Bigtuna's Ocean In A Wall

[Donya]

1)  why can't I get the Holdfast to HOLD FAST!?

 
 
I have used a few types of epoxy putty, this being the one I've used for the last few years. It's been more-or-less like the other putties I've used in the past although maybe a little mushier at first than some I recall using a long time back. Anyway, I haven't built elaborate scapes with putty, but have used it a lot to stabilize smaller things like corals and small rocks. A few things I've found from working with it in case you haven't already tried them:
 
- Superglue gel by itself can sometimes work better than putty for frags and other lightweight things if that's all you're gluing, as long as you can get a few points of contact. However, you mentioned a sea urchin, and urchins will chew superglue away rather easily if it is exposed.
 
- The surfaces have to be both dry and clean for the putty to stick quickly and well. An example would be a dried piece of coral skeleton onto a brand new frag plug. Sometimes you can scrub a surface clean enough to get that result, but it's hard with LR or frags with mucky bases. Any sort of microbial or algal growth will mess up the epoxy sticking in a reliable way long-term even if it isn't obvious at first, so it is unfortunately common for people to putty LR and/or frags together and then have the pieces pop free due to the sorts of slippery bio-films that normally cover aquarium surfaces. Superglue seems less prone to that, so one common solution is to superglue the cured fitting to the rocks if it pops free or even to just mold the epoxy into the right shape, pop it off deliberately, and then do the superglue trick on both ends. I've done this a lot with more oddly-shaped frags and larger, heavier rocks/corals where superglue by itself didn't have enough contact points.
 
- Putty used by itself really needs to be able to make a C-shape around something or fill a crevice to hold well. If you can find a way to do that and brace the arrangement while the glue cures, it will hold great even if the rock is mucky at the time the glue is applied. It still needs to be under minimal strain though; the rocks need to either be light or already be able to balance well in their glued configuration.

 

[BigTuna]

I appreciate the response, Donya.  I actually haven't even attempted it again yet.  Haven't found the perfect time.  As of right now my plate coral is just resting in the perfect crevice/ledge combo.  As long as the hermits and urchins leave it alone it should be fine.  The acros, they can't help but bother them every single night, so I may be forced to bond them.
I managed to catch a photo tonight of the almost the entire crew.  Even got quite a few of the corals, starfish, and anemone in the picture.
 

Decided to upload a short video of the tank.   Lots of work yet to do, but things seem to be coming along nicely.
 
http/youtu.be/q0_5P-s8iTQ

 

[Ninjouzata]

Love the video!

 

[Ch4rlie]

Excellent tank.
 
Unfortunately i know precious little about marine but that does look impressive indeed.
 
Nice one!

 

[BigTuna]

So much has changed with this tank, I desperately need to update (with photos). I hope to get to that soon. My livestock has changed quite a bit since last time I've posted,so there's lots to catch up on.

 

[BigTuna]

So I decided to take some pictures with my phone.  I ended up changing a lot of my fish.  My sister lost her beloved Sailfin and I feared the aggression that would take place when I finally got my Achilles I so badly been after so I gave it to her.  I was on the verge of ordering a rather large quantity of Tangs and adding them together to cut back on aggression but my lighting fixture happened to fail and my priority was on new lights.  I decided to go back to LEDs, and purchased a couple of Maxspect Razors, I might be adding a third down the road.  I am very happy with the new look, but my fish budget took a serious blow.  So I don't have much for fish anymore, but I've added some SPS corals, and a Zoa (unable to see in my photos).  Corals seem to be doing well, but I have to carefully adjust the lights slowly over time.  Anyways, here are some photos.
 

 
Full tank shot.  Wish I had a better camera, but as you can see, things are a little different now. 
 
 

 
Horn Coral.  This thing has really taken off, and I'm thinking about fragging it a bit if there's any interest from local hobbyist.  I'll see if I can get an overhead shot worthy of sharing.
 
 

 

 
Torch coral that was a tiny little frag not all that long ago.  Tomini Tang checking things out.
 
 

 
Hammer coral, one of the first corals I bought.  Aussie War beside it.
 
 

 
Magnificent Foxface.  Not the most photogenic, he's a bit shy.  So far hasn't touched the Ultimate Rasta zoa, fingers crossed.
 
 

 

[Brilly91]

Looking great how do you find the Razors?
 
Thinking about getting a couple over my upgrade as my current lights going to be too long for it

 

[BigTuna]

Im in the process of "acclimating" the new lights so for now they max out at 75% intensity. Other than my bubble coral, the rest of the corals are reacting great to the new lights. The horn coral especially. Its like you can watch the thing grow. Same with a couple other sps. The price on them is hard to swallow but better in comparison to other similar LED. It's very easy to program and has a couple preset programs that are popular with other reefers I've read online. They physically look pretty cool too. Mine are only visible from the sump room but if your system had lights on display that may be something else to consider. The added pop they give to the display tank is awesome. Once I get to the point where I'm running the razors at the peak intensity I'llpost a before and after for comparison.