Placing coral frags - Question (arguement with hubby))

[BummersReef]

I think the process of putting in the coral just makes him real nervous and he wants once and done- <grin> and I am trying real hard to talk him into starting a second tank - we already have the tank - but I have to tip toe on it all ...
The above light info is extremely helpful - will be seriously researching it all soon. I just hear how Radion are like the second coming so .... I want them!!!

 

[twilliard]

The frag mag is the best!

how i acclimate to light. Then i just use gel superglue to place them. Any i can remove from the plug i do, the really encrusted ones i use dykes to break the bottom of plug off and glue em down

Ohh ya!!

 

[Debramb]

My 2 cents, when I know I'm right, and he thinks he's right, best to point him to 3rd party for info, then it's His decision! 35 yrs of marriage, 30 yrs saltwater tank. You've come to the right place! I love these people!

 

[Kungpaoshizi]

Depends on the corals really. High light ones that are more sensitive should probably be put up higher where they will end up vs moving later and stressing them out. I've seen some that someone put low and they started necrotizing within a week or two, and the only difference from the tank they came from was the light amount. Vice versa some corals don't demand too much, so they can be moved.

If you suspect its a demanding coral that is sensitive (usually bright acros) just put them where they'll end up and lower the lights to 50%, then raise the lights over a week or two.

 

[Todd31]

http://www.thefilterguys.biz/frag_supplies.htm

these frag donuts and platforms are nice... put the coral in them and you can move them around the tank before you decide on final spot.

 

[ksc]

With your current lighting setup I would put your corals as high as possible. Your sand bed is receiving almost zero usable light. Glue a frag rack at the very top of your rock work and in the center of your lighting. Or just glue them to the rocks. The superglue/epoxy putty combo is easily popped of with a screwdriver or a misplaced hand......

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

My 2 cents, when I know I'm right, and he thinks he's right, best to point him to 3rd party for info, then it's His decision! 35 yrs of marriage, 30 yrs saltwater tank. You've come to the right place! I love these people!

lol.
Please pat him on the head when your working on A Meyer tank(My-Your) My wife does.

fwiw My xena grow under very (some would say VERY ) high lighting. Control your nutrients, keep an eye on them you'll see when they are ready to "Drop" a baby and a slightly higher flow they are pretty easy to maintain. I pluck them with my fingers. And yes, toss them.

On getting a new light.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/lighting-upgrade-with-a-lux-meter-saltyfilmfolks.248417/
no one can say how much light your actually getting in the tank from fixture to fixture. Yes I start low usually and move up. One factor some don't consider in success and failure is the acclimation to the chemistry in the tank. Every animal you put in is likely to have a different response,its not just light and flow. IMO. Coral is as generic a term as fruit. I think its one reason advice is so wildly varied in reefing. Experiences are just that wildly varied. Its a bit of a guessing game as to what its going to like, In YOUR tank.
Sorry My-your tank

 

[DOJOLOACH]

When putting new lps and soft frags into my tank I've place them on the sandbed near the outside , they're getting 60 par or so... Favias, zoa, acans. When people say adjust them slowly to their permanent home, how long is that in days?

I want most the frags 6" higher than the sandbed in the middle. I was thinking wait half a week and move to middle of tank on sandbed, then after another half week go ahead and glue them in their spots. Does this sound ok?

 

[KWT]

I did not read all the responses, but it place without glueing to start. Then move around the tank, when the coral is happy with its place in the tank then I may and may not glue. I use BRS thick supper glue, it works great. Don’t need a lot, just enough for contact. I usually hold the frag upside down at the surface, so the frag is hardly ever out of water.

 

[Traian]

When putting new lps and soft frags into my tank I've place them on the sandbed near the outside , they're getting 60 par or so... Favias, zoa, acans. When people say adjust them slowly to their permanent home, how long is that in days?

