How do you attach your coral?

[bcarl77]

Since starting the hobby about 6 months ago I have always struggled attaching coral to my pukani in the tank. Tried multiple gel glues and nothing seems to work. The gel works great for me to attach any coral to a plug but anything in the tank is a struggle. What is a better way to attach soft coral and LPS is pukani? Please share you tips and tricks!

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

Soft coral is tricky, it is so slimy that when coupled with a wet environment inside a tank it doesn't really give the glue anything to bond strong to. One thing that I have tried with some success is take a piece of dry rubble rock and attach the soft coral to that. Let it set, and then glue the rock to the rock in the tank. You may still have to get crafty with the way you glue the coral to the rock, I'm a big fan of laying a piece of my nephthea leather coral that I frag often horizontally in a crevice and then gluing a completely around the coral in the middle. Eventually the two ends will stand up and you will have two major growth points for the frag.

Some folks have also used pieces of zip tie skewered through the base of the coral and then glued the two ends sticking through the coral to the rock. Eventually the coral will grow over the zip-tie piece entirely. However, I'm not a huge fan of that method since it will look unsightly for some time.

 

[Dsnakes]

I haven't tried attaching soft coral for a while. I used to use glue for Kenya trees though. Used tweezers to pull the glue up and sort of cover the stalk base.

Anything under water now gets mounted with little fishes 2 part epoxy. Much better results than a quick super glue gel and hope it holds.

 

[bcarl77]

Soft coral is tricky, it is so slimy that when coupled with a wet environment inside a tank it doesn't really give the glue anything to bond strong to. One thing that I have tried with some success is take a piece of dry rubble rock and attach the soft coral to that. Let it set, and then glue the rock to the rock in the tank. You may still have to get crafty with the way you glue the coral to the rock, I'm a big fan of laying a piece of my nephthea leather coral that I frag often horizontally in a crevice and then gluing a completely around the coral in the middle. Eventually the two ends will stand up and you will have two major growth points for the frag.

Some folks have also used pieces of zip tie skewered through the base of the coral and then glued the two ends sticking through the coral to the rock. Eventually the coral will grow over the zip-tie piece entirely. However, I'm not a huge fan of that method since it will look unsightly for some time.

Great suggestion with the rubble rock. I have been using this method with my zoanthids and super glue, great results there. Unfortunately there isn’t much space on my pukani to attach many rubble rock. Just the way the structure is.

My issue for examples is trying to adhere a acan into a crevasse on the pukani. I can’t get a good adhesive service due to the ridges.

 

[bcarl77]

I haven't tried attaching soft coral for a while. I used to use glue for Kenya trees though. Used tweezers to pull the glue up and sort of cover the stalk base.

Anything under water now gets mounted with little fishes 2 part epoxy. Much better results than a quick super glue gel and hope it holds.

How fast does it set? I saw the Tunze epoxy but looks pretty pricey.

 

[Pelagic One]

I thought the putty looked pretty expensive, too, but I only used a little bit for about a dozen frag-to-rock mounts, recapped the tube and stuck it in a ziplock bag for later usage.

1. Plug - gel super glue - ball of epoxy - gel super glue
2. Dip bottom glob of super glue in RO/DI to glaze the glue
3. Then quickly press the frag onto your pukani.
4. If it’s a tough mount, with frag vertical or under an overhang, I’ve placed a similar ball of gel-epoxy-gel on the rock, as well, and it works great.
5. Hold in place for 5-10 seconds, and it should fully set in a day, barring any rambunctious fish chases.

‘Always like to read other versions of the above technique, too!

 

[Midrats]

How fast does it set? I saw the Tunze epoxy but looks pretty pricey.

Coral Gum Instant is all I use now. I like that the two parts are in separate containers, and best of all it doesn't make the skimmer overflow like other epoxies. Well worth the price.

 

[pugcrush]

I'm assuming the frag plugs are stemless? I find I can usually find a good spot in pukani to put a plug with a stem into (with some super glue or epoxy if a tough angle) if I want to keep something on a plug. I don't mind plugs on my rocks as the coral will grow over it. But it really depends on the types of corals you're adding too.

 

[bcarl77]

I detach the corals from the plug, in most cases. I HATE the look of a plug in the tank.

 

[jd371]

I make a super glue putty sandwich. I'll take the plug and cut off the stem first. I then make a ball out of the putty and put a few drops of glue under the frag and take the ball of putty and squeeze it onto the frag to flatten it out a little. From there I find the spot that the frag is going and add some more glue to the putty under the frag and then push it down onto the rock. The putty molds to the rock and the glue has more surface area to bond too... it's very strong.
For frags that I put on the sand I'll take a piece of rubble a little bit bigger than the frag and drill a hole for the stem to sit in. I bury most of the rubble in the sand but leave the hole exposed and add a few drops of glue to the stem before putting into the hole. This stopped my Conchs from moving or knocking the frags over in the sand.