Ugly plugs. What to do?

[MarkD40]

I ordered some aquacultured corals for the first time from Drs.FS. The corals arrived healthy and look fine. The problem is that they were propagated on these square plugs of some kind of rock. The plugs measure 1 1/2 inches square by about 3/4 inch high. They are big enough that I can't really wedge them into any crevices on my reef to hide them, and they are very unnatural looking. It will be a long time before the corals grow big enough to hide the plug. Any suggestions on what I can do?

[keckles]

You could try to chisel the plug into an organic/uneven shape. This may help it blend into the rock more effectively until coralline algae finishes the job.

[rick s]

If anyone you know has a wet saw/tile saw, you could cut off as much of the plugs as you want to.

Someone in your local club? A contractor you may know? Will a Rental Center let you use one for 15 minutes really cheap?

A basic wet saw at Home Depot is around $50.

[DJ88©]

[moved]

[MarkD40]

How long can the coral survive out of the water? I can remove it and cut the plug and it won't harm the coral?

[rick s]

Yes. Corals are much hardier than most people believe. I would have everything set-up, pull it out of the tank, cut it, and put it back in the tank.

[MarkD40]

Thanks Rick!

[Marsfrogie]

I have bought aquacultured coras from Drs. Foster Smith and have just scraped the coral off of the plug entirely and placed it where I wanted it.

[ANNIESREEF]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7245058#post7245058 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Marsfrogie
I have bought aquacultured coras from Drs. Foster Smith and have just scraped the coral off of the plug entirely and placed it where I wanted it.

Marsfrogie, How did you get them to adhere? I have about 3 frags i purchased from ebay, beautiful, but they are mounted just like Markd40's. These are acanthastrea & lord howensis. I dont want to damage them-they are small frags.
(didnt mean to steal this thread)

[Fat Man]

Try super gluing some rubble to the plug.

[rick s]

I have had success mounting frags two ways.

1. Super glue: If you can dry the rock, and the frag, use super glue GEL. Just about any brand. You don’t have to really, really “dry� the rock or the frag. On the spot on the rock where you are going to glue the frag: Scrape off anything that is growing there (algae, etc) down to the bare rock. Use a paper towel and blot that spot of the rock until it is no longer soaking wet. The drier the better, but it does not have to be totally dry. Set the part of the frag that is going to be glued on a paper towel and blot it dry, same thing. You will have to use a few pieces of paper towel as you will get quite a bit of water out of the rock and coral. Put some super glue gel on the rock, position the frag in place, and gently apply pressure for 60 seconds. Then, put it in the tank. The trick to using super glue is drying the rock and frag.

2. Epoxy: If you can’t dry the rock, as in you can’t/don’t want to pull the large rock out of the tank. I have had good luck with Deltec epoxy. Epoxies work by encapsulating the coral and rock. They are not glue. They will not “stick� together with epoxy. Epoxy has to be either forced into a crack or crevice or wrap around/cradle the coral. When it hardens, it will “hold� it in place. Deltec epoxy has a very little bit of “adhesiveness� to it. It has a small amount of stickiness. Not much. Aquastick has none. The Deltec also doesn’t shrink like the Aquastick.

Cut off the required amount of epoxy, mix dry for about a minute, force it into a crack or hole in the rock, set (and gently push) the frag into the epoxy, make sure it encapsulates it somehow (rolls over a lip of the coral, makes a cradle, etc.), pick away any excess, and make sure the flow doesn’t blast it overnight.


This is how I prefer to mount all of my frags: I super glue the frag onto a small rock (dry method), then I epoxy the small rock into my tank. That does a few things for me. If the coral doesn’t like where I placed it (flow, lighting), I can remove the rock from the epoxy with some gentle prying and move it somewhere else. If it grows well and encrusts onto my main rocks, I can remove the original rock and move it, sell it, or whatever. The epoxy is very durable, but it is not a permanent bond.

Hope this helps.