I want most the frags 6" higher than the sandbed in the middle. I was thinking wait half a week and move to middle of tank on sandbed, then after another half week go ahead and glue them in their spots. Does this sound ok?

That's what I do for softies, Zoas, and LPS stay in a 70 PAR area I have reserved down low for new frags, and keep them there a week before moving them to their permanent spots. My SPS (specially acros) I'll leave low for two days, then move them up to a middle position for another 2 days, then up top.

 

[DOJOLOACH]

That's what I do for softies, Zoas, and LPS stay in a 70 PAR area I have reserved down low for new frags, and keep them there a week before moving them to their permanent spots. My SPS (specially acros) I'll leave low for two days, then move them up to a middle position for another 2 days, then up top.

Thank you sir, since the permanent spots are only 20 or 30 par higher, I'll just move to their spots after a week.

 

[92Miata]

I glue everything down. If I need to move it - I break it off.

I've lost way more frags to things getting knocked over into the sand, or into other things than any other way - and I find that things seem to do better when they're stationary.

 

[Eleni18]

Hi, I am new to reefing too, so my experience may be useful to you, maybe more than what all the real pros have said above. I can understand your hubby being nervous about placing the corals as fast as possible, I was exactly the same a few months ago. I was so excited to get them and so nervous they might get lost or die in the sand, I wanted to glue them as soon as they opened up after shipping. Then, I would be so anxious about keeping them out of the water even for a few seconds to do the putty super glue sandwich thing (yes I I had already read about that here!!!) that I would make a terrible mess with salt water all over the floor and glue all over the place. Now, I am cooler. I keep most of them on the sand for a while and only glue those that I am sure of placement, gradually proceeding to those on the sand. Looking at the corals and my tank every day and deciding on placement for 1 or two at a time. Also, don't worry. Even if placement proves wrong, you can easily break off the sandwich thing!

 

[Shanban45]

I went a step further and asked which is the problem – the frags or the snails and hermits?

Turns out the snails and hermits are all too big (and the hermits too nasty) for most tanks. Try smaller snails like Ceriths and keep hermit populations to zero or the minimum.

The only frags I glue to plugs are the ones that are too small and that might get lost in the live rock if they get moved. Anything big enough to wedge into a space I wedge, but most corals will affix themselves in place in due time.

I've had to glue very few frags....birdsnests are a common one since they don't encrust, but they are also quite wedge-able.

That Tunze Coral Gum (the newest product....I could be getting the name wrong) is pretty phat.....I might do things differently if that was around when I started.

I also don't typically move corals once they are in place.....they need to be allowed to adapt to the conditions they're in and A.S.A.P. is better than later. Don't stress about it, but try to minimize the number of moves.....eventually you will know enough to place them on the first or second try.



Saving Is Good, But...
Look at more affordable fixtures.

"Best" like you've defined it carries a ton of unnecessary (so far as the corals are concerned) extras which jack up the cost to about x5 what it needs to be.

For a comparison, I run two displays on my system: one gets about 14,000 lux (low light) from a DIY blue+white LED system; the other gets about 50,000 lux (fairly bright) from a Maxsprect Razor.

It's possible the corals are growing faster in one tank than the other, but I can't tell and all the corals seem very happy.

My point? The DIY fixture has no creature comforts at all (no dimming, no extra colors, etc) and only cost me $75 in LED bulbs and sockets. The Razor, which is great and has sunrise/sunset, etc, cost me around $500.

The Best Light
Now if my corals (almost all stony corals) are happy in both scenarios I described, how "best" can a light be that costs from $400-$900? Get them if you want, but I'd be careful about over-selling yourself on them

In particular for a long, skinny tank like your 150 (60" x 18" x 30H"?) the lights you're looking at are not a great fit....much better for a cube-shaped tank, though they still create a lot of shadowing for what seems like many peoples' tastes.

Your EcoXotic strip is better at lighting your tank - adding more wouldn't be the worst way to go. There's nothing wrong with blue+white fixtures.

