Live vs. dried coral

[Lspooky4]

I'm looking to set up an 18 gal reef tank. I'm new to salt water and I was wondering if it would work to buy some of those dried coral decorations you can get at LFS and some live rock, and a few anenomes. What type of filtration would I need with this set up, would I still need a protein skimmer? Any other advice for a first time set up?

[bluedempsey]

i see no harm in adding driied coral to a tank.
as far as keep anemone's... kinda hard to keep
needs tons of light and also lots of water movement.
their one of the few things that should be kept in the ocean
a protein skimmer is not a must but they come in handy
they do nothing harmful but provide more oxygen.
and as far as filtration goes, any hang on the back kind will do

[frontosa_man]

:iagree: anemone's are no fun to keep if your new to salt water. just ask others that have. one thing i hate is they move around where they want when the want and can attack other tankmates( i.e. corals, small fish,other anemone's)

[DeLgAdO]

needs tons of light and also lots of water movement.


i hate to be a smart ass BD

but light is energy so it has no mass :thumbsup:

[DeLgAdO]

:iagree: anemone's are no fun to keep if your new to salt water. just ask others that have. one thing i hate is they move around where they want when the want and can attack other tankmates( i.e. corals, small fish,other anemone's)

anemones only move becasue they dont liek the spot you choose for them

they either move because, theris not enough space, too much current blowing on them or theris not enoguh light in the area their in.

[bluedempsey]

anemones only move becasue they dont liek the spot you choose for them

they either move because, theris not enough space, too much current blowing on them or theris not enoguh light in the area their in.

are you speaking from experience?

[DeLgAdO]

are you speaking from experience?

nope i read it in an article from TFH magazine

[bluedempsey]

i hate to be a smart ass BD

but light is energy so it has no mass :thumbsup:
your right light has no mass
but it has energy and momentum.
anyway what is the main killer of amemones? insufficient light
and actually anemones need tons of water movement ;)

[DeLgAdO]

your right light has no mass
but it has energy and momentum.
anyway what is the main killer of amemones? insufficient light
and actually anemones need tons of water movement ;)


:iagree:

not too much current though, cause then they'll be on the move :)

[frontosa_man]

anemones only move becasue they dont liek the spot you choose for them

they either move because, theris not enough space, too much current blowing on them or theris not enoguh light in the area their in.

i agree but thats not always the case. i have them go into powerheads and behind rock where there is no light. i had a condy crawl to the outer edge of the top of my tank and die. sometimes they just up and move and sometimes the die for some unknown reason.

[MaJiKTeRRoR]

Or sometimes they die from starvation because they are filter feeders. Some anemones require alot of light some don't. They need current to get there nutrients to them. But a wicked protein skimmer and an unexperienced hobbyist is usually the killer of an anemone. Keeping multiple anemones is more of a task since alot of corals are territorial and will kill each other and in turn poison the tank. Whatever happened to Nemo's anemone anyways he must be lonely.

[acidburn470]

What about coral though is dried up or live better to go when your first starting up

[bluedempsey]

What about coral though is dried up or live better to go when your first starting up
no not live when first starting!
they are like fish... they will not be able to stand the cycle
process! plus you need correct lighting and also you have to feed them.
go with live rock, and you can add dried coral

[Lspooky4]

what do you feed live coral?

[frontosa_man]

it all depend on what type. some can handle peices of chopped up shrimp(i.e. hammer coral, frogsawn coral, and zoo's just to name a few).