STICKY PLZ!!!

It's gonna happen sooner or later, so I figured I might as well get it started...

Post up your info for DIY frag disks, plugs, & rocks (might as well do rocks as well as they're usually the same or at least a similar mix). We'll keep it all in here vs the general DIY section.

Recipes, pictures, forms and anything else you got.


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I gotta get some pics of mine tomorrow or so, but I'll post up the info first & get this thread started.

Warning: SG fumes = bad. Do this with ventilation

If you want/need a low number of something to frag your corals onto, Sand disks might be a good option for you. Work best for zoos & other short softies. Many have observed that corals spread/grow slightly better over calcium based substrates, hence the use of aragonite type sand. I've witnessed this myself with some frags that came in on solid rocks (pebble kind) and I fraged some and got a lot better growth from the frags vs the 3 left on the rock.

For the super glue, I prefer Duro brand (very quick setting) vs. "Super Glue" brand (dries way too slow), I haven't used other brands, but you'd want a fast-setting liquid type(not gel).

All you need is:

1 - Aragonite Sand
2 - Super glue.
3 - random small container

Pour your sand into whatever container you have on-hand, preferable at least a 1" sand depth so you don't glue right to the container itself. Level off the sand, and pour the superglue into it, I recommend about a 1" diameter. The glue will seep into the sand and then harden, leaving you a nice sturdy disk to glue your frags onto.

If these frags are going in your main tank, and you have a sand substrate, then these are virtually invisible when placed on your sandbed. They also sit on eggcrate just fine, as long as you make them with an adequate diameter.

Idea taken from the Eric Borneman propagation video(just mentions it).

If you have a very high-flow SPS frag tank, or work with higher growing coral then you'd probably want the peg-style frag plugs so they don't fall over. Sand/SG isn't as easy to form into a set shape, so you'd be better off with the portland cement based mixes. The portland based ones also work better for larger number production.

i've used almost everything under the sun as frag bases. pvc was usually the easiest to attach but most difficult to use afterwards.

lava rock was pretty imo, nice contrasting colors versus old LR. same goes with mini clay pots. the pots were somewhat easy to attach since they provided natural shelter but they were/are a bit of a pain to use afterwards like the pvc. i usually had/have to break the pot into bits to epoxy or wedge into place.

these are pics from my old hospital tank. it doubled as a frag tank but i really treated it more as intensive care for corals. it was a 20L lit by a 150W MH (not sure if it was 10000K or 6500K though).


the gsp's are attached to a lava rock.

I find a bunch of LR rubble peices that fit into eggcrate like pegs (staghorn or Tonga branch rubble works best). Then I simply put the dremel to work giving them flat tops at the height that I want. I only prop zoas at this point and it works great for that. Place a few polyps on a peice and wait for the spreading to begin! I am intrigued by this sand idea though. If they do spread better over sand then rock, perhaps coating the top of the rock peg with sand?? Hmmm...

Great idea. I am just curious tho. Wouldn't it take a lot of superglue to make these frag disks? If you add up the cost of buying the superglue and aragonite sand, I wonder if there is really a cost savings versus buying the frag disks directly from a source such as bostonaquafarms.com.

bag of portland cement is like $5 for 40# depending on where you get it.
aragonite sand is like $20 for 30# at marinedepot.com. water to mix is cheap. plus the cost of rock salt, plastic shavings, or whatever else you want to throw in the mix. 40# of cement will give you a lot of frag discs.

mix together, i use a 3:1 sand:cement ratio. some people use different ratios, but you the key is to have more sand than cement for a more natural look. not to mention that cement may leech silicates into your system, depending on the silica content of the cement. also, adding rock salt gives the disc/rock some texture. saw dust chunks, plastic shavings, etc. will give it more texture and help hold the disc/rock together if you're molding big pieces.

for a mold, i use egg cartons. they're cheap, disposable, and make a good size. if i'm making rocks, i'll usually go into the backyard, loosen up some dirt, form a mold, and pour it in there. or pour some sand into a box, form a mold, and use that.

er1c_the_reefer - Ive been looking into making some of these for awhile now but am worried about the silicates...Do you know where to get the low silicate cement?

If you use the tiny tubes of superglue, then you'd get 2-3 out of a single tube. Not that many. Larger bottles will, of course, give more pieces. Also, HD/Lowes commonly sell 10-packs of the tubes. Like I said, it's a low-yeild system, but it has some benefits.

