kinda new tank q's

[pipebash]

Hello all, 2 weeks ago i got a 75 established tank with about 70 lbs or so of live rock, 2-3 inches of live sand, a colony of green star polyps, and a mushroom. the corals have been doing well and my ammonia, nitrites and nitrates are all 0. I recently got a purple dottyback and it seems to be doing fine. My q's are I put a mh fixture in the canopy and this causes the temp to increase about 3 degrees from lights on to lights off. Is this unacceptable and if so would a small fan or 2 take care of the problem? also I am really leaning towards LPS/Zoa tank currently i have a rio 1700 return pump with 4 outlets into the tank. I put a koralia 3 in and it seemed like the Gsp and mushroom didnt like it so I've had it off. would the LPS be ok with my current flow? And lastly I have been reading about zoas and that the small starfish that start with an A will eat them. If this is true should I buy a harlequin shrimp or are the benefits of the starfish worth not having zoas?


So to recap Q's-

3 degrees too much of temp swing from morning to night?
Is flow acceptable for an LPS tank?
Should i buy a harlequin shrimp for the starfish so that i can safely house zoas?
Thanks for any help

 

[CoraLife]

- asterina???? stars i think( the little white ones with six legs) are present in my tank and i succesfuly keep a thirving zoa colony.
- 2 fans wouldnt hurt at all so i say go ahead and get some.
- what is the total gallon per hour flow rate on your aquarium(GPH). you should aim for 20x turnover but i think 30+x turnover is best for stony corals. do not put flow directly on them.

 

[Catpicklesdog]

I agree with Coralife.

I also have hundreds of asterinas and all my corals are thriving. I certainly wouldn't recommend Harlequin shrimp for them, as they really need larger seastars to thrive and that's an expensive diet!!!

I also run a fan with my halides (2 x 250w) and that helps keep the temp in check.

Try re-positioning your powerhead, like CoraLife said, ideally you need to aim for a minimum of 20x turnover, and I never include the return pump in that, powerheads only.

HTH

 

[pipebash]

ok thanks for the info guys. Ive tried several positions for the koralia but it seems like it just blows the hell out of the gsp and shroom wherever i put it. maybe i need 2 to counter each other so it doesnt create a whirlpool effect?