Removing encrusting sps from disks

[User]

Hi peeps

got several cyphastrea in my coral QT right now and have been thinking about how best to get them up to the display

I have a meteor shower cyphastrea that has almost completely encrusted a 3” disk.

3 good sized bizarro cyphastrea on 3/4” ‘blocks’ that are glued to plugs - completely encrusted

a JF fruity pebbles monticompletely encrusting a 3/4” block on a plug

I’m worried about transferring eggs or dip resistant critters to the display. I normally remove any corals from plugs after first dip, but these are the most extensively encrusted sps I’ve bought

Any tips or advice on how to deal with this?

thanks

 

[SandJ]

Can you apply a layer of glue or epoxy to the frag plug?

 

[User]

Can you apply a layer of glue or epoxy to the frag plug?

I can

but they look so unnatural. I kinda don’t like how they look.

should I take the long game and place them on a rock and then let them grow out? Then pop the disk/ plug off?

that would mean a total redesign of my QT to support them for that long though

I could dip, and scrape really well to remove Possible invaders, move to a new QT, repeat the dip and scrape, then put them in my system grow out.

or surround them in epoxy or glue, and then attach to rocks then move to display and let them grow out, then pop the ugly blocks off once they’ve established

thanks

 

[Kyl]

What I do, but is a longer term thing, is rip the piece off the plug in the beginning and attach it to a piece of rock rubble. Once this starts growing enough and encrusting well, I pull that nub off and put it back on a new frag plug, then eventually sell said frag. So basically I'm "borrowing" the growth to transfer to some rock rubble (which looks natural). I toss the original frag plug in all situations. A bit of fiscal loss is not worth AEFW or MEN.

 

[User]

What I do, but is a longer term thing, is rip the piece off the plug in the beginning and attach it to a piece of rock rubble. Once this starts growing enough and encrusting well, I pull that nub off and put it back on a new frag plug, then eventually sell said frag. So basically I'm "borrowing" the growth to transfer to some rock rubble (which looks natural). I toss the original frag plug in all situations. A bit of fiscal loss is not worth AEFW or MEN.

that’s kinda like what I’m thinking, but my coral QT is short term- I haven’t had luck QTing for that amount of time. I’ve switched to a quicker method, and it’s been working, but I didn’t anticipate this situation.

I got the frags in a replacement deal and wouldn’t normally have ordered them like this

 

[andrewey]

Whenever I've encountered this, I usually take the hit and first try and cut a notch in the side and try and "pry" it off the encrusted base. If that looks like it's going to shatter the coral, I'll move to using a dremel or bandsaw to slice it right off the plug. I also hate to waste coral, so in cases where it's encrusted around the frag plug, after I separate the coral from the top of the plug, I'll use a razor blade to collect the remaining remnants and glue them with the original frag as a sort of extra "mosaic"

 

[Kyl]

Alternatively you can cut the stem off the plug and seal the entire bottom, and a 1-2mm portion of the encrusted skeleton with super glue.

 

[User]

Whenever I've encountered this, I usually take the hit and first try and cut a notch in the side and try and "pry" it off the encrusted base. If that looks like it's going to shatter the coral, I'll move to using a dremel or bandsaw to slice it right off the plug. I also hate to waste coral, so in cases where it's encrusted around the frag plug, after I separate the coral from the top of the plug, I'll use a razor blade to collect the remaining remnants and glue them with the original frag as a sort of extra "mosaic"

How do these things fragment? I mean, what’s the largest piece I should expect?

given that they are Stoney, I’m kind of assuming it’ll chip and crack and I’ll end up with 10-15 pieces I’ll need to reglue. Or is it possible to get the majority off in one piece?

im particularly concerned about the Bizarros. I had planned originally to slice each face off the block with the Dremel and glue those slices to a large 18x24 tile (to attach to one of the side panels of my tank) but it just looks way too fragile to do that.