1 - Look completely natural & blend in with tank sand (if you have it). I'd have no problem taking a piece of of my frag tank and popping it right in a display tank. You could frag up a larger collony, then put the pieces right down on the sand bed if you don't have a prop tank, and it will still look good.
2 - Practically ZERO cure time, vs many weeks of cement based ones.
3 - very very simple to make. Pour glue in, wait 5 seconds or so, and it's done & ready to go into tank. (They do heat up a bit while curing though).



It's an option. If you want to buy the pre-made & pre-cured cement plugs, go right ahead, or make them yourself.

i wouldn't be too worried about it. portland cement is 80% silica, and some of it is bound to react to form silicates. that's another reason they say to cure it for a good 2-3 months with plenty of water changes before using them, because by then most of the silicates have already leeched out.

Here is how I make my frag plugs:

Ingredents:
* $7 cash
* 1 LFS
* 1 car

Directions:
1. dirive car to LFS with $7 in pocket
2. purchase concrete plugs
3. take home, enjoy, and be glad you don't have to DIY
4. attach corals
5. sell to make money to buy more plugs

Pics:

^^lol

What does that have to do with DIY?

I also think its a lot easier to just buy them....It sure seems like a lot of work to make them....

me too... but i like the satisfaction of DIY. makes me feel... manly. and i can customize the disc/plug/rock to whatever shape i feel like.

LMAO

I DIY all day every day At work


LMAO

Tonga branch rock cut to a disk: easy, quick, cheap, and did I say cheap?

If you want to really feel manly (no matter what your gender!) then take some base rock and cut slices out of it with a hacksaw. It's actually easy to do and makes some good bases to attach corals of any kind.

I was reading up on aragocrete rocks on another thread in here in the beginners section and found this link to a place that sales ready made aragocrete rocks and their dry mix. They also had some ready made frag growing pieces some flat and some with pointed tips on bottom, pretty cheap too and look much more natural for when your ready to add them to your main tank........
ReefRocks R Us

Just thought id pass this along as im reading thru the forums....

not to mention they really should be cured for a month in the back of the toilet or fresh running water. i purchase mine fully cured, it much easier (unless your planning on makining hundreds)


i just read something that was very interesting about diy rock. if you use rock salt in the mix, during curing it will melt out leaving the rock very porus. i thought this a very creative way of making rock porus.

yes, thats what I did her is the thread, still dont know if it worked yet

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...=99744&st=0

yardboy- what is that brownish coral in the center of your pic? It looks like it an encrusting 'something.' I had that as a hitchiker on my LR since my forst reef and it has grown very slowly and I do not know what it is.

Sorry to hijack.

I read somewhere on here about those marble tiles sold at Lowes. Just picked up a bunch of them (about 25 for $10). Boil them, use your thumb to rub off cement, they are ready to go. Marble is calcium based (very good for coral) and if I could remember the thread I read about on here, I'd link it. Seems pretty easy to me....

I've got a bag of cement, a bag of rock salt, and a bag of aragonite sitting in my garage as we speak. Hopefully I'll have time to try making some plugs and/or artificial live rock next weekend. I've been wanting to experiment with this for awhile.

I like to use snail shells. Weird, but it works out. Then you can just throw the snail shell into your rock work and it looks more natural.

Hey that reefrocks place is haveing free giveaways again....
ReefRocksRus
I won some free cave pcs few weeks back, so I know its all legit.
Anyhoos, just thought id let everyone know.

I won the 10libs bag once it comes in I will begin to make rocks proabbly make mostly frag size pieces. If anyone in the Central Fla area is interested will probably give some away or trade for stuff. Will post pics here once comes in. If this stuff works out I will by more bags and make plenty for people. Rather just trade or give away then sell. This first bag since it was free will be giving away/trading for sure.

I didnt win any of that but I did enter the next drawing their having with the Aragocrete cave piece. Hopefully ill get lucky next time.

I use oyster shells. Living on the Chesapeake bay you can't spit without hitting an oyster shell. I usually dremel them up a bit to get the size/shape I want then pop the frag on. I place the frag on the outside which gives the advantage of having a nice concave shape on the bottom which nestles onto my live rock very well. Looks very natural and coralline algae grows on it like mad.

If you live inland, try a seafood resturant/shop. They will usually give the darn things away.

(Note: I boil the shells for a couple of hours after I collect them, the Bay unfortunately is not as clean as it used to be.

I buy cheap live rock, put it in a bag, and smash the hell out of it with a hammer. Smash to desired size.

