Plate Coral Advice Please!

henryhahn · Dec 28, 2016

I have been eyeing this beautiful plate coral for the last couple weeks at my LFS. With the holidays and all, now was not the time to spend money on my tank. After the holidays, I usually put some items up on Craigslist and such, and was hoping to score enough to purchase it, and I lucked out!

I am looking for care advice because I have seen so many conflicting opinions:
On the sand, or on a rock? -I have seen both recommended and both scoffed at (sand irritates/it's natural habitat is sand/rock wouldn't be big enough/rock would irritate it)
Bottom of tank, or middle? -I have heard that it doesn't like much light, and the inverse
Wall it in, or let it roam some? -I have read that disallowing it from roaming some would make it unhappy and that some have gone so far as to glue it down

I LOVE it! lol
It looks like a kiwi

dbl · Dec 28, 2016

Beautiful piece. I've had great success with mine on the sand bed. It resides on the end of my peninsula and it does move around...a little. Started out about 2" and it's about 6" now.

Good luck with it...it may sound silly, but it's one of my favorites.

henryhahn · Dec 28, 2016

dbl said:
Beautiful piece. I've had great success with mine on the sand bed. It resides on the end of my peninsula and it does move around...a little. Started out about 2" and it's about 6" now.

Good luck with it...it may sound silly, but it's one of my favorites.

WOW!! That is Gorgeous!
Is that a pinwheel?
Does the Goby bother it kicking up the sand?
Not silly at all. The tentacles on that are so long. How often do you feed it, and what do you feed it? I gave mine some mysis tonight.

dbl · Dec 28, 2016

I don't actually feed it. It will grab food from the water column during tank feedings but I don't directly feed it. And yes, it will get sand on it from time to time but it's never bothered it. It just "cleans" itself off...lol.

Mel 2038 · Dec 28, 2016

I'm not a plate coral expert by no means, however I've had mine for about 7 years. I bought it as a piece that someone was neglecting. It was very pale and looked like it might die. I put him in a corner
where the light wasn't too bright, but not in the shade, and he has been doing good ever since. He went from almost colorless to a dark blueish/purple. With his flat bottom, I never thought to put him on a rock, and he seems to do great in the sand bed. I had a goby that used to shower him with sand and he just seemed to remove it himself. I've never fed him, I assumed he fed on the particulates of food floating around. He was about 3 inches when I first got him, and is now every bit of 7 inches. With that said, I won't give advice, but I was happy to share the experience. Good Luck

lion king · Dec 28, 2016

I keep mine on the sandbed, I keep lps tanks so my lighting isn't overly high. The only one that ever moved on me was that green helmet plate, and that was after I changed the lighting and it moved into a more shaded area. So I wouldn't think to secure them down, if they move it's likely they are trying to find a better place. I feed mine coral food and even mysis.

henryhahn · Dec 29, 2016

Mel 2038 said:
I'm not a plate coral expert by no means, however I've had mine for about 7 years. I bought it as a piece that someone was neglecting. It was very pale and looked like it might die. I put him in a corner
where the light wasn't too bright, but not in the shade, and he has been doing good ever since. He went from almost colorless to a dark blueish/purple. With his flat bottom, I never thought to put him on a rock, and he seems to do great in the sand bed. I had a goby that used to shower him with sand and he just seemed to remove it himself. I've never fed him, I assumed he fed on the particulates of food floating around. He was about 3 inches when I first got him, and is now every bit of 7 inches. With that said, I won't give advice, but I was happy to share the experience. Good Luck

Thank you a ton! I appreciate the experience. It's amazing the amount of conflicting advice there is out there.

henryhahn · Dec 29, 2016

lion king said:
I keep mine on the sandbed, I keep lps tanks so my lighting isn't overly high. The only one that ever moved on me was that green helmet plate, and that was after I changed the lighting and it moved into a more shaded area. So I wouldn't think to secure them down, if they move it's likely they are trying to find a better place. I feed mine coral food and even mysis.

Those are awesome. The helmet plate is a neat variation. I have never seen one of those.
By reef food, would that include reef roids? I was thinking of giving it some.

gobeach · Dec 29, 2016

Who knew they could move... I just assumed that they didn't. Love it when I learn something new!

lion king · Dec 29, 2016

Yes, reef roids or any of the many other varieties you choose. At the moment I use fauna marin, coral frenzy, and reef chili. I feed once or twice a week at most, be careful most of these can increase your phosphates. I mix in with a bit of tank water, turn off my pumps; and squirt a bit on all of my feeding corals. Plates, acans, brains, favias, chalices, etc; then when I turn the pumps back on it broadcast to the rest of the tank for anyone else to feed.