looking for recommendations for SPS for a mixed reef

[Devaji]

just wanted to ask the experts here...

I have a RS 650P that is close to 6 months old now maybe more, time flies by eh?
anyway the tank will be LPS dom. with a softies mixed in like koji wada and other nepth. some Sinularia, Capnella and Sarcophyton ( toad stoll)
I know some of those softies are toxic I will use BRS rox carbon, UV and skimmer.

I was thinking of a few nice SPS high up in the flow and light to make it a true mixed reef.
think this will be OK? or will the softies get the best of the SPS ?

I was hoping for the "fuzzy" SPS like the milli
open to suggestion but not looking at monti caps. right now.

 

[Backreefing]

Montipora caps will look great and easy . They come in purple green orange red brown ect . Or some digi s to have a stick appearance.
but I would suggest a spongodes montipora. Green with fuzzy polyps. You can’t go wrong with spongodes. Stay away from birdnests. They are often said beginner sps but they are among the most unforgiving coral of all .

 

[Eldredge]

ORA red planet is a beautiful, hardy coral that I think would be great. Forest Fire Digitata is very hardy and fast growing. So if PC Rainbow. I don't think you could go too far wrong with those. Good luck!

 

[SamMule]

Bubblegum and forest fire montipora digitata are bright, beautiful, and resilient.
The m. spongodes is another excellent suggestion.
Also, don't overlook the orange m. Setosa.
If you're looking for acros specifically,
A lot of people really like the green slimer. ORA frogskin is also highly underappreciated IMO.
PC rainbow is awesome and seems to do well about anywhere.
Garf bansai and ORA tricolor are some great purples.
Millepora can be finicky, but I'm sure there are some durable aquacultured variants out there.

Whatever you do, stick with well-known aquacultured pieces. You will have a much higher success rate than with maricultured or wild.

 

[Nick Steele]

I’d say you’ll be fine with adding some sps up high.

I really love my Walt Disney it is super fluffy and a great grower for me. Seems to be hardy also.

 

[happyhourhero]

I’d buy a Battlebox and let Adam know exactly what you are trying to do and your preferences. You will get most bang for buck and great, healthy coral.

 

[DaneGer21]

I recommend maybe a few different stag horns up top. Good growth, they don’t encrust much before going upward, so even some low light corals can still be under them. The way they grow still allows flow, and fish to swim between branches.

Heres the top section of my “mixed reef”, you’ll notice I have zoas and things growing under them even though it’s a “high par” area.

 

[Pistondog]

Bali Green slimer

 

[Devaji]

Bubblegum and forest fire montipora digitata are bright, beautiful, and resilient.
The m. spongodes is another excellent suggestion.
Also, don't overlook the orange m. Setosa.
If you're looking for acros specifically,
A lot of people really like the green slimer. ORA frogskin is also highly underappreciated IMO.
PC rainbow is awesome and seems to do well about anywhere.
Garf bansai and ORA tricolor are some great purples.
Millepora can be finicky, but I'm sure there are some durable aquacultured variants out there.

Whatever you do, stick with well-known aquacultured pieces. You will have a much higher success rate than with maricultured or wild.

yup the bubble gum digi was/is as well as the slimmer are on my short list .
i'll look in to the m. Setosa.
the PC ranibow does look good.
thanks

I’d say you’ll be fine with adding some sps up high.

I really love my Walt Disney it is super fluffy and a great grower for me. Seems to be hardy also.

my thoughts too was just not sure about the toxicity from the softies and wanted to ask. as we all know its painful to watch a coral melt away in our tank.

I’d buy a Battlebox and let Adam know exactly what you are trying to do and your preferences. You will get most bang for buck and great, healthy coral.

been a while seen i was on there web site. that is a great idea I hear great think about Adam.

I recommend maybe a few different stag horns up top. Good growth, they don’t encrust much before going upward, so even some low light corals can still be under them. The way they grow still allows flow, and fish to swim between branches.

Heres the top section of my “mixed reef”, you’ll notice I have zoas and things growing under them even though it’s a “high par” area.

yes this is what I have in mind!! so stags it is then. yeah I dont really want tabling or plating right now incrusters would be ok is some spots but mostly looking to do what you did here.
can you name them plz

Bali Green slimer

on the list.

 

[DaneGer21]

yes this is what I have in mind!! so stags it is then. yeah I dont really want tabling or plating right now incrusters would be ok is some spots but mostly looking to do what you did here.
can you name them plz

To be honest, I have no names for them, most were picked up at local swaps for cheap.

 

[Cantusaurus]

Stylophora for sure! They extend a lot and have a lot of polyp movement in the flow! The purple and pink ones are really pretty! Also Poccilopora are easy, but usually the green ones will be the most common (there are some other beautiful colors out there though). There are also lots of birdsnest species, and some of the colors are really nice. There is a teal blue one that looks spectacular.
I believe it is a Seriatapora Caliendrum birdsnest, and there are also pink varieties.

I do not have experience with Montiporas such as the Digitatas, but I believe they are fairly easy.

My Stylo has looked unfazed through a couple ups and downs in my tank, and it looks amazing in the flow.

Yeah, placement in a mixed reef is tricky. I have a 32.5 gallon long mixed reef, and the placement with spacing out my frogspawns, and making sure my couple of SPS have space is tricky. You can also grow a stylo or Digitata on the back wall or overflow of your tank if you want and they should do well.

 

[Devaji]

A while back before the upgrade to the 650P i had a purple bird nest and a Stylo they both where cool and did well in the 40br holding tank until I have to move them to a small 20L so I could set up a bigger tank the cat mess that up loys 1.5K worth of corals. still P.O at myself for that.

so there on the list to but from what I understand ( and that is not much lol ) the stylos get pretty big and block out a lot of light for the lower corals is that correct?

 

[Devaji]

To be honest, I have no names for them, most were picked up at local swaps for cheap.

sweet just what I am looking for nice easy to grow, beautiful and cheap SPS

 

[Cantusaurus]

A while back before the upgrade to the 650P i had a purple bird nest and a Stylo they both where cool and did well in the 40br holding tank until I have to move them to a small 20L so I could set up a bigger tank the cat mess that up loys 1.5K worth of corals. still P.O at myself for that.

so there on the list to but from what I understand ( and that is not much lol ) the stylos get pretty big and block out a lot of light for the lower corals is that correct?

Stylos can get large. But they do not grow crazy fast in comparison to other SPS. They definitely can shade things below them, but their growth also depends on where they are positioned (where the flow is coming from) and where the light is. If you have powerful lighting it most likely will not be an issue, and this is just an issue with a mixed reef since SPS can affect corals below.
It will take a while for a Stylo to get to that monster size, but if it does get to a mini colony size then you can always take the whole thing out and sell it for a lot of money, and buy a smaller frag of something else to put in that place.

Really all SPS can cause that issue, but I suppose stylos do have thicker branches then most corals. So it is up to you at the end of the day.
There are purple and pink Pocciloporas that will have branches more clumped together, and would be easier to frag.

 

[Devaji]

stupid question but are all acros "stag" i thought there where some table acros too?
so if I am looking for branching stag acos do vendors say that?

sorry I am more of an LPS softie guy here