One Year Into the Hobby

You could always start with a nice piece of soft coral.... They tend to be pretty hardy and if they do well you can start adding from there.

 

LPS are also fairly easy to start.

 

Judging by the coralline algae growing on the back wall you are doing everything correctly! In my opinion I would not waste the energy and resources to test for nitrite(NO2) and ammonia (NH4) since the tank has been running for a year and the bacteria is well established. Since you want to start adding coral maybe a calcium and magnesium test kit might help. If you have never kept coral before a really good place to start is with soft coral, however, if you grew that coralline yourself then I am sure you can jump to some lps that you mentioned. Favias are a good place to start with lps as well as leptos. I think euphylias are a lower light coral as well but I have also seen them in high light at the top of some tanks so you might be ok with them!

 

What are the number, lengths, wattage, and spectrum of your bulbs?

 

Frogspawn is a hardy, fun coral. Monti caps grow well under most circumstances. I would avoid mushrooms - it always starts off nice but they can become a nuisance quick.

I like using super glue GEL - not liquid - for sticking frags to plugs. Alternatively, you can use a two-part epoxy sold in most LFS. It's smelly and messy but works very well.

Your tank looks great and you're on the right path. I had to do a double take with your post and username because I thought this was Cameron Lake posting and I know I've been to his house longer than a year ago and he definitely had a tank up at that time

 

I'm not familiar with PC-11, I just use this stuff: Instant Ocean HoldFast Epoxy Stick for Fish & Reef Aquariums, 4.4-oz tube