I've had a hammer coral for about a week. First few days it was out and cool but the last 2 days it has itself sucked in with only a few of its "tentacles" out. Is this common? All of my water parameters are in check. Nitrates are at about 15ppm or so Ammonia and nitrites are "0". I don't know what calcium and mg levels are as I don't have a test kit for that. I was going to buy a test kit and more supplements for that but my LFS said that with only a few small corals In The tank and me using instant ocean reef crystals salt, I don't need supplements right now as the small corals shouldn't be using up the nutrients on the salt mix Any ideas? Attached is a pic
Is this common for hammer corals?
- Thread starter Jritter02
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briankmarsh1980
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Looks bad.
Almost like something bumped it.
Almost like something bumped it.
m0nkie
Well-known member
that's not exactly true.. I have a few corals only for my 100 gallon. (mushroom, xenia, a few zoas) My alkalinity is down to 6.8 from 8.3.. Same salt mix as you. It's not just corals. If you have coralline algae growth, they suck up a huge amount of alkalinity.
do not use any supplements UNLESS you can test it.
I suggest you pick up a salifert Calcium and Magnesium test kit + Hanna checker alkalinity. Start testing your parameters!
Once all of the tissue is gone, no, it will not grow back.
briankmarsh1980
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It can heal and regrow
More than likely, it was either damaged in route to the LFS or damaged on the way to your tank. With how sharp and jagged the septa (skeleton) are with those, it's pretty easy to do. Bubble corals are the same way. Unfortunately it takes several days for it to be obvious, so even if it happened before it got to the LFS it still might not be obvious when you're buying it.
I haven't had a lot of luck once they look like what you're showing. But then, there's not much you can do but keep the water clean and cross your fingers.
I haven't had a lot of luck once they look like what you're showing. But then, there's not much you can do but keep the water clean and cross your fingers.
If it pops a head, put the head in a shallow glass dish so it won't blow under rock and it can regrow skeleton. sometimes too, the skeleton can put out a new head.
BUT...match your parameters to mine: you absolutely need to know your alk, cal, and mg readings and keep them in balance (not hard: raise mg, raise alk, raise cal, in that order) and they'll stay until the mg runs too low.
BUT...match your parameters to mine: you absolutely need to know your alk, cal, and mg readings and keep them in balance (not hard: raise mg, raise alk, raise cal, in that order) and they'll stay until the mg runs too low.
When mine have started doing that could not be saved. Just lost a 5 head hammer an 3 head torch with perfect water quality. Sucks but once they start receding I have not been able to save any. Funny thing is I still have a hammer and frogspawn colony that are doing great, sometimes no rime or reason
I have regrown heads and had them create new branches. One 3-head hammer frag branched so extensively after several years it was the size of a basketball. I fragged off about 20-25 heads in one summer and it still covered a 55 g tank. Hammer can do that. It is real sensitive, however, to low ca.
briankmarsh1980
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I have had 1 for years my tribal blenny thinks its tasty but they eventually come back. But... it depends on what happened or has happened to your hammer.
justthewife
New member
Hammer corals are good for watching your water quality.
JohnKnight
New member
Mine does that every couple months for about two days or so, always opens back up looking fine
