BIG reefplugs

[smoke15]

Anyone know where you can buy those big "frag plugs" that you see alot of the aquacultured pieces mounted to? I dont mean discs or reef plugs, but those larger concrete looking plugs

[lvpd186]

I've never seen them for sale, I think they are "home made" so to speak. Personally I don't like the concrete plugs because they take up too much room and to get rid of them you have to break the coral off. I'm making my own plastic ones.

[jpitts101]

make them. you can make them any size and shape, concrete and aragonite.

[njdevilsfan]

saw a bag for sale on ebay

[Ah64av8tor]

I make mine using the old plastic easter eggs.

[karlmarx]

www.reefermadness.us sells them i believe

[smoke15]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9849252#post9849252 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jpitts101
make them. you can make them any size and shape, concrete and aragonite.

Please describe furthe how to do this, I am not familiar with this proccess. What exactly do I need, and how do I do it.

[jpitts101]

portland cement and aragonite. make a mold of how big and thick you want the disks in some sand. pour concrete in with aragonite let dry and cure. there are a few threads on the coral propogation forum thats goes into good detail with pic's.

[ttomkat1]

Try this site Boston Aqua Farms (http://www.bostonaquafarms.com/default.aspx)

I have not bought from them personally, but they have frag plugs for sale.

---ttomkat1

[smoke15]

where can you buy portland cement?
home depot, lowes?? safe to use in reef tanks?

[Travis L. Stevens]

Yes, Yes, and Yes. The Cement will need to be "Kured" before it can safely be placed in the tank or used as a frag disk if you make them yourself. Portland Cement is a mixture of various products, most importantly Lime and Clay. When water is mixed in, it makes Calcium Hydroxide (Ca(OH2)) as the water bonds to the Lime. (Sound familiar? Kalkwasser?) This product will have a pH of 12, and would be fatal to a tank in large quantities or fatal to an frag that is used on a freshly made plug. Given an amount of time, the Ca(OH)2 will eventually bond to the Silicates in the Clay and bring the pH of the cement down. There will always be extra Ca(OH)2, so soaking in water to bring the Ca(OH)2 out and bring the pH of the cement down to a level of about 8.5 or lower. This process is called "Kuring" (Curing to some, but is a misnomer since Curing is the process of the Ca(OH)2 bonding to the Silicates to strengthen the cement)

[smoke15]

Travis
Well stated and helpful...your the man !

How much sand to water to cement do i use?

Say one cup sand plus ______ water plus _____cement

I am going to HD after work !

[Travis L. Stevens]

1:1 ratio of sand and cement is just fine. Add just enough water for the application. I assume that you are making plugs? If so, with what method?

[smoke15]

I was thinking of throwing that "bolus of mixture" into some easter eggs. I am trying to make some big heavy plugs, like the kind you see alot of aquacultures SPS corals mounted on.
what you think?

[RonD]

I have been making a few for myself using white cement mix.. cleaner version of portland. I think it has its iron removed and a few other things as well.

http://www.cement.org/basics/concretebasics_history.asp
White Portland Cement
In addition to the eight types of portland cement, a number of special purpose hydraulic cements are manufactured. Among these is white portland cement. White portland cement is identical to gray portland cement except in color. During the manufacturing process, manufacturers select raw materials that contain only negligible amounts of iron and magnesium oxides, the substances that give gray cement its color . White cement is used whenever architectural considerations specify white or colored concrete or mortar.

I purchsed some Boston discs and plugs the other weekend to see how the pros make them. Upon looking closely and picking at them I see something else mixed in as well. It is a darker material.. like vermiculite?? ideas of what it is