Frag plugs & disks

[Driftwood]

I have been looking into making something to put frags on. I don't like the idea of curing the plugs first or paying an arm and a leg when I give most of my frags out anyway.

I went to HD today and looked around for items that might work. What I was hoping is for people to give me their opinions on if they think a particular item would do the job and be safe for the tank.

Clay pot saucer - It is a 4" saucer for a clay pot. I know that people place clay pots in their tanks for fish to breed in... These are 48 cents a piece.

Ceramic tile - These are 4"x4" ceramic tiles for tiling your kitchen or bathroom?? They are missing from my receipt so I'm not sure how much they are.

Surface cap - These are 2"x2" ceramic tiles. They are two in a package for $1.28. I thought the tag said 19 cents, but I guess I was wrong.

Marble Tile - This is a 12"x12" marble tile. If I cut this into 1"x1" pieces I would have 144 frag squares. I am pretty sure this one is 100% safe as I have read about it in a few threads now. The tile was $5.

Anyone have any experience using any of these items or materials for frags? Is the clay pot saucer and ceramic tiles safe for reef use?

Dave

[Questin]

100 plugs for $23 too much?

http://www.bostonaquafarms.com/defau...cts&prod=plugs

[Driftwood]

Not that bad really. It would be nice to have something I can pickup at Home Depot though.

Plus I already bought this stuff and I want to play with it!

Dave

[Questin]

Well the plugs are nice and already cured, the top of them are even coated with a layer of white sand.

[Driftwood]

Those are nice plugs. I am curious about the ceramic tiles though. The 2"x2" pieces would be awesome for growing out frags if the material is safe.

Dave

[tpdpercula]

I use 4" x 4" tiles for Green Star Polyps and Xenia. I have used them for about 5 months and have not seen any ill effects to anything in my tanks.

[Driftwood]

Cool. I figured they would be fine but wasn't sure since I know there are different types of ceramic. Any others have any experience? Anyone put the clay pots in there tanks?

Dave

[A.T.T.R]

i use 12 by 12 floor tile. for zoos works ok so far. no coral death. but not much growth. ( only been 2 weeks)

[noobwithatank]

i have been using the 1x1 tile from home depot. roughly 10 bucks for 144 tiles, so far 8 months add all is well

[Driftwood]

Do you cut a marble tile yourself?

Dave

[IDESONE]

Lowe's sells a 12"x12" sheet of tumbled marble thats already cut into 1" squares. All you have to do is soak it in hot water and peel the tiles off. Sometimes you may have to rub some of the tiles with your thumb to get the glue off. The sheet cost $12.99 and you end up with 144 pieces to frag with. These work great, with no ill effects and all you have to do is soak them in RODI water for a few hours after you peel them apart. I use these and know alot of other people who do too.

[noobwithatank]

heres mine, you can see them on the backwall. i did just what was said above me. trust me, peeling 144 tiles isnt fun

[IDESONE]

nope its not fun.....but its cheap!!!

[Driftwood]

I think I saw those the other day at HD. Very cool!

Dave

[avgjoe]

I picked up a 12X12 sheet of the tumbled marble at Lowes yesterday. However not all the tiles on the sheet are bright white. Its more of a checker pattern of white and beige. Will the beige tiles be safe to use?

[gtrestoration]

I've used gloss tiles and the encrusting by SPS doesn't have the strength it does on a more porous surface. Considerably more growth is needed before you have a frag that wont pop off it's mount.

JMO and IME.

SteveU

[evoracer]

I am going to order THESE . They can be found at premium aquatics online HERE for abour $30 for 100. They are plastic and are designed to attatch to egg crate.

[sps_addict]

Originally posted by evoracer
I am going to order THESE . They can be found at premium aquatics online HERE for abour $30 for 100. They are plastic and are designed to attatch to egg crate.

These are really nice, but I do have issues with them being too light get blown away by the pumps and won't snap onto the egg crate thus getting blown away as well. I might be doing it wrong, but that is my experience with them. Otherwise it is a great product.

[reznor252]

Originally posted by IDESONE
nope its not fun.....but its cheap!!!

Soak them in muriatic acid for about 30 minutes and the glue will pretty much fall off. It also eats some of the tile finish off creating a more porous tile to attach too. Clean and cure in one short burst.

[lvpd186]

Originally posted by sps_addict
These are really nice, but I do have issues with them being too light get blown away by the pumps and won't snap onto the egg crate thus getting blown away as well. I might be doing it wrong, but that is my experience with them. Otherwise it is a great product.

Thats why I made my own plastic frag plugs. They look like this:

[sps_addict]

Originally posted by lvpd186
Thats why I made my own plastic frag plugs. They look like this:

those are pretty sweet looking

[lvpd186]

Thanks So far they have worked very well. The corals seem to encrust the plastic fairly quick.

[alpine]

http://www.ram4x4.com/coralfragplugs...Frag_Plugs.htm
I have used these for a while now.Really good for the price,only downside is that they are only great for sps and lps corals.

[hoodrat]

Alpine if im not losing my mind those look just like the screen or lil filters that are used in my sprinkler system. If anyone elses look like that only prob is i do have the larger eggcrate and they fall through.

[Me No Nemo]

I really like the ceramic plugs. The Filter Guys sell them and they don't have to be cured first.