If you want something with a few more human features, I'd look at the CurrentUSA Orbit Marine Pro. A single 4'-5' strip would be all you need to add. I'd probably keep your current LED strip too.



My 11th grade English teacher had a great saying about assuming....I'm sure everyone has heard it by now though.

Start by downloading a $free [HASHTAG]#lux[/HASHTAG] [HASHTAG]#meter[/HASHTAG] app (like "galactica luxmeter" for IOS) for your smartphone. It uses your camera's light meter and some software trickery to generate a usable lux reading. While you are downloading the app, go to amazon or eBay (etc) and order an inexpensive handheld lux meter (search for the "LX-1010B"). Better readings, safer to use around your tank and only $15, delivered. Sometimes less.

Anything around 15,000-20,000 lux on up is fine. Usually there's no need for more than around 50,000 lux.

I hope this helps!!

Hey sorry to post on such an old thread but I have a question about this! Do you or anyone else have any resources to offer about building diy led lighting? Ive been wanting to do this but having trouble figuring out where to start.

 

[snorklr]

i would start a new thread in the DIY section....considering this thread was about coral placement

 

[Shanban45]

i would start a new thread in the DIY section....considering this thread was about coral placement

Will do, thanks! I'm a first timer here

 

[dtruitt]

For the first coral of a given genus you have in your tank, start it on the sand bed.

I like to glue frags directly where I want them using super glue. It's really not that hard to pop them off the rocks when you use super glue, as long as you have something you can use as a pry bar if you do a better job with the glue than expected.

IMO, once you see an example of a genus starting to spread out, it's safer to just glue any more examples of that genus somewhere they will see similar light and flow.

I know acropora do well 1/2 to 2/3 of the way up the tank positioned under spotlights as best as I can, so new acropora get glued down after bayer dip.

The problem you run into with the extended light and flow acclimation procedure a lot of guys suggest is that fauna in or on the sandbed can irritate, trample, or overturn your corals (nassarius snails, Conchs, spaghetti worms, etc.). If your frag survives the stresses of living on the sandbed, then you need multiple racks to provide different levels of flow and light for new additions which call for different conditions.

More importantly, when you slowly move your frags up a wall, you're subjecting the frags on the rack to a little bit of stress every day or week for an extended period of time, rather than a modest amount of stress once.

I've never bleached or killed a frag by putting it directly in a *suitable* location. I've killed frags by suddenly exposing them to unsuitable conditions, which is why I think a lot of people believe in the light acclimation process. Slowly raising your frags up the tank gives you a chance to figure out what a suitable location will be, without readings or other similar corals to use for reference.

On the other hand, I've killed a few pieces by gradually increasing light intensity over many weeks, with an overall increase much less than the increase between the LFS and my tank prior to increasing lighting intensity.

 

[clarimore]

an easy way to solve the frag plug problem is to use a little bit of egg crate with magnetic holders.
This will allow you to move the rack up and down for lighting and to watch coral health.
Once they are nice and happy then you will be able to glue them down in the location of choice at that lighting level.
of course this is done after QT of the coral
an easy way to glue coral if you are unable to remove the rock for placement is to use the 3 step process

superglue, putty, superglue
To help with the mess once these 3 things are placed on the coral in that order is to dip this in a cup of tank water to set the surface of the superglue.

can you explain egg crate and magnets? your putting them on the glass to determine hight for light right? using one of the divots of a Styrofoam egg carton? I guessing glue a magnet to it?

 

[Sink_or_Swim]

I really really do love it. Had to force myself not to buy two frags. I could happily have a tank full of it!! (am I going to eat my words someday? heeee heeeee) it's so pretty, swaying in the breeze .......

Same here - it's my fav!

 

[clarimore]

http://www.thefilterguys.biz/frag_supplies.htm

these frag donuts and platforms are nice... put the coral in them and you can move them around the tank before you decide on final spot.

what a great idea!