Will any coral be ably to thrive with under-tank lighting?

C

Cuadata Chic

Reefing newb
My boyfriend bought me a lovely octagonal aquarium for our upcoming anniversary. It's about 29 gallons, I believe, and comes with an under gravel filter and lighting from beneath.

As it's going to become the centerpiece of our livingroom, I'd like to stock it wish an eye popping display of color. I'd love to make it a reef tank. Though I haven't dabbled in saltwater tanks much, and have no real experience with coral. I know they require light, and I'm not sure how well the setup will accommodate this. Are there any species that will do well in this condition?

Please don't jump down my throat for being naive. I intend to fully cycle the tank and do right by whatever creatures I stock it with. I haven't yet purchased anything, and don't intend to until the tank is cycled and I've done my research - one of the reasons I've joined this forum.
Thanks,
-Hel
 
Hello Hel! First off, you should remove the undergravel filter. They are not for saltwater setups -- it's a freshwater filtration system.

Non-photosynthetic corals will be okay with the lighting from beneath system (but I'm not quite sure what that looks like, do you have a link to the setup?) Any of the photosynthetic corals (which are 99% of them) will need much stronger lighting, and need to be lit from above.

Non photosynthetic corals include sun corals and chili corals... You will be very limited with that lighting. Basically anything that needs light to survive won't do well with it.
 
[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Midwest-Tropical-AquaTable-Aquarium-Octagon/dp/B0002NJ3U8]Amazon.com: Midwest Tropical AquaTable Aquarium Octagon: Kitchen & Dining[/ame]

Here's a link to it, and I believe I may have been mistaken, and it's not a UGF...

If making it into a reef or marine tank proves too difficult or inefficient, I may just keep it freshwater, or even cycle it and transfer my freshwater stock and convert my 55 gallon into a reef tank.
 
+1 biff. And believe it or not, larger volumes are much easier for a beginner saltwater enthusiast to handle because the water is more stable.
 
Yes, I tend to think the 55 gallon is an all together easier tank to maintain, and probably the better choice, but I've put a lot of effort into establishing it and decorating, that I wouldn't be so keen on dismantling it. And I would prefer to have some larger, interesting fish in the coming tank.

I may find another use for it, rather than as a reef tank, and hold off on a marine tank until I acquire another large tank (and knowing my boyfriend, with his stackable petsmart employee discounts, that won't be very long.....)

I had initially considered making it a seahorse tank, and I know they tend to be really sensitive to corals... but I'm not so sure it will provide them enough vertical swim space...
 
I seen a guy on Michigan Reefers that was selling his "coffee table" reef tank and I have to admit it was really cool. However that guy obviously was a seasoned saltwater hobbyist and had very impressive ingenuity to be able to make everything work. Everything was custom built himself, not a pre-bought package. It would take a lot of work like biff said.
 
Just an idea here, but could you somehow get something on top, like a vase, or basket or whatever, and have it with a hole in bottom, where you could hide a T5 fixture, or a halide? The problem with that is the wire...is it acrylic or glass? If it's acrylic, you could drill a hole in the top and bottom, and then run a PVC tube through the tank, underneath, where you could conceal a plug. The tube could be hidden by a pile of rocks. I don't know if you want to go anything that complex, but it's just an idea, and it would allow you to keep most corals. Would be a lot of work though...And just wondering, what are you doing about flow?
 
If you really want a Saltwater tank out of this you could just have a FOWLR set-up with 2-4 small fish. You won't be able to have any corals but fish would survive.
 
Wow, I always wondered if people actually bought tanks like those.
Looks like a major PITA to me. ESPECIALLY for saltwater.
 
d2mini said:
Wow, I always wondered if people actually bought tanks like those.
Looks like a major PITA to me. ESPECIALLY for saltwater.
Click to expand...

Agreed. My husband saw one of those column ones at a friend's house. He really wanted one. I told him if we got one he had two options. Seahorses or guppies.
 
go with cichlids, much lower maintainence and they would make a beautiful show piece. you can get creative with the tank decor.
 
sorry i didn't read the full thread. I love anglers. That would be awsome. I once had a crocodile fish, toadfish, spotted grouper, angler, sea goblin and emperor snapper jammed in a 30g tank. Needless to say feeding time was rediculous. After a year of that I got sick of worrying about who was going to eat who next and traded my LFS for some community fish.
 

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