Mushroom Basket – Reef-Safe PETG Coral Holder for Soft Coral Propagation

Propagating mushroom corals, ricordea, and rhodactis is one of the more rewarding parts of reef keeping, but a freshly cut soft coral frag placed loose in a tank with any meaningful flow will tumble across the sandbed, fold against rockwork, or get drawn into a powerhead before it has had time to attach. Without a way to hold the frag securely in a stable position, tissue that should be settling and attaching is instead spending energy on self-preservation.

The problem is not the coral. Soft corals attach readily and recover well from propagation when they are given still conditions and a surface to settle onto. The problem is the gap between the cut and the attachment, where there is nothing to hold the frag in place while the process happens.

The Reefphyto Mushroom Basket is a 3D printed open grid basket made from reef-safe PETG filament, approximately 3.5 inches in diameter and 2 inches tall. Place the frag inside the basket with a substrate plug or small piece of rubble beneath it and position the basket in a low flow area of the tank or sump. The open hexagonal grid allows full water circulation around the coral while the walls contain it, preventing movement until the tissue has had time to settle and the foot begins to attach.

The result is frags that attach cleanly and consistently, without the frustration of finding them tumbled into a corner two days after placement.

Reefphyto designs and prints reef tools in Wales from the same facility that cultures our live marine foods. Every tool is made for reef keepers by people who keep reefs, and if you have a question about coral propagation or any of our products, contact us directly.

Stop losing frags to flow and give your mushrooms the stable start they need to attach and grow.

Mushroom corals, ricordea florida, ricordea yuma, and rhodactis are among the most satisfying corals to propagate in a reef tank. They grow steadily, split readily, and a single colony purchased from a trusted source can within a year become enough frags to trade, sell, or distribute across a second tank. The challenge is not the propagation itself. The challenge is the window between cutting and attachment, where the frag is vulnerable, unanchored, and at the mercy of the flow conditions in the tank.

A freshly cut soft coral frag has no foot yet. It cannot grip a substrate or resist water movement. Place it loose in a tank and it will move, fold, or collect debris until it has had long enough in stable conditions to begin the attachment process. In a main display tank with circulation pumps running, that stable window is difficult to provide without dedicated containment.

What the Mushroom Basket Does

The Reefphyto Mushroom Basket is a compact open grid basket printed from reef-safe PETG filament. The basket measures approximately 3.5 inches in diameter and 2 inches in height, sized to hold one or two mushroom coral frags alongside a substrate plug, small rubble piece, or tile that the tissue can attach to directly inside the basket.

The open hexagonal grid walls allow water to circulate freely through the basket so the coral is not placed in a stagnant pocket. Flow passes through the structure, delivering oxygenated water and removing waste without generating the directional current that would move or stress an unattached frag. The basket contains the frag rather than isolating it, which means normal reef conditions can continue around it while the attachment process takes place.

Once the frag has attached to the substrate inside the basket, the whole unit can be moved or the coral lifted out and placed permanently in its chosen position in the scape. The basket is then rinsed and reused for the next propagation.

Which Corals Benefit

The basket is designed primarily for soft corals that propagate by cutting and require a settling period before attachment. Mushroom corals in the Discosoma, Rhodactis, and Actinodiscus families are the most common application. Ricordea florida and ricordea yuma both benefit from the same contained settling approach and are well suited to basket propagation given their higher value and the care most keepers want to take with them.

Zoanthid and palythoa frags on rubble or plugs can also be held in the basket during acclimation to a new tank position, and it is useful for any soft coral frag that needs to be kept away from flow, sand, or rockwork while it settles in.

Material and Construction

The Mushroom Basket is printed in PETG filament, a food-safe, chemically inert thermoplastic that does not leach compounds into saltwater and is stable in the temperature range of a reef aquarium. It does not absorb water, does not degrade under UV exposure from reef lighting, and does not soften or warp under normal marine aquarium conditions. PETG is the material Reefphyto uses throughout the 3D printed reef tool range for the same reasons: it is reliably reef-safe and durable over long-term submerged use.

The basket is printed in black as standard and is lightweight enough to be positioned easily without suction cups or anchoring, though it can be weighted with a small piece of rubble inside if needed to keep it from shifting in moderate flow.

Using the Mushroom Basket

Place a clean frag plug, small tile, or rubble piece inside the basket as the attachment substrate. Position the cut mushroom coral frag on top of it, foot side down. Move the basket to a low flow area of the sump or a sheltered spot in the display tank away from direct powerhead output. Check every two to three days. Most mushroom corals will begin showing early attachment within five to ten days in stable conditions. Once the foot is visibly gripping the substrate and the coral is extending normally, it can be moved to its permanent position.

The basket can be reused indefinitely. Rinse in fresh water between uses to remove any debris and allow it to dry before the next propagation cycle if preferred.

Part of the Reefphyto 3D Reef Tool Range

The Mushroom Basket is part of a growing range of reef-safe PETG tools designed and printed by Reefphyto in Wales. The range also includes coral frag racks, hex stands, grid racks, triangle glass-mounted racks, and transparent frag plugs, all built around the same principle of solving specific reef keeping problems with purpose-made tools rather than improvised alternatives.

If you have questions about fragging soft corals or want advice on which tool suits your setup, contact us directly.