5 corals that are easy for beginners to get into

Picking your first corals can be hard because there are so many types. Today I’ll help you narrow it down by giving you five ideas for corals that are great for people who are new to reef tanks.

1. Zoanthids

Soft corals, called zoanthids, are very popular in the hobby because they come in a lot of different colors and sizes that buyers like. Some high-end zoanthids can cost up to $100 per polyp, but they can also find beautiful color changes that cost less. The bacteria zooxanthellae, which are symbiotic and make food, are what zoanthids eat most of the time. For the best results, keep the water moving slowly and give them moderate to high light. For beginners, they’re great because they spread easily and grow quickly.

Not all zoanthids are dangerous, but there are some things you should do just to be safe. It is very unlikely to get too much palytoxin, but it can happen if you handle these corals wrong. There is a chance of boiling zoanthids if you boil rocks or if you handle them carelessly, like when you frack them and get snot on your hands, or if you get them too close to your eyes or mouth. All will be well if you handle and take care of these corals the right way.

2. Toadstools (Soft)

“Many people, especially beginners, are interested in corals that move around a lot,” adds Toadstools. A standard inquiry I get is what kind of soft coral is best for beginners that moves around a lot and doesn’t tend to spread. The correct answer is a toadstool, which is a type of leather coral. The brown, pink, and yellow ones can also be very pretty and look great on new tanks. My favorite is the green one. Although toadstools are very tough, you should know that the top layer of this coral peels off every so often. That’s when you need to either speed up the water flow or take off the extra coat by hand.

3. Blastomussas

All these corals need to stay healthy is a slow flow of water and not much light. Therefore, for newbies, they can be grown in a reef tank that doesn’t need an expensive, high-output light source. For example, LPS corals are easier to care for than SPS corals because it is easier to see their mouths. Many beautiful colors are available, and they are very relaxing.

4. Beauty coral (LPS)

At my favorite aquarium, a grace coral is one of the most beautiful things I see. When it comes to LPS corals for beginners, there are a lot of great ones, but the elegance coral stands out because of its beautiful anemones. This coral really does look a lot like an anemone, and lots of people mistake it for one. No matter how good or bad it is, this coral doesn’t move around like anemones do. To put it anywhere in the ground, you can use the base that comes with this rock coral. Apparently, grace corals are some of the toughest LPS corals you can find.

5. The town of Montiporas

You could try Montipora corals if you already know how to take care of LPS and soft corals well and want to maintain SPS corals. An overwhelming majority of experts agree that Montipora corals are among the easiest SPS corals to care for. They come in different colors and grow in different ways. They can also handle different amounts of water and light. Thus, they are excellent ways to learn how to develop new hard corals. Eventually, Montipora corals get tough and grow very quickly. There are other types of SPS corals you might want to try after you learn how to take good care of Montipora corals.

These are some general ideas

You should really learn from what I’ve done wrong and lost. There is one piece of advice I can give you that has helped me a lot over the past five years. Don’t buy coral on a whim. While it’s easy to fall in love with a coral the moment you see it, why buy it if all you’re going to do is bring it home and watch it die? That bothers me more than leaving the store without it, in my opinion. I think you should start with some corals that don’t mind getting hurt while you learn how to take care of a reef tank.