Encrusting lps corals worth considering

[stardust1]

I'm looking for hard corals with encrusting forms that are pretty easy to care for and not too hard to find. I've tried searching online, but I didn't get much luck with that.

My tank's a 65g with a Maxspect Razor 10K 160 watt fixture, so lighting's not an issue. It's still pretty new, only about four months old, and I've only got live rock, a shrimp, some snails, and a couple of fish in there. Water parameters are looking good, nitrates are around 10ppm but they're dropping.

Thanks for the help.

[flameonix]

Most stony corals will encrust to some extent, given enough time and the right placement. I've had success with acans, chalices, platygyra, and even euphyllia. These corals can fuse to and grow on the rock surface if placed correctly.

For example, my platygyra has encrusted onto the rock it's sitting on, as you can see in this photo from the upper right-hand corner of my tank. This has happened over two years, but when I first got the coral, it looked completely different.

The same thing happened with my acans. They were individual frags when I first got them, but now they're part of the rock they're growing on. Here's what they looked like initially.

When people mention encrusting corals, I usually think of montipora. There are many kinds of montipora that will encrust, and while they're not LPS, they're not that hard to keep either.

Just be careful about what you let encrust onto what, as I have some hollywood stunner encrusting on rocks that I wish I could easily remove.

[rustyfox9]

Echinophyllia's are a great choice for encrusting LPS, can be pretty easy to care for too, and they're not too hard to find either.

[OceanicApe]

I'd also consider Leptastrea, Cyphastrea, Favia, and Chalices. These guys are all pretty decent encrusters, and as a semi-noob, you shouldn't have too much trouble keeping them happy.

[stardust1]

Thanks for the suggestions, I appreciate it. I should be able to find something I like out of the ones you guys mentioned.

[rileyon]

Echinophyllia's are a great choice for encrusting LPS, can be pretty easy to care for too, and they're not too hard to find either.

I caught a glimpse of some gorgeous morphs in a recent shipment at a local coral store - some truly stood out with their vibrant orange hues and striking rainbow varieties. The price tags, however, matched their beauty.

[Kolada]

Favia corals are really nice, they have some amazing colors and I've found them pretty easy to care for.

[tiderunner]

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