Kessil

Cutting corals from the (encrusted) bottom - yes or no?

Alexander1312

Alexander1312

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I have these two SPS colonies which I would like to glue onto a large plate or rock (sorry for the glare).

Are there any issues with me cutting them from the bottom with a bandsaw to make the bottom flat (or get them into a better shape) for easier attachment? My goal is to not hurt the colony more than needed.

The first one/#1, for example, is well encrusted over a plate and a plastic egg crate, which makes it very unstable in the tank. I would keep the cut as close to the plate as possible while trying to remove the eggcrate element from it. Then glue a heavy plate on it.

The second one/#2 has the base in a concave form which seems to be great for (some) rocks but not all.

Lastly, glueing them onto something requires a lot of glue given their size. Is it better to use epoxy and glue for this?

#1
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#2
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I have done exactly this, for exactly this reason - chopped colonies at the base with a bandsaw for reattachment in a new location. I think it actually helps with encrusting when the freshly cut edges are all firmly plumb with the new substrate.

Some people like the glue/epoxy/glue sandwich method but this is only useful on very uneven surfaces, and the epoxy becomes the weak point. You can get a very strong bond with JUST glue when both surfaces are perfectly flat, which is what I would recommend. If the coral is leaning you can add a drop of insta-set to get a quick bond.
 
A good plan with potentially poor execution #user error.

#Success - I found a rock which could hold the smaller colony with the concave base very well. Without cutting the base - in fact, I could not cut it the way it was shaped without dismantling the whole thing.

#Failure - cutting the base of the larger colony was a disaster. I was under the assumption that cutting an egg crate with the saw would not be an issue, but that potentially the solid part of the base could be. I started with cutting off the egg crate only and the saw stopped working. I tried a few times and while it would cut through some parts of the egg crate, it could not do it in a straight line (similar to reef art plugs), releasing tons of microplastics from the egg crate etc. Eventually, the saw stopped operating and the blade came off the wheel, while parts of the egg crate where still on the base. Which is now in a worse condition than before. I assume I need something stronger than this saw to do what I wanted to do? Any recommendations/comments/feedback?

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If the blade came off the saw it sounds like the saw and/or blade is the issue. These things cut through rock - egg crate should not be a challenge.
 
Egg crate isn’t a problem for a good/decent blade. The only thing I really noticed that dulls blades fast is cutting those Home Depot tiles. Rock will dull them too. But the tiles just ruins the blade.
 
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