What is the best way to mount frags ???

[Curtis1]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum, seems like the coral propagation and aquaculture forum is more concerned with the act of fragging rather than placement of the frag in the reeftank. But while on the ORA website recently, they stated that a lot of people were simply snapping the SPS frags from the frag plugs/discs and just attaching them straight to the rock with epoxy sticks and super glue. I personally think that it looks alot better to see the frag mounted in this manner. Not bunches of little frag plugs everywhere. which method is better for the corals ??? Which lets them recover quicker and grow over to look more natural ?

[Bretts05jeep]

I have done both. I try to remove the frag plug when ever possible just so I don't have to look at it. I only leave the plug it is really incrusted or I can hide it well in the rock work. I have had good results with both.

[hollister]

First find their happy area. Some like low some like mid and some like higher levels in the tank. Then higher or lower flow area. You can look here for coral specs.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/


Then lighter frags and fragless pyolps can be attached with super glue and the larger ones will need reef safe epoxy. You can remove rock and attach . Also utube has fragging videos.

[bnumair]

i dont stress the coral any more than it already is so i just take sharp wire cutter and cut the stem of the frag plug leaving just a disk and epoxy disk to the rock.

[Palting]

I've done them both ways. IMO, it makes no real difference. The frag disc will disappear, either because the coral actually encrusted over the disc, or the coral got large and overhangs the disc, or both.

If I must chose one from the other, I would chose to leave the coral on the disc. It's a convenient vehicle to hold the coral as you move it around to acclimate the coral to the tank and light. It is a convenient place holder that you can glue and/or epoxy in place once it's settled. And, if for any reason you change your mind on placement, the disc is a convenient place to grab with a pair of pliers to twist the whole ensemble off. Like bnumair, I also think that cutting the coral off the base, then holding the coral with your hand as you glue or epoxy it to the rock is more stressful than simply holding on to the disc as you glue it to the rockscape.

[fishmate]

i have grown out some nice ORA pieces from leaving them on the plugs

I just put the plugs into a crevice of a rock, or between two rocks and over time the plug is grown over nicely and you cannot even see where the plug is/was