First, I want to thank everyone here for being such a great resource. I hope someday to pay back the favor to other newcomers to the hobby.
I have a number of fairly basic questions I’d like to group all into this post.
[In all cases, I’m talking about my 350 gallon salt water tank… mixed fish population of about 15, clownfish, damsels, hippo tangs, etc… small coral population that I’m just venturing into]
My unicorn tang has grown to about 6" or so in length. I’m still feeding the tank with the same food I used when I got him – a basic flake and a very small pellet. The food now seems “small” relative to him. Is he in the category that I should be feeding with something larger? If so, any recommendations? He looks very healthy, but ravenous!
I had posted before about brittle stars that had popped up in my tank. The consensus was that they were harmless. Just wanted to double check as they definitely swarm over my PPE zoanth when the lights are out.
How often should I change MH lights? How about fluorescents? [An aside, MH lights move towards yellow as they get older, right?]
I just added three small coral frags to the tank – my first [though I have a zoanth, frogspawn, and aquatic mushroom that are all doing well]. Will they require any additional supplements to the tank or “feeding”?
I have a fair amount of coraline (sp?) algae in my tank – the hard, crusty, purple stuff. I scrape the glass often. How do I deal with it in the corners? I’m afraid of ruining the seal. Better yet… how to I slow down it’s growth? Do I want to?
Try Julian Sprung’s Sea Veggies and other types of marine algae such as Nori. Little brittle stars are practically harmless. What sort of corals are you growing under your MH? After about 12 months they start to go down hill as far as there par values depending on the quality of the bulb. Typically though it is not a sharp decress and they may still be putting out a decent amount of par after 14-16 months. All three of the corals you added do not require extra foods, but both the zoanthids and the frogspawn may benefit from some spot feeding.(likely not worth your time to feed unless you really really want to speed up there growth) Coralline is a part of a healthy tank. If the corners really bug you one option is to add a wooden trim on the outside of the tank to hide the trim, then just leave it be and you won’t have to worry about scratching the seal.
As Gordonious suggested try some dried algae on a clip, and I would try some larger pellets. If you are not feeding any of the many frozen blends I would try a couple of those. Mysis and Marine cuisine are some favorites of my fishes.
Do you have any photos of your tank? I would love to see it and it will help us answer your questions better.
As you begin to stock corals in your tank you will need to monitor calcium, magnesium, and alkalinity. I would also keep a check on nitrates. Most corals use calcium and alkalinity to grow so they can deplete the reserves in the tank rather fast.
in my honest opinion i would stop flake feeding and go with assorted frozen cubes and for tang i would use nori sheets as a suppliment food. just remember in moderation often is better than overfeeding.