Marble tiles are ugly.

does it matter if its not the cyanocate(sp) super glue? i thought stuff that wasnt that kind was not reef safe?

I wanna make some frag discs. What type of ceramic clay do I use or what's the ratio of portland cement with what other ellement with water?

in the mold




next BAF plug


i only make 22 at a time

Dude--you gots skillz!!!

They are great!

To throw in my 2cents

i have tried a couple different ways for plugs. i have used the super glue method, plain rubble rock, agragcrete plugs w/ different molds. i cure mine by the way garf.org says: min 12hrs soak in white vinegaur (i usually throw them into a container WITH LID-its kinda smelly- under my bathroom sink and forget about them for a week lol then i soak them in water untill you can't smell the vinegar anymore)

the superglue 'disks' w/ some pom-pom frags
Click to view attachment

some of my diff plugs
Click to view attachment

the mold
Click to view attachment

this is how i attach some suff to the plug: w/ bridal netting and rubber band ;P
Click to view attachment

plain rubble rock
Click to view attachment

that look pretty snazzy, Snazzy. Those are really good plugs.

thanks a lot

ok, you guys that made plugs to fit eggcrate, what size holes are your top and post and what type of wood you using for the mold, what prep to the mold, what ratio of aragonite sand to portland cement?
thanks in advance
i made some test rocks using 4parts reeffloor special grade, 1 part shell/tufa mix and 1 part white portland cement, they are strong, and getting ready to soak, but i want to make some plugs too, since it takes so long to cure

I'm starting to consider making my own "rock" for my 75g instead of buying it (due to price, and slight moral concerns ).

Hrm, great quality Premium Aquatics rock, or extremely cheap plain "rock"?



I like the wood molds, Snazzy. My super glue disks worked well, but I'd still say they're only good for small batches. I plan on making some good cement based plugs pretty soon.

well i made a wood mold used 4 parts reef sand and one part white portland however only 1 out of twenty came out with a nipple, what am i doing wrong?

I just follow Mvite around . Just wanted to add that I've heard of people tossing their freshly made plugs into the upperdeck of a toilet, the water gets changed everytime you flush , so there is no worries about changing the water. As for making them....I just buy them cheap enough that it isn't worth my time. There are so many people making them now that you can find pretty much any size you would want and if you want better pricing contact someone that makes them and ask them for bulk buy pricing, maybe get your reef club together to buy a couple 1,000 at a time. At least this started off DIY.
~Ed

Save a ton of money and time!! Purchase them from www.thefilterguys.biz They are fired ceramic plugs that do not need to be soaked or cured. Pull them out of the bag, mount your frag and put it in your tank. I have bought them time and time again and would never consider using nothing else. 50 frag plugs for 15.00........ you cant go wrong and they even come in different sizes. I use the small, cheaper ones and they fit in eggcrate perfectly. Also, great customer service!

I know, its not a DIY plug! Its much better, its a SEDI plug! (someone else do it)

I have personally seen the ones The AquaDen uses from TheFilterguys.com and they RAWK !
Top quality plugs.

My parents started tiling their downstairs with ceramic tile last week, when I dropped by for my weekly visit I noticed they'd rented a tile saw... I made a quick trip to my LFS and picked up a not so beautiful piece of tonga branch live rock and a fist sized piece of base rock and cut them into 1/4"-1/2" discs. They turned out pretty nice... if i ever need a nipple on the bottom I have a small dead acro skeleton I can clip a piece off of and glue to the bottom of one of the discs. I have these setting on my AC70 fuge mod waiting for a frag.

Sweet

The Propagator - I was suppose to give you the site for the plugs a while back. Now you have it, indirectly! Better late than never!

Shoot Gary, I was supposed to give you all sorts of links by now and have forgot to I am sure !!
so its all good !!

PM me or email me with what they were if you can remember.
( I suffer from CRS man !1 you know this ! )

I ended up making frag hunks out of Aragocrete. It was a 3 parts aragonite sand: 1 part portland mix.
As molds I used silicone, novelty, ice cube trays. Fruit shapes yeilded everything from little pucks to wedges. The dinosaurs, however, created convincingly natural forms. Eventually I got a little more creative and started making molds of random toys
Out there, somewhere, is a man with an Optimus Prime head covered in orange zoos.

WOW HI BLACKIE

Sup? Yeah, I'm still wandering around.
Looking into setting up to mass produce ceramic frag rubble, and freshwater aquaria stuff. We'll see how that goes in the next few months.