How do i make aragonite plugs?

[reefkeeper27439]

Hi,
i was just wanting to know how to make aragonite plugs,and are they safe to put in a reeftank?

 

[hamburglar]

Check out the Aragocrete articles at www.garf.org

I like to mix 3-4 parts crushed coral, 1 part sand, 1 part concrete, and make my rocks. Put them in a container and change the water daily for at least 6 weeks.

Crushed coral can be obtained from farm feed stores. It is fed to chickens to increase calcium in their diets. It usually costs $10 for a 50lb bag. Sand can be southdown or carab sea (heck, any sand may work, but Aragonite sand seems safer to me). Concrete can be bought in any home improvement store such as Lowes or Home Depot. Get the grey or white. Whatever you can get. The formula can be experimented with and changed. It's not like the rocks have to hold up a building. Have fun and put in interesting materials such as PVC shavings and full sized oyster shells.

It is important to soak the finished (48-36 hour air hardened) rocks in fresh water. They will give off wicked high PH for several weeks. I know 2 good ways to do this. 1 put them in the back of your toilet tank for 6-8 weeks. 2 put them in a container and run your RO/DI waste water through it for 6-8 weeks.

I like to soak mine for 3-4 months because I sell corals. I would not want to sell someone a rock that would increase the PH in their water. The bulk of my rocks are freash water cured for 3-4 months in a 28 gallon rubbermade container. I make about 60 gallons of RO/DI water per week, so I let the waste water do my water changes in the container.

Have Fun!

 

[reefkeeper27439]

Thanks that was realy helpfull. I was just thinking about the concrete.... but i guess puting it in water for 4 months would work thanks

 

[reefkeeper27439]

oh yea and your thread on the green house is realy good.

 

[rustybucket145]

The concrete is what boosts the ph. So if you go with solid concrete/sand mix you will probably have to cure it for longer. I get natural sea shells for xtra cheap at Hobby Lobby and add them into my mix. Also Rock Salt added in the mix will give you a really cool surface texture.

 

[GARFVolunteer]

I use egg cartons for the molds when I make my plugs. I use 4 parts crushed coral and one part cement. I get the cartons wet, sprinkle crushed coral over it, put a dolop of mix in each egg slot and cover all of them with crushed coral.

If you have a tank over say 55 gallons, you can usually use a plug or two after a couple of days.

I make my plugs using Riverside White cement which is a low alkali cement with no high pH problems. I make a few dozen at a time and after 24 hours in th mold, I quickly rinse them and dump them in a 5 gallon bucket full of water. I will also keep a dozen or so in my sump so they look more natural when it come time for a fragging party.

Thanks,

Scott

.

 

[reefkeeper27439]

thanks for the info every one

 

[hamburglar]

rustybucket145

Do you just put the rock salt on the surface of the mix? I would be a little worried about mixing it all the way through. I would prefer to have it only on the surface so that it will disolve completly during the curing soak.

 

[r00onmac]

well the idea behind mixing it all the way though is that as it soaks for a few weeks or months the salt melts away and creates caverns and air pockets i.e. more surface area for beneficial bacteria to grow but this method is more for DIY live rocks to be used in your tank, not really plugs...

 

[reefkeeper27439]

Hmm... that sounds like the rocksalt would b=make the plugs look more realistik than just a piece of cement.

 

[reefkeeper27439]

But exatly what tipe or brand should i use for the cement? Im not realy furmiliar on cemet lol. Oh and my tank is 55 gallons with about 150 lbs of live rock if that makes a diference in the curing part. Thanks to all of you.

 

[GARFVolunteer]

I would look for a low alkali cement like Riverside White Cement (http://www.txi.com/products/cement/cement.html). I have used Portland Type 2 cement in the past.

Thanks,

Scott

 

[reefkeeper27439]

hmmm.... so riverside white cement ill look for it. Thanks

 

[Lrood]

I'm new to this myself, and will probably use Hamburglar's technique - seems pretty straightforward. But I was wondering if anyone ever heard of using epoxy and aragonite/crushed coral?

 

[AndyL]

There are a few easier ways than the concrete methods...

Personally I like superglue/crushed coral, makes for a nice quick easy plug. Epoxy mixed with CC & aragonite could make for a nice plug.

 

[Lrood]

Another thought... While rummaging in my garage cabinets, I found some latex modified mortar (no sand) used to grout tile. This is gray (also comes in almost any color at tile stores). Has anyone ever tried this type of compound, mixed with crushed coral/aragonite?