bubble coral help

[mott768]

Any one know how to get a bubble coral off of a rock? I tried to pry it but got nervous, I don't want to damage it.

 

[ALTI]

the bubbleshouldnt be attatched to the rock. its attached to its skeleton. you cant remove it from the skeleton without killing it.

 

[mott768]

That's what I meant, how do I get the skeleton off the rock?

 

[ALTI]

justbreak it off, or cut it with a dremel.

 

[mott768]

Thanks Alti,
Cool, I have a dremel but what bit should I use on it? Also can I just glue the skeleton to a new rock?

 

[ALTI]

buy the diamond coated tile blade. it may be tough to glue it if its big. u might have to use epoxy. i forget which epoxyhom,e depot sells,but do a search and you should be able to get the name.

 

[mott768]

Thank's,
the bubble is kind of small, I have the epoxy stick by 2 little fish I can use which I actualy like better than glueing. I just have to get the blade for the Dremel.

 

[ALTI]

just make sure you let the bubble completely deflate beforeyou do any cutting. i like to hold mine upside down while i cut to help prevent any damage to the flesh. dont try to cut it all the way through. a falling rock or coral is never good. just go about 3/4 ofthe way through andpryitoff GENTLY with ascrewdriver or similar tool.

good luck

 

[ALTI]

sorry about the jumble. my space bar sticks

 

[mott768]

I wish you were closer... Now I'm afraid to cut it.

 

[ALTI]

dont be afraid . just handle it carefully. you could probably saw it in half with a rusty tile blade and it would be fine. ive damaged euphyllias in the past by just taking them out of the water before they deflated all the way. ive also dropped them on the floor and steeped on them with no ill effects.

 

[mott768]

I have a old coping saw blade, do you think that will work?

 

[concept3]

too much to move around with the blade, you might damage the flesh since you have to lay it somewhere. I would hold the coral in one hand and cut with the other over a container of water.

just wait till the morning, run to HD and get the bit. Dunk it in
water to keep the cutting wheel wet and cold so as not to burn the flesh if you are cutting that close.

 

[mott768]

There isn't much skeleton between the rock and the flesh, I never cut a coral before, I only asked about the saw blade because I would have more control with the blade than the dremel plus I wouldn't have to worry about heat. You make it sound tough, like one slip and it's a goner. Anyone in the area willing to come by and cut it off the rock for me. I really don't want to kill it. Alti I know you said they are pretty hardy but I have a brown thumb.

 

[ALTI]

how much skeleton is there? if its too close i wouldnt do it. bubbles can go fairly deep into theskeleton sometimes.

 

[mott768]

On one side about a 1/8 of an inch on the other about 1/2 of an inch. It looks like some flesh hangs over the side of the skeleton. That is one of the reasons why I was nervous to cut it. If there was a lot of skeleton I wouldn't be so hesitant to try.

 

[mott768]

Here's a pic sorry it isn't that good, it was the best pic I could take with my camera

 

[ALTI]

looks too small. why dont you just cut the rock?

 

[mott768]

I never thought of that, what do I use to cut the rock?

 

[concept3]

hammer, chisel.... and a drill bit.


drill some holes like a perforated edge on a piece of paper, then pry the 2 pieces apart, or you can try and fracture it on that drilled "dotted" line