Gluing or epoxy med size sps to aquascape

arejayy · 10/27/2014, 08:24 PM

What is the best way to fix a 4-5" acropora or similar to an aquascape? I dont mean in a position to where the coral would almost sit un-glued, but rather in a position (coming out of the side of a piece of rock) that it would not sit, and stay semi-securley to begin with.

I have underwater epoxy and gel superglue, but the epoxy takes up to an hour to fully set. Would I have to hold the coral in place for an hour?

Thanks

jccaclimber · 10/27/2014, 08:32 PM

I've noticed that with some wiggling a lot of things don't bond well to underwater epoxy, and this can be useful assuming you don't mind looking at a frag plug until it is grown over.

Figure out where you want your colony, then use underwater epoxy putty to mount just a bare plug. After 5-10 minutes carefully slip the plug out, but leave the putty in place so that you have a hole in your rock. Drilling a hole in your base rock works just as well.

Mount your frag (or colony) to another frag plug (or the same one after you have made the hole) with superglue or other adhesive of choice.

Once the underwater epoxy has set up (an hour or two) slip the now mounted frag into the hole. If friction isn't enough you may need a dab of epoxy, superglue, or a plastic shim (2 liter bottle) to wedge the plug in so the colony doesn't rotate. This is not an issue if your hole is anywhere near vertical.

As a bonus you can (relatively) easily remove the colony by just slipping the frag plug back out of the hole.

Costanza · 10/27/2014, 08:39 PM

I like to use both the gel and epoxy. Put the epoxy in place and then apply some gel to the base of the coral. Then just hold the coral in place for a minute or two. It usually holds really well for me.

tkeracer619 · 10/27/2014, 09:39 PM

Costanza knows the trick.

Aquamend cures within minutes.

ViktorVaughn · 10/28/2014, 07:10 AM

Same here, gel or epoxy on their own never work for me, used together they work great. I always put a small bead of glue on coral base or plug, epoxy on top of gel, then another, bigger bead of gel on top of epoxy. The super glue gel really helps in holding the coral to the epoxy and also holds coral in place on rockwork while epoxy cures.

arejayy · 10/28/2014, 10:03 AM

Awesome, thanks so much guys! jccaclimber, thats a great idea with using the epoxy to make a perfect hole for the frag plug, im definitely going to do that along with using both epoxy and glue. Thanks again!

10/27/2014, 08:24 PM	#1
arejayy Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Posts: 55	Gluing or epoxy med size sps to aquascape What is the best way to fix a 4-5" acropora or similar to an aquascape? I dont mean in a position to where the coral would almost sit un-glued, but rather in a position (coming out of the side of a piece of rock) that it would not sit, and stay semi-securley to begin with. I have underwater epoxy and gel superglue, but the epoxy takes up to an hour to fully set. Would I have to hold the coral in place for an hour? Thanks

10/27/2014, 08:39 PM	#3
Costanza Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: CT Posts: 9	I like to use both the gel and epoxy. Put the epoxy in place and then apply some gel to the base of the coral. Then just hold the coral in place for a minute or two. It usually holds really well for me. __________________ Ryan Current Tank Info: 65g mixed reef

10/27/2014, 09:39 PM	#4
tkeracer619 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Westminster, CO Posts: 17,289	Costanza knows the trick. Aquamend cures within minutes. __________________ Hobby Experience: 9200ish gallons, 26 skimmers, and a handful of Kent Scrapers. Current Tank: Vortech Powered 600G SPS Tank w/ 100gal frag tank & 100g Sump. RK2-RK10 Skimmer. ReefAngel. Radium 20k.

10/27/2014, 08:32 PM	#2
jccaclimber Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Location: San Francisco, CA Posts: 528	I've noticed that with some wiggling a lot of things don't bond well to underwater epoxy, and this can be useful assuming you don't mind looking at a frag plug until it is grown over. Figure out where you want your colony, then use underwater epoxy putty to mount just a bare plug. After 5-10 minutes carefully slip the plug out, but leave the putty in place so that you have a hole in your rock. Drilling a hole in your base rock works just as well. Mount your frag (or colony) to another frag plug (or the same one after you have made the hole) with superglue or other adhesive of choice. Once the underwater epoxy has set up (an hour or two) slip the now mounted frag into the hole. If friction isn't enough you may need a dab of epoxy, superglue, or a plastic shim (2 liter bottle) to wedge the plug in so the colony doesn't rotate. This is not an issue if your hole is anywhere near vertical. As a bonus you can (relatively) easily remove the colony by just slipping the frag plug back out of the hole.

10/28/2014, 07:10 AM	#5
ViktorVaughn Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Aurora, CO Posts: 619	Same here, gel or epoxy on their own never work for me, used together they work great. I always put a small bead of glue on coral base or plug, epoxy on top of gel, then another, bigger bead of gel on top of epoxy. The super glue gel really helps in holding the coral to the epoxy and also holds coral in place on rockwork while epoxy cures.

10/28/2014, 10:03 AM	#6
arejayy Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Posts: 55	Awesome, thanks so much guys! jccaclimber, thats a great idea with using the epoxy to make a perfect hole for the frag plug, im definitely going to do that along with using both epoxy and glue. Thanks again!