Flower Tubes

Discussion in 'Fragging' started by reefmann, Nov 14, 2011.

  1. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    Or Aquapicks...

    I always browse around at work during my down time and I was looking for cheap frag plugs when I came across [url2='http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1215102':1ekkf9o3]this[/url2:1ekkf9o3] awesome frag set up. I had seen these a time or two without thinking about it but when I noticed the frag racks slap full of them it hit me...  My grandmother worked in a florist for 40 some odd years. Growing up I was always in them and had seen these flower tubes before. I picked up the phone and made a call to ask her if she knew where to get her hands on a bag of these. She said sure, and that she would pick me up one at the whole salers here in Little Rock when she came up this past weekend. When I  met up with her Saturday evening for dinner she pulled this large clear bag and presented it to me.

    I now have about 100 of these and can easily get more if anyone is interested. They are ten times cheaper than ceramic plugs and dont have to be cured. In [url2='http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog/fragging-acropora-extreme-edition-video':1ekkf9o3]this[/url2:1ekkf9o3] article frags mounted this way are more resistant to infection;  This is because the freshly cut end of the frag/polyp is continually submerged an iodine solution of the plastic vile. I have also seen people put sand in these containers or a phosphate reducing material or a calcium based material like in calcium reactors.

    I messed around with one this evening to see what all it would fit in. They will fit snug in a 5/8" hole. In clean egg create, they fit down snuggly too. In my frag rack in the tank though with algae build up I had to work it deep into the rack but it worked just like in the pics in the articles so its what I was expecting. The caps are easily removed and will mount right on any rock and will quickly be covered and un noticeable.

    Here are a few pics I snapped this evening. If you would like a few let me know.. I have a ton. I can also get a bag for you too if you would like to get some in bulk. Comes to about a quarter a piece.

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  2. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

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    Its working..... I am happy with the results so far... This little guy is about a month old???? and is doing well... Grant it my lights on my frag tank need to be redone its still growth!...LOL

    I made him some friends this evening.... we will see how it goes.

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  3. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    Just an update.... All the other frags that I have made so far like the
    original are starting to put down a base and cover the cap too... In what has only been about a week they have fully transformed. The original is starting to grow up and out now also and is slightly bigger than the pic above. If I can keep this up I can hope to have viable tradable and sellable frags in 6 months from conception. Just an estimate but with the 250 halide back over the tank, I should get better growth than I did with the T5s.

    Will try to post pics soon... I took some with my phone but they are crappy....
     
  4. 501scionxb

    501scionxb Moderator

    Hey they talked about the orchid tubes in the new coral issue.

    Raffle grabber
     
  5. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    I seen that. I cleaned my frag tank again today with plans to frag more. I really like how this is going. I can make six or so frag out of a size you normaly get and grow them out in a few months. If I can get enough going then I can keep a line of progress going throughout. I will have to see how this year works out.

    Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk
     
  6. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    New babies... I had some time to kill and a clean tank so I went ahead and added a row or two. [​IMG]

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  7. monkeybone87

    monkeybone87 Administrator

    I would like to get a few of these, PM me with details please. Thanks!
     
  8. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    Let em heal up for a week or two calvin and I will let ya have your pick. They are a little iffy at this stage. I so far have had a 99% living rate but I like to keep close eyes on them.  When I see that they are starting to secure and build a base I know they have made it.   As small as these guys are it doesnt take much to kill them off unlike the larger frags.
     
  9. monkeybone87

    monkeybone87 Administrator

    lol, I meant the tubes, but I'll do some trading for frags too! Did you get my message on FB?
     
  10. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    Doh!... You have to be more specific on what "these" are... When it comes to my frag tank I think corals and money... LOL   I can get ya a few tubes though. If you want to buy in bulk let me know.. I can get them cheaper than you can buy anywhere else.
     
  11. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    This gets addictive.   I am going to run out of room again.   LOL


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  12. whippetguy

    whippetguy Super Moderator

    Will they pop off those things easily to place in the tank? I was looking at these on your fb page.
     
  13. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    The Corals attach themselves to the cap. The tube part is just for holding them. Once they have encrusted the cap over and you are ready to mount them, you just pull the cap off of the tube that the coral has encased and you have a neat little frag with no ceramic plug or anything showing. Then just fill the blank center of the cap with a putty and mount. They really make a cleaner mount than anything else used. You don't have to look for that perfect hole for the shaft of ceramic plug or have to break it off and risk breaking the frag in the process.

    I will admit though that doing it this way takes it to a whole other level. Growing a frag from just a polyp or two takes a lot longer than popping off a piece and mounting it, in turn selling it in a week. These are going to take 2-3 even 4 months before they are worthy of trading and selling.

    Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk
     
  14. whippetguy

    whippetguy Super Moderator

    Sounds great. Put me on the list to try some out once they're ready.
     
  15. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    If my calculations are correct these should be getting about right come mid April...
     
  16. reefmann

    reefmann Guest

    Small update..... You can look above at the Dec 30th pic and see how much growth these have put on. Its pretty amazing considering they were the size of a pencil lead when I started them. another couple months and they will be 1" frags...
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    Here are just some other shots of the new cuts that I made and the way they are growing and begining to make a base.
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