Recommended tank temp for LPS only

[H.E. Pennypacker]

I've been running 77-78 using InkBird (Hanna shows 0.6 lower), but recently started wondering if it's too high given I only have LPS and astraea snails. I saw Cherry Coral keeps their temp at 75-76.

Thinking of moving down for now to 76-77 to start.... any recommendations?

Thank you

 

[lapin]

I run mine 79.3F most times. Sometimes it will creep up to 80F softies and 2 nems

 

[H.E. Pennypacker]

That's much higher than what little I found online. I only have chalices, acans, duncans, and torches so I should probably run around 75-76F.

However, the hobby’s current favorite corals, the chalice, lords, scolies, and LPS in general come from deeper and more sheltered environments. These habitats experience much cooler temperatures on average, lower flow, and much less temperature fluctuation than the shallow water SPS corals.
So this brings us back to the titular question, how hot is too hot for a reef tank? If my experience and observations can be a guideline, you really should aim for 77F for a mixed reef – if you have more LPS corals knock that down to 75F for a bigger buffer against rising temperatures, and if your reef is focused on SPS, let it ride at 79F and don’t sweat it.

https://reefbuilders.com/2017/07/24/what-temperature-is-too-hot-for-a-reef-aquarium/

 

[Magic031707]

I run 78

 

[IKD]

When I had LPS (particularly scoly’s), I kept it between 76-77.

 

[VintageReefer]

I use 77

 

[H.E. Pennypacker]

I use 77

Beautiful tank! Does yours range from 76-77?

I updated mine to 75-76. I'm curious to see if it improves LPS color

 

[VintageReefer]

Beautiful tank! Does yours range from 76-77?

I updated mine to 75-76. I'm curious to see if it improves LPS color

Thank you! If it drops to 76, the controller turns on the heater until it’s 77

 

[thamnasteroid]

In tropical reef environments, the water temperature does not decrease much until ~a few hundred meters (~a thousand feet), much deeper than where any corals are collected for the aquarium hobby, so I wouldn't set your temperature at any lower than a normal tank.

That being said, many popular LPS corals exported from Australia (Homophyllia bowerbanki and australis, Micromussa lordhowensis, Paragoniastrea australensis, Australophyllia wilsoni, etc.) are common in colder subtropical waters (although they are likely not collected there), so these species might prefer slightly colder waters.

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

Bumping this back up as an interesting discussion. I'm currently setting up an LPS tank, so this is important for me to figure out. I'm currently running the tank at 80. I wonder if I should back down to 78 or even 77 as the set temp. Thoughts?

 

[Johnnyrainbowreefer]

I run 76 degrees Fahrenheit lps like the cooler water.

Proof is in the Pudding!