Attaching a Colt Coral Frag

[The Saltwater Kid]

My friend and I split his Colt coral in half this past weekend and I glued my half to a piece of live rock but it didn't take and I tried again last night to reglue it using super glue gel but it was off this morning when i looked at it, can I rubberband it to the rock without hurting it? Any other ideas?

[The Saltwater Kid]

bump

[Bender]

The way that I have done it in the past is to stick a toothpick through the base of the coral and LIGHTLY rubberband the toothpick to the rock. If you are too tight with the rubberband it will cut the toothpick through the coral. After a week or so it will attach on its own and you can remove the toothpick. They are too slimy to use superglue with much luck. Hope this helps.

[kipher]

I would recommend using a plastic toothpick. You don't want to put wood in your tank.

[MrSpiffy]

I actually just had a nearly identical issue with a couple branches from my kenya tree that wouldn't stay attached to rock with super glue. I tried gluing them, but they keep falling off the rock because they secrete a slime or mucous for protection, which loosens the glue's grip and they fall out.

I followed the suggestion of using thread or fine fishing line and a sewing needle. Thread the needle through the coral near the base and then tie it down gently to the rock so that the base will attach. If it's a large base, it may be helpful to pierce through in more than one spot, but likely isn't necessary. After the coral attaches to the rock, you can remove the thread by pulling it out. Seems to be working pretty well for me. And if it's a small frag it may be easier than piercing it with a toothpick, which is considerably larger than thread, but better for larger frags.

[The Saltwater Kid]

Would you recommend putting like a clear cup over top of it to protect it from flow and other tank inhabitants until it attaches itself?

[kipher]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9063001#post9063001 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MrSpiffy
I followed the suggestion of using thread or fine fishing line and a sewing needle. Thread the needle through the coral near the base and then tie it down gently to the rock so that the base will attach. If it's a large base, it may be helpful to pierce through in more than one spot, but likely isn't necessary. After the coral attaches to the rock, you can remove the thread by pulling it out. Seems to be working pretty well for me. And if it's a small frag it may be easier than piercing it with a toothpick, which is considerably larger than thread, but better for larger frags.

That is an excelent Idea, think i would used fishing line. I've never heard of this, but I am pretty new to the fragging coral. kudos to you MrSpiffy for the best tip I've learned all day! Not only is the an effective way to tie the frag down but you can more easily contral the amount of pressure holding it down....thus avoiding the situation of the rubberband tearing the toothpick striaght through the food of the frag.

[The Saltwater Kid]

bump

[MrSpiffy]

Thanks! :) I just asked this same question myself yesterday. You can actually thank Randall_James, one of our moderators, for that particular piece of advice. But it seems to be working well for me, and it's always nice to pass along helpful information.

As for putting something over the frag to protect it, I don't think that's overly necessary, unless you think something will pick at it, such as a dwarf angel. I have a 20G tank and have had my turbo mow down algae on the glass right past a frag and bump it over. That'd be my biggest worry. But it shouldn't be too big of a deal to right the frag again once or twice. I did, however, have a peppermint shrimp once that wouldn't stop harassing a mushroom I bought. So I had to put a piece of tupperware over it with holes in it. The little bugger kept trying to get it through the holes, but couldn't quite reach it. Curiosity didn't kill the shrimp, but it definitely got his butt booted back to the LFS! :lol:

[The Saltwater Kid]

I noticed a chunk taken out of the frag and was wondering if it was my peppermint shrimp or my ocellaris clown maybe trying to host in it and getting frustrated because it wouldn't move with him so maybe he picked at it?

[chevegan]

Don't put a cup over it, it'll mucus up and die with the zero flow. The 2 successful ways I've had with a colt are these. 1- tie it with waxed floss around a rock and place it in a lowww flow section of the tank. 2- Wedge it between 2 rocks with a rubber band holding it together and again place it in a low flow area of the tank. Have fun

[Cove Beach]

Another way to help keep it sheltered is to get some wedding veil material and loosely wrap it around the coral and the rock you want it to attach to

[davidh202]

I have had luck with Leathers and Mushrooms just letting them settle in the substrate, to which they will attach to some grains after about a week or so and then glue them by the attached sand to a piece of LR.I have had no luck with toothpics or rubberbands as they will work their way off or out sometimes
Any of the softies will slime, and glue is worthless on the flesh.
You can use bridal veil or plastic needlework sheeting available at a craft center to make a containment of sorts to hold it in place.