Mounting SPS Corals to Rock in Tank

[captbunzo]

Grrr. I just had a very frustrating experience. I just attempted to affix my precious Montipora digitata frag to the rock in my tank. I foolishly attempted to use some of that 2 part epoxy stick crap that has never worked for me before, assuming that it would work this time.




It didn't. Suprise.

So, this leads me to a question. I have this lovely little Monti digi frag that I would like to keep in place. However, I have no flipping clue how to get it to do so.

Anyone have any advice? It is about 2x2x1 inches in size.... Branchy, of course, and is doing great. But it falls over a lot, which is really annoying. Besides, it isn't ever going to attach to the rock it is growing on if it keeps falling over.

It was originally mounted on a small rock, but has grown completely over that.

Thanks for any advice you can give!!!

 

[Youngsilver]

Funny story:
I tried to get a monticap to mount more times then i could count, It kept getting broke again and again, so... the 2 nickel sized peices that I had left,I just kinda tossed onto a rock. This weekend I had noticed they had attached to the rock, and also fused together.. what the heck.. haha

 

[Snprhed]

I have always had good luck with the gel type super glue

 

[BigScott]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7420536#post7420536 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Snprhed
I have always had good luck with the gel type super glue

big scott

 

[djc1026]

Super glue gel works great for me as well.

Dave

 

[mdiddy7s]

Even under water the super glue gel worked, just not as well as if you take it out and dry the rock before mounting.
Mike D

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

Instead of a nice hunk of epoxy, I'm no stranger to wasting a whole bottle of super glue gel on one frag.

I'm sure you've read all about it, but if possible and if you prefer, try to side mount it.

 

[kpk]

If you do use super glue gel do it quickly. It is thermal and hardens as water hits it. So in the future you can take out a rock if possible and dowse (sp?) water on it to harden the glue. When I mount frags I have a serenge of water to harden it.

Kyle

 

[Sk8r]

IC-Gel works pretty well: the trick is to get it started and starting to dry on the frag above water, and have a target area on the lr where there's a very small hole. If you can get the glob to squeeze down into the hole you have a hope of it holding there like an anchor screw. But you have to hold your hand rock steady for over a minute underwater until it bonds. Either that or, above water, glue a piece of better-shaped rock to its base, that you know will anchor well into the rockwork without glue. I've done that on a couple and they don't fall. Watch out, however: digitata is very fragile. I accidentally broke a frag off its rock and stuck it in a hole. The badly-shaped rock is now growing another digitata on the bottom of my tank, from the tiny piece of base still attached to it.

 

[abigdog1976]

That IC glue works great. I also use epoxy for those larger pieces

 

[captbunzo]

I came up with a tricky solution last night.

I cut off about a half inch or so of a toothpick. Then, outside the tank I used Gel Super Glue to affix it from the bottom of the frag pointing straight down. Let that dry for a minute then stuck it into the tank and pushed the toothpick part into a hole in the rock. Worked like a charm!



Anyhow, thank you all for the great responses and great advice. I will have to get some IC-Gel and try it sometime... Here's a link to it, in case anyone is interested. (Just so you don't have to look)

http://www.bsiadhesives.com/Pages/hobby/ca.html

Hehe. I love the middle tab on the top of that page. "Recreational Adhesives"... For some reason, that just makes me laugh...

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

Very Nice, capt. It won't take long and that frag will attach directly to the rock. Like most SPS, it will have to grow down before it grows up.

 

[captbunzo]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7421474#post7421474 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Travis L. Stevens
Like most SPS, it will have to grow down before it grows up.

Interesting. As this, and a couple other SPS I currently have in the tank, are the first SPS that I have kept, I don't really know what to expect. It's grown quite a bit from the base since it has been in my care. Hopefully it will keep doing so, attach on, and start growing up.

It is a COMAS frag program coral... So if it does, then maybe in a couple months or so I can create some frags from it and grow them a bit for the frag program.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

Ah, the purple M. digitata from pwhitby, eh? I have one of those, but it's now in the care of ReeferKeith. He's holding my Montiporas until I can set up a species only tank. Hopefully it will grow like crazy with him and I can return some frags

 

[oddballs]

i use super glue on the frag then a blob of the putty and then a little dab of the s g gel and then i go quickly in the tank smash it to the rock hold very still and whalah!! thats 8 out of 10 times the glue really helps out and once the putty hardens its pretty solid i only use this method on bigger frags or colonies on the smaller frags i just wedge them in or use the gel.

 

[captbunzo]

Interesting suggestion, Oddballs. I notice that putty sticks great to the aquascaping usually, but not to the rock that the frag is mounted on. The super glue must be good for holding the frag-rock to the putty.