I thought I would write a little bit about my set up. I am receiving my first transshipped corals and wanted to be ready. Most corals I have shipped to me already come from the United States so this is my first adventure with ordering corals from overseas.
Like I said earlier, this is my first overseas shipment I am getting. My set up is a little bit bigger this time than normal because my box contains a very large amount of corals. The very same procedure can be done for any coral you get; just use smaller containers!
I would like to make a note that all the tools you use for your corals should ONLY be used for corals and nothing else.
To start with I have 3 buckets. The large tote is going to be used to dip several rocks at a time and the smaller buckets will hold a single rock each to rinse after the dip. I have two 1 gallon cleaned milk jugs to help measure the water that goes into the large tote.
In my large tote I will be adding a few gallons of water as well as Revive coral cleaner. This is my first time using this product so I hope it goes well! I plan on using one filled cap per gallon of water.
My smaller containers will have fresh saltwater in them. They will also get dumped after each coral is rinsed off and replaced with new water. This step helps to minimize the amount of Revive that will end up in my coral quarantine tank.
Next up are my tools. I’ll start with the protective gear first. I have two different kinds of gloves I will be using. One is a thin, food grade safe, glove and the other is a thicker rubber kitchen cleaner type of glove. Normally I only use the food grade gloves but since I am receiving wild corals that could have ANYTHING on the rocks, I want the extra protection at first.
I also have protective eye goggles. I am receiving wild zoanthids and palys and have no idea if any produce the dangerous palytoxin. I wear these only when dealing with zoas and palys as they can squirt water quite far if they are grabbed the wrong way.
Next up are the tongs. I rarely use these with new corals but I have them on hand in case I see any hitchhikers that are hard to remove. I have two types here. One is bent at the end and the other straight.
My trusty turkey baster makes a glorious appearance here. This is a very handy tool when dipping corals. While the corals soak in the dip you use the turkey baster to blow aggressively on the corals to remove the pests and hitchhikers. It gets rinsed out well and used for other things around my tank as well.
Finally, just a simple pair of scissors to cut the bags open with.
Next post will contain a how to on acclimating, dipping, and putting your corals into their new tank!
Mountain Corals 
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