Reef Help

Need some ideas for what the next step is for helping my tank reach its potential. i have a 125 gal. that is three months old i have fish and live rock. want it to be a reef eventually but want to have everything set up and established before that. so any tips or comments would be great thanks

 

3 months after the cycle? or three months period? i wouldnt add any coral type thing till you get past the 6 month mark, but some harder corals you should wait at least a year such as sps. also nems should be a year. what are your tank specs?

 

three months after cycle and everything is cured and i have a small community of fish with plenty of inverts to keep it clean. I have a 125 gal. with about 200 lbs of live rock all cured. i have a refugium witch i just set up after switching it from a wet/dry.

 

I just would like to know what the next step would be, thanks

 

You need to test nitrate, phosphate, Ca, alkalinity and Mg. Chart them for a month and see how their values change. You should be able to add soft corals, mushrooms and zoanthids to the tank. LPS corals would probably be OK also.

Please list what type and strength of lighting you have. How much flow you have also.

 

ok usually i just take the water to the lfs once a week and they test everything. Everything checks out. i have the LED's that support corals and 2 t5's, in other words i am set on lights. i have a wavemaker entering from my sump from one side and a pump inside the tank that is made for a 125 gal. seems like a good current with no dead spots. should i add more fish/ inverts b4 coral??? here are some pics

 

Well, It really all depends on what kind of coral you want to raise. If you want to raise softies like Zoanthids, Mushrooms, star polyps, you should be fine; personally, I do not think three months is mature enough for SPS. You can try LPS, but I do not really recommend it right away.

As for the lighting, you should consider purchasing a T5 lighting fixure. For a 125 gallon tank, I am assuming the width is about 72'', so the fixures should go starting at 400$. Look for T5 lights with 10k readings (or higher) and actinics.

As for water chemistry, moniter nitrate and phosphate, as well as calcium, magnesium, and alkalinity.

Always remember to start slowly. I recommend you to buy a small frag of zoas, (dip it before introducing it into your tank, to get rid of any dangerous parasites) and see how it does in your tank for a week or two. Also, do alot of research!

 

Is that a Niger Triggerfish? I heard they are not considered reef safe

 

Ya i have 4 t5's on top with LED's so idk if that is too much or what and ya i have a trigger but they are sometimes of in reef tanks if they are not aggressive and well fed. mine has grown but is not the alpha fish in the tank so i dont think there will be a problem

 

As for the lighting, you are in great shape!
Like I said buy a small, cheap frag and moniter it for a week, as well as your Trigger's reaction to it.