[kraken]

ok,apparently i can only have soft corals in my 55g because of the meeger lighting.i dont really see me having the colors i desire in my reef with just soft corals.are there any soft corals i can have that would still loook amazing?as close to a hard coral tank COLORS as possible.i cant get my t-5's yet but i will in a year or so(O MY GOD I CANT WAIT!)

[Lance]

If you can get softies like mushrooms and zoos and leathers to live then you can get any coral. Its all about placement. And coral like SPS like good flow and water quality over high lighting. The higher lighting will give better growth and color would be the only differance.

[charlie]

Originally Posted by kraken

ok,apparently i can only have soft corals in my 55g because of the meeger lighting.i dont really see me having the colors i desire in my reef with just soft corals.are there any soft corals i can have that would still loook amazing?as close to a hard coral tank COLORS as possible.i cant get my t-5's yet but i will in a year or so(O MY GOD I CANT WAIT!)

There are many softies that will provide the colors you crave. Just do a little searching around on here for zooanthids and mushrooms, some, if not most are really beautiful. I really think you can find something you like. Check out the gallery here and you will find alot of people with really colorful softie tanks.

And coral like SPS like good flow and water quality over high lighting. The higher lighting will give better growth and color would be the only differance.

As for sps, yes flow and water quality are important, but lighting is high on the list for providing the colors that they have!!!!! You need to remember where exactly most sps corals are located on the reef.

[Samper]

Kraken, please don't be discouraged with your lighting. There are many options available to you in every color. I recommended the softies to you mainly because you will be learning. These corals generally tend to handle many early mistakes that come with beginning to maintain one of these systems. They grow pretty fast, sway in the current and I honestly think they are beautiful.

I've seen softie systems that made me very envious of the owner.
Check out this article.
Soft Corals: Corals That Paved the Way for Modern Day Reefkeeping by Mark van der Wal - Reefkeeping.com

[charlie]

Kraken, please don't be discouraged with your lighting. There are many options available to you in every color. I recommended the softies to you mainly because you will be learning. These corals generally tend to handle many early mistakes that come with beginning to maintain one of these systems. They grow pretty fast, sway in the current and I honestly think they are beautiful.

Amen to that!!!!!! Excellent point!!!