You know what we need?

[Ken Burke]

An aftermarket way to replace suction cups with magnets!  

We use suction cups to hold all kinds of thing in in place, but they get stiff and stop working after a while.  Since there are only a few sizes that get regularly used in the hobby, seems like we could make a replacement for holding our heaters, etc in place

[FLFishChik]

Just a thought, cuz I really don’t know, but couldn’t we glue a magnet onto the suction cup and then use it that way? Like the way we glue hardscape and epiphytes?

Edited July 10, 2022 by FLFishChik

[Ken Burke]

interesting concept.  If you could get good adhesion on the cup, it could work

[Guppysnail]

This is a fantastic idea. At one point @dasaltemelosguy recommended good magnets to keep @Odd Ducks floating wood in place. I bet they would work with the suction cups glued to them. Sadly I can’t remember what they were…no surprise….squirrel 🤣

[xXInkedPhoenixX]

I have that issue with my veggie clips and the suction cups that hold my coconut hides.....but I just get some water boiling then plop the suction cups in there- good as new again. Sometimes I use a little Stress Coat (has aloe) to lubricate the cups a little better. 

Edited July 10, 2022 by xXInkedPhoenixX

[dasaltemelosguy]

On 7/10/2022 at 8:05 AM, Guppysnail said:

This is a fantastic idea. At one point @dasaltemelosguy recommended good magnets to keep @Odd Ducks floating wood in place. I bet they would work with the suction cups glued to them. Sadly I can’t remember what they were…no surprise….squirrel 🤣

I love them too!  I use them to mount virtually everything.  I've hung HOBs, fry cages, air hoses and ornaments with magnets.

I can't show you this because it's under the gravel, but I use the smaller, ring magnets (they look like small, 1" donuts) and I use them for hose management as it's easy to pass air hoses through the center holes of the magnets and they pull to wherever the outer magnet is. And the fish can't pull them off as if they do, they 'snap' back' into place. 

My cantankerous Oscar and his violent hatred of suction cups birthed that idea!

If they're epoxy coated, they can be submerged. These pictures are really bad but hopefully you can see the driftwood mounted from the top. I epoxied two wire restraints from an office store and used plastic tie-warps to hold the branch. I only had green tie-wraps, so they stand out until I replace them with brown ones:

 

Epoxy-Vinyl-Coated-Ring-Magnet

Ring Magnet - Neodymium Magnet Rare Earth Epoxy Coated

These are large magnets but almost any size is available. You may glue them with JB Weld 24-hour epoxy. The 5 minute one may not last under water but the 24 hour one will never come apart. 

This calculator will tell you how much weight these will hold through the glass thickness. Just enter the magnet type and use the glass thickness as the distance. If you're hanging heavy stuff, it can be helpful (On average, rocks lose about 30% of their weight under water should you be mounting any). 

Magnet Calculator

[saphbettas]

I might borrow that magnet method if I can find a smaller one to use. The suction cup on my thermometer has stopped working and it just free-floats in my tank, which gets especially annoying during water changes. I might try the boiling water method first, though, if it's successful!

Edited July 10, 2022 by saphbettas

[Ken Burke]

On 7/10/2022 at 12:29 PM, saphbettas said:

I might borrow that magnet method if I can find a smaller one to use. The suction cup on my thermometer has stopped working and it just free-floats in my tank, which gets especially annoying during water changes. I might try the boiling water method first, though, if it's successful!

Thats exactly that i was thinking about!