Algae on frag plugs

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

Curious if there is a way to scrub algae off of frag plugs .

Blue tang , lawnmower blenny , foxface and emperor angel all pick at it but not enough to clear it .

Will the frag grow and cover the plug with algae on it ?

bobby.w.hodges · Apr 12, 2020

Add tangs, even a small yellow tang will make a big difference. I used to bring my frag rack to the main tank for a quick tang cleaning session before I added a small yellow tang.

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

There is always blue yellow belly , foxface , angel and rocky ( the lawnmower blenny )
Picking at it .

Sweet Reef Corals · Apr 12, 2020

I keep a small, flat head screwdriver in the tank room for things like this. Scrape the turf stuff with the screwdriver then “polish” the rest of the plug with a toothbrush. Obviously you don’t want to do this in the tank, use a separate container so you can throw away the water you’re using to rinse the frag in.

LARedstickreefer · Apr 12, 2020

Peroxide works well and is easy. Use a syringe to apply peroxide to the algae and NOT the coral, itself. Wait about 1 minute and then put back in the water.

You’ll see a lot of foaming action going on and then the algae is gone a few days later.

Ocelaris · Apr 12, 2020

Anyone know how long peroxide lasts? Mine is about a year old and I'm getting frags Tuesday... I saw a brs video recommend peroxide for algae plugs, but haven't tried it yet. If it's a lfs or hobbyist I will always break the frag off the plug, no matter how much I trust them. But I thought sps could handle a little peroxide? Ie dip the plug holding most of the frag out?

@LARedstickreefer do you keep the frag out of water for that minute?

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

Does algae on the frag plug effect growth ?

I’ve read , generally frags grow out before up .
Is this the case for all acros ( they all cover the plug before growing up ? )

Homewrecker · Apr 12, 2020

I remount anything I buy and don't find myself having that problem

LardLad · Apr 12, 2020

Dip entire frag in peroxide for 2 min exactly. Pull out use soft tooth brush then rinse in bowl of saltwater. Works awesome.
Then pull out that nasty frag rack and scrub the hell out of it with vinegar. Then rinse.

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

Homewrecker said:
I remount anything I buy and don't find myself having that problem

Remounting everything ?
I’ve read a lot recently about someone buying frags and cutting them off of the plug or disk and re mounting them again .

Can someone explain this ?
I’ve been buying frags for years and always dipped but never cut the plug they came with off

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

LardLad said:
Dip entire frag in peroxide for 2 min exactly. Pull out use soft tooth brush then rinse in bowl of saltwater. Works awesome.
Then pull out that nasty frag rack and scrub the hell out of it with vinegar. Then rinse.

The frag is still clean and growing .
It’s the algae on the plug only that I’m worried about

LardLad · Apr 12, 2020

Rmckoy said:
The frag is still clean and growing .
It’s the algae on the plug only that I’m worried about

So just do the exact same thing but dont submerge coral. Frag rack with magnets are always algae traps.

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

Ocelaris said:
Anyone know how long peroxide lasts? Mine is about a year old and I'm getting frags Tuesday... I saw a brs video recommend peroxide for algae plugs, but haven't tried it yet. If it's a lfs or hobbyist I will always break the frag off the plug, no matter how much I trust them. But I thought sps could handle a little peroxide? Ie dip the plug holding most of the frag out?

@LARedstickreefer do you keep the frag out of water for that minute?

frags will be ok out of the water for a few mins ..

Imagine low tide in the ocean,
I’m sure some corals go long periods of time out if the water .

Green slimer for example .
I was told they have that slime to protect them from the sun while out of water

Homewrecker · Apr 12, 2020

Rmckoy said:
Remounting everything ?
I’ve read a lot recently about someone buying frags and cutting them off of the plug or disk and re mounting them again .

Can someone explain this ?
I’ve been buying frags for years and always dipped but never cut the plug they came with off

I guess the idea behind it is that, if there is anything "bad" on the frag it will likely be laying eggs on the plug(or hiding in there). If you take off the plug AND dip, its pretty good odds of not bringing in pests into your tank.

Personally I started doing that after getting monti eating nudis from someone a couple years ago. The dip doesnt kill them and there was like a little crevice where they must have been hiding during the dip.

I've had a good experience doing this and never lost anything if it wasn't already going downhill. QT tank is best but this is more practical for most people

Ocelaris · Apr 12, 2020

Yeah, eggs aren't susceptible to the coral dips, so you would have to wait till they hatch to kill them. The best method would be to de-plug, dip, quarantine and dip every week for a month, but let's get real, we don't. So de-plugging is relatively safe way to be sure you're not getting eggs of bad things.

About the 5 minute mark is hydrogen peroxide instructions.

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

Homewrecker said:
I guess the idea behind it is that, if there is anything "bad" on the frag it will likely be laying eggs on the plug(or hiding in there). If you take off the plug AND dip, its pretty good odds of not bringing in pests into your tank.

Personally I started doing that after getting monti eating nudis from someone a couple years ago. The dip doesnt kill them and there was like a little crevice where they must have been hiding during the dip.

I've had a good experience doing this and never lost anything if it wasn't already going downhill. QT tank is best but this is more practical for most people

Some frags I’ve bought were fresh clippings and glued on my own plugs ,
But some of the sps I have I bought on plugs , dipped and added them to the frag rack .

I also have a flatter rock that I drilled a bunch of holes to hold frag plugs .

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

Ocelaris said:
Yeah, eggs aren't susceptible to the coral dips, so you would have to wait till they hatch to kill them. The best method would be to de-plug, dip, quarantine and dip every week for a month, but let's get real, we don't. So de-plugging is relatively safe way to be sure you're not getting eggs of bad things.
I have some lps in my sump

Even having a quarantine tank set up with similar or adequate lighting for sps is not possible yet ..

Homewrecker · Apr 12, 2020

Rmckoy said:
Some frags I’ve bought were fresh clippings and glued on my own plugs ,
But some of the sps I have I bought on plugs , dipped and added them to the frag rack .

I also have a flatter rock that I drilled a bunch of holes to hold frag plugs .

Just gotta see what works for you and go with it. I try to keep my tank as clean as possible but I have aiptasia in this one I'm trying to resolve.

To answer your algae issue, I have cerith snails and trochus keeping my tank clean. Maybe add a couple more CUC so you dont have to do it yourself

Rmckoy · Apr 12, 2020

Homewrecker said:
Just gotta see what works for you and go with it. I try to keep my tank as clean as possible but I have aiptasia in this one I'm trying to resolve.

To answer your algae issue, I have cerith snails and trochus keeping my tank clean. Maybe add a couple more CUC so you dont have to do it yourself

I have never had or liked having hermits ( they are more destructive than they do good .)

I have a bunch of snail like creatures that cover the glass after lights out .

Found a weird dark shell thing the other night .

Dumped him in the empty section of my sump .

I’ll make another post with that another time

They look almost like the clam or oysters you buy in the grocery store but smaller