated pair of clowns, and maybe a pair of bangaii cards or some gobies or something. I have around 300 watts of light. Filtration is 1 eheim classic, 2 Penguin hang ons, and my skimmer is a super skimmer needle wheel made for a 220 gallon tank. I dont really know what kinds of coral i can keep. I know i cant have LPS or SPS corals because they will require more light. What kinds of corals can i get, and how many? Can i add an anemone with the corals or will the anemone sting the coral to death when it moves. any input would help. thanks

[ZBT3091]

i also was thinking maybe a tridacna clam but i think the lighting isnt strong enough...?

[wozza]

well you said you have 300w of lighting, what kind of lighting is this?
metal halide, T5, power compact etc...?#
also what are your tank dimentions?

[ZBT3091]

its a power compact. The tank is 48 long

[wozza]

Ok I’m afraid I will need you to be a little more specific.
How many PCs do you have?
What are there individual wattages?
What temperature colour are they (i.e. 10k, 14k, actinic etc...)
Height, width, length of you tank?
Depth of sand bed, if used?

[ZBT3091]

There are 4 - 65 watt bulbs. I think they are actinic. The dimensions are 48x18x20. Sand bed is really deep. around 3-4"

[wozza]

ok so you tank is 20" deep with a 4" SB so 16" deep IMO i would say you can keep most LPS corals if they were on your live rock maybe even some of the "easyer" SPS if they were right at the top of the live rock.
But i think like you said not enough light for any of the clams.

are all your bulbs realy actinics? if so your tank must be very BLUE!!!

hope this helps james

[zhenya]

Originally Posted by ZBT3091

I just finished cycling my 75 gallon tank. It has been cycling for about 2 weeks.

Are you sure that the cycle is over and done with? Two weeks sounds a little short for the cycle to be completed but I'll take your word for it.

As far as your lighting is concern, and providing that the cyclins is indeed over, I think you can keep lots of soft corals and even some of the so called LPS corals, too. I started my 75g tank with three VHO bulbs(110w each) and was able to keep some Lobophyton, Trachiphyllia coral( on the rocks) and some mushrooms and other polyps. Having said that, everything did much better after I added another bulb and that gave me 440w altogether. I then was able to keep some of the Tridacna clam on top of the rockwork.

Anyway, my advice would be to be patient, wait a bit more and use that time to research some of the corals you would like to keep. After that you can make sure that you can provide them in terms of light, water flow/water parameters and all that good stuff because you'll have the knowledge you need

Good luck!

[ZBT3091]

The tank has been running for a little more than a month. I added live sand and rock, and it took about 4 weeks to cycle. I meant that the nitrate, nitrite and ammonia readings have been zero (finished cycling) for two weeks

[ZBT3091]

i also wasnt sure whether or not you could keep anemones and corals together. is there any chance that maybe certain anemones (iwas thinking a bta) would work with some corals?

[wozza]

you can keep them together for sure, just be prepared to have your anemone wander around your tank stinging everything it touches.
not saying it WILL but they have on more than one occasion.
just ask Gene (zhenya)

[ZBT3091]

Couldnt the stinging kill the corals? So you can keep corals and anemones together? because i always heard you couldnt

[wozza]

Couldnt the stinging kill the corals?

yep it sure could, or at least realy pi** them off

So you can keep corals and anemones together? because i always heard you couldnt

you can if your willing for the above to possibly happen.

[zhenya]

Originally Posted by ZBT3091

Couldnt the stinging kill the corals? So you can keep corals and anemones together? because i always heard you couldnt

If you want my personal opinion on keeping anemones, it is best to keep them in a dedicated tank. It is possible to keep them together but one needs much larger tank than a 75g, or even 100g. The ideal way to keep them together would be in a large tank where you can provide sort of atol for the corals and keep anemones either in a sand( if it is a sand dwelling type like Heteractis crispa), or provide a separate island for the anemones that prefer rocks( like the Entacmaea quadricolor also known as BTA). In my case, I had lost countless species of corals and even a huge clam to ever advancing and multiplying BTA anemones. And it was in a 110g tank which is now all belongs to the anemones.
Oh, and yes, their sting will kill the corals eventually, and in some cases instantly depending on the size and species of corals.

And furthermore, I think it is best to purchase anemone ( if you set on keeping one) after your tank matures a bit and you can get a little stronger lighting.