 

[User]

Alternatively you can cut the stem off the plug and seal the entire bottom, and a 1-2mm portion of the encrusted skeleton with super glue.

they’ll encrust back over the glue?

i only ask because 18 months in, the areas of my rockscape where I used BRS gel still is bright white. No coralline, no algae. Kinda annoys me a bit tbh

 

[ReeferWarrant]

What I do, but is a longer term thing, is rip the piece off the plug in the beginning and attach it to a piece of rock rubble. Once this starts growing enough and encrusting well, I pull that nub off and put it back on a new frag plug, then eventually sell said frag. So basically I'm "borrowing" the growth to transfer to some rock rubble (which looks natural). I toss the original frag plug in all situations. A bit of fiscal loss is not worth AEFW or MEN.

That's what I have been doing with my soft corals, and I'm about to start getting encrusting varieties. How do you get the pieces off of the encrusting ones? I have a wood chisel and razor blade I use for my Zoa's and Paly's to get under them enough, I just worry doing that with an encrusting type and killing the whole plug.

 

[User]

That's what I have been doing with my soft corals, and I'm about to start getting encrusting varieties. How do you get the pieces off of the encrusting ones? I have a wood chisel and razor blade I use for my Zoa's and Paly's to get under them enough, I just worry doing that with an encrusting type and killing the whole plug.

thats kinda the question of the thread bro, lol

yeah- I’ve been doing softies,lps and some sticks- but nothing encrusting. I’ve never bought anything so heavily encrusted before so this is a new situation for me

 

[ReeferWarrant]

Haha yeah I should have directed that to @Kyl

 

[ReeferWarrant]

thats kinda the question of the thread bro, lol

yeah- I’ve been doing softies,lps and some sticks- but nothing encrusting. I’ve never bought anything so heavily encrusted before so this is a new situation for me

Those are the ones I want too, definitely following how this goes

 

[ReeferWarrant]

I'm willing to bet your bottom piece was a frag cut with a drimmel and placed on the new plug to create multiple frags. That might be a route to go, cut off from the frag and remove enough on the bottom to place in the area you want it in your DT.

 

[DaneGer21]

I dip a few times then cut the nub off the bottom. Then place it. Give it time and that “plug” will be hidden. I guess I’m not as picky haha

 

[User]

I dip a few times then cut the nub off the bottom. Then place it. Give it time and that “plug” will be hidden. I guess I’m not as picky haha

How do you avoid eggs?

the plug might be hidden but I’ll still have a 3” disk completely visible. No likey.

 

[User]

I'm willing to bet your bottom piece was a frag cut with a drimmel and placed on the new plug to create multiple frags. That might be a route to go, cut off from the frag and remove enough on the bottom to place in the area you want it in your DT.

Yeah- my bizarros are all the same as
That. It’s actually really frustrating that most vendors use plugs for encrusting sps and not rock rubble, but that’s just my opinion, man

once I get these guys growing, no plugs in my grow out. All rubble.

 

[Kyl]

I break off the nub, the piece of frag tile that has been encrusted over and then stuck onto the frag plug you've purchased. As simple as jabbing one of my dentist looking picks under a corner and popping that sucker off. Superglue actually has incredibly poor shear resistance, they usually break right off quite easily. As for collateral damage, if the frag was in that bad of shape to lose it in the first place, it shouldn't have been sold.

 

[User]

I break off the nub, the piece of frag tile that has been encrusted over and then stuck onto the frag plug you've purchased. As simple as jabbing one of my dentist looking picks under a corner and popping that sucker off. Superglue actually has incredibly poor shear resistance, they usually break right off quite easily. As for collateral damage, if the frag was in that bad of shape to lose it in the first place, it shouldn't have been sold.

Stacking tile on plug is how you end up with these silly looking cubes though

when I said fragile, it was more in terms of small polyps tightly packed on a fairly thin strip of plug. I’m worried about killing it off.

I’d be losing many polyps while I cut, plus my dremel blade is like 1/16, So id lose a lot of coral because of the kerf of the blade

 

[DaneGer21]

How do you avoid eggs?

the plug might be hidden but I’ll still have a 3” disk completely visible. No likey.

Glue or putty