# Attaching moss to wood with super glue



## Hooky (2 Feb 2017)

Can someone tell me if Loctite Gel Super Glue will be safe to use to attach some spiky moss to some wood?


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## Joel S (2 Feb 2017)

Any cyanoacrylate is safe. If you use too much, or if it is too wet you will get a white residue but it is harmless. Water makes it set, but also will make it spread so you see more white marks.


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## Hooky (2 Feb 2017)

Can I glue directly onto dry wood?


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## Joel S (2 Feb 2017)

Yes, dry wood, damp wood. Wet wood will work too but you'll get more unsightly glue marks.


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## Hooky (2 Feb 2017)

So actually gluing directly to dry wood is best and will result in less unsightly glue marks? also how thinly should i attach spiky moss?


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## zozo (2 Feb 2017)

It doesn't realy matter, the wood might be dry, but the moss is damp.. Cyanoacrylate needs moist to cure, in normal sittuations it will set because the air is always slightly moist or the material is. If all is dry to the bone this stuff takes a long time to finaly stick. Excess moist will make it cure much faster and make it turn white, that's what the damp moss will do, no getting around that.

Best is using the gell type glue and work with tiny dots, if you have longer strings of moss just put a tiny dot at each end and press it in the glue with a tooth pick and be realy fast. Finaly the moss will attach anyway and grow on if it likes that spot.. This kinda depends on kind of wood and it's age (under water) and kind of moss.. I have some taxiphyllum moss not willing to attach to certain places the same piece of wood it just lets loose on it's own like it is growing away from it and attaching somewhere else i didn't put it. But this process can take weeks or months.. Nothing much you can do if it doesn't want, than let it go it's own way, you can't force it. Decorative fresh wood like opuwa, mopani and spiderwood that never has been under water needs time to soak, age and soften. If you want garantied succes let it soak a few weeks/months before putting moss to it and in the aquarium.

The white spots of glue will dissapear on it's own in a few weeks, it wears off. By the time the moss likely will be attached or not.


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## Hooky (2 Feb 2017)

Thanks zozo


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## Hooky (2 Feb 2017)

The wood is redmoor I think wasn't labelled in the LFS but certainly looks like it to me, I haven't pre soaked it as was planning to hold it down  with dragon stone around the base. Would I likely get better results gluing the moss to the dragon stone and then attaching moss to the wood at a later date?


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## zozo (2 Feb 2017)

It will take a number of weeks before the glue lets lose, just put it on straight away.. Nobody can give an average of when or what it's always trail and error. If it doesn't want it doesn't want.. Like i got a piece of wood i completely covered with moss at startup and now a year later the only moss on this wood  is hard to find. At all just didn't attach.. Don't ask me why, the moss didn't tell me this yet..  It most be something in that particular piece of wood, i know it isn't the moss because i took it off a piece of wood from another tank..


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## HiNtZ (9 Feb 2017)

Just to echo the other posts in the thread about cyanoacrylate, Loctite is my preferred glue, especially the gel.

You only need a smidge...... with stones and rocks I blob the glue on, then wipe it to spread it, then stick whatever I want on. dunking it in water sets it off immediately.


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## roadmaster (9 Feb 2017)

Got some fist sized glob's of moss that I am planning on attaching to wood soon.(need to find right piece(s) of wood.
last time I tried(year ago) ,I attached it too thickly, and the bottom of the mass of moss died and only the top portion remained green.
Will take my time this go around and attach it more thinly.
Best part is..I've got a lot more moss than last year .


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## HiNtZ (9 Feb 2017)

roadmaster said:


> Got some fist sized glob's of moss that I am planning on attaching to wood soon.(need to find right piece(s) of wood.
> last time I tried(year ago) ,I attached it too thickly, and the bottom of the mass of moss died and only the top portion remained green.
> Will take my time this go around and attach it more thinly.
> Best part is..I've got a lot more moss than last year .



Yeah that's the gutting part about growing big clumps of moss independently then wanting to glue the whole lot on something. It's just best to do a thin layer, let it grow in, and keep it trimmed.

I had the best laugh with riccia - I had it netted on to a tree looking bit of bogwood. After growing thick and lush for a month the base under the net completely melted and everything on the outside that grew through let go and floated to the surface. When I opened my eyes the morning and looked at the tank I thought I was dreaming! Gutted I was.


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