Frag Plugs

[RonD]

Is there any other ways to make them ... without concrete... quick fast cheap and works great sorta thingy

[gil716]

there was a online video where Borneman was showing how to frag various corals. in it, he described a process where you put sand into something like a thumbnail and squeeze super glue into it to quickly make a frag plug. i've never seen the end result of one though.

[comatose]

Originally posted by RonD
Is there any other ways to make them ... without concrete... quick fast cheap and works great sorta thingy

if you want to use them as you need them, you can buy some plastic golf tee's.

[Pyrojon]

There are many options for frag plugs available. Some use plastic golf tees, some use nylon nuts and washers, sprinkler system valves, rose tubes, etc... Most of the plastic options float so you can end up with frags floating around your tank.

There are aragocrete options for sale out there, they don't float and they are designed specificly for coral propagation.
I will leave it to someone else to mention the source as I'm sure to get killed if I do it myself.

[NANOFOOL]

i found a place that sells great frag plugs.here is the website

http://www.bostonaquafarms.com/

[RonD]

Originally posted by Pyrojon
There are many options for frag plugs available. Some use plastic golf tees, some use nylon nuts and washers, sprinkler system valves, rose tubes, etc... Most of the plastic options float so you can end up with frags floating around your tank.

There are aragocrete options for sale out there, they don't float and they are designed specificly for coral propagation.
I will leave it to someone else to mention the source as I'm sure to get killed if I do it myself.

What ever could you mean??? lol.. glad you two weren't in the same town or there woodah been a show down

[Pyrojon]

Heh, all I can say is I am a big fan of DIY but I believe in doing things the right way.
I'm not trying to pick a fight, but isn't it funny that someone in this thread did exactly the same thing, in this thread, that he villified me for doing in his thread.


Thanks NANOFOOL!!!

Jon

[comatose]

Some people just can’t let sleeping dogs lie. Amazing.

[RonD]

And now back to regularly scheduled threading.... does anyone or has anyone made the ones with epoxy .. if so, what kind of epoxy is safe to use and is there still going to be for curing them as well?

[Pyrojon]

LOL


Most epoxys are totally inert once cured (hardened), so no curing is required afterwards. There are many epoxys that specificly state that they can be used in water, and some specificly say no water.

There are a few brands of expoxy available specifically for aquaria use. IMO the problem with epoxy is that it's messy and not cheap.

If you try it out you may want to add some sand or something to the mix to make it heavier, cheaper overall, and possibly more natural looking.

[TheFlyingTang]

I used some leftover sanded grout, it was natural color, to make a batch of plugs. I had some sand that I haven't added to my tank and used it to make a mold. I took the top of a small pvc cement can and pressed it into the sand for the shape and depth of the plug I desired. Mix up 1 part grout, and 5 parts of small aquarium gravel and pour it into the molds. Cover the top of the plugs with sand. Wait until the next day to remove. I ended up with a bunch if great plugs.

I cured the plugs using fresh water two times a day for a week.

I just put the plugs into a QT with some zenia and they are moving in right on top. These will be great for Zenia and gluing SPS to. My next batch I plan on adding some toothpicks to the plugs so that I can just spear softies. I plan on using super glue as a back-up once the soft corals are attached.

[elliotklinger]

Maybe use tips from coral skeleton (dead ones)- break off staghorn skeleton into 1 1/2" to 2" pieces and glue frags to bottom. It would still look natural and abrasive surface would ensure it stays mounted inside the area.

If you want disc on the bottom, cut out 1 1/2" aryclic disc from 1/4 arcylic sheet and use epoxy to affix. Center hole resulted from making disc would work well by having skeleton bottom goes through and make stronger bond or you can use that hole to drop frags in them if they don't normally cooperate with super glues...

[marino420td]

I thought I saw a thread where some people were using cheap, broken ceramic tile pieces for frag plugs. Anyone use this method?

[Harold Edwards]

is ceramic tile safe for a reef?

[futrtrubl]

Tile should be safe. The director here is doing a coral recruitment study by using tiles.

Should probably specify that he is using roofing tiles, unglazed but still vitrified.

Edward