Problem with hammer coral... HELP!!

Just an update. I took a water sample to michael's aquatic den ( my LFS ) and with a refracto-meter salinity 1.025 - alk at 240. All other parameters normal. So I think the alk is ok. I have not been adding strontium - so I am going to add a dose of the supplement by Kent and see if that helps.

Thanks for the info Dave - after I see how my tank does I may add to that discussion.
 
well, specific gravity is right on. for alkalinity, do you mean 2.40? that would make sense if the measurement were in milli-equivalents (meq/l). otherwise, I'm not familiar with that measurement scale. if it is meq/L, that's a little low, but probably not low enough to cause major problems. others might be able to give you a more informed opinion on that...i'm used to thinking in KH, so I'm not sure exactly how much 2.4 is.

be careful with the strontium, you can overdose it and do some major damage. stick to the recommended dosages on the bottle.

(other) Dave, thanks for the heads-up about the carbon discussion, I've been pondering some of those same things lately.
 
Yes I meant 2.4 - sorry ... thers that newbie disease coming out again!! My lfs warned me to stay within the recomended dose - he said better to be on the low side of a dose than the high side.
About carbon - will it strip the nutients I add to the water back out? Like the strontium supplement?
If so then carbon is deff a double edged sword.
Thanks again!!
 
Alk of 2.4 dKH is very low. Target range is 7.0~11.0. I try to keep my at the high end of that. I don't understand the calcium/alkalinity balance, but can he add a supplement that will boost the alkalinity without affecting calcium or pH too badly?
 
I stand corrected...again!! I called my lfs to be sure and the test he has for alk measures in ppm it says the "normal" range was between 140 - 320 and mine measured 240. It is one of those strip tests. Which I know are not the most accurate - but at least I know it's not down to nothing.
 
Sorry about the confusion. The ppm scale is different than the dKH scale. While 240 ppm is high, it isn't going to cause corals to close up. It will instead cause stuff to precipitate out in bad places like inside your plumbing. I've heard it could damage your pump after a time.
 
Well I wish I could explain the test results but I tested again tonight to be sure

Nitrate & nitrite 0
ph 8.2
phos .5
amonia 0
temp 80
ca 520 tonight w/ aquarium pharmaceuticals test kit
and alk with test strip at lfs 240 ppm
I jusy don't understand
I supplement with reef plus vitamin & amino acid supplement by seachem 2 a week
spot feed dt's, liquid life and mysis shrimp to the goni, kenya tree and toad stool 2 a week
spot feed raw shrimp to open brain and anenome 2 a week and to candy canes 2 a week.
I just added 1 dose strontium supplement tonight.
and I feed the few fish a little crushed flake every 3 days - aquadine spirrulina and marine protein flake.

The hammer still looks pretty crappy and so does the kenya tree - everything else looks happy.
I'll take some pics tomorrow night.
I will lay in bed awake trying to figure it out. Maybe it will all be better tomorrow...wishful thinking I know.

Thanks for the help everyone
 
If you think your water chemistry is messed up the best thing you can do is water changes with aged areated water. Don't dose anything you can not test for. Believe me on this one. You should get salifert calcium and alkalinity test kits and a Pinpoint ph meter (run all the time). Alkalinity goes down the fastest and may be low in your tank if you have coralline algae. I will let you test your water with a master salifert kit if you feel like coming to lafollette area.
Mike
 
Thanks for the offer mike but that is quit a ways from cleveland. Are you coming to the meeting this weekend? I will be there. Those alifert kits are nice but man are they expensive. They are one of the many things on my wish list.
How do you achieve aged areated water? I would assume in part with an air stone, but do you mix it up in a big clean trash can and let it sit? If so what do you put in the water, just salt mix?? And how long to let it sit?
 
I didn't realize you live in Cleveland, yeah that would be a trip. I can't make the meeting since it is my daughters birthday. I bought my test kit off ebay. It was used but most of the test kits were unopened. It had like 10 different ones for $90. I was happy because it was just like new but a lot cheaper. Watch the date codes if you go that route some stuff expires. If your tank is cycled you really only need a few. The ones I use most are calcium and Alk and PH (before I got the meter).
Makeup water (RO/DI) is in a new rubbermaid trashcan with a heater and a powerhead blowing air in and stirring it. Apparently newly mixed saltwater has things in it that are caustic. Good luck with everything. BTW I have a spaghetti leather from Mel and it closed up for like 6 months. I blamed it on too much light but it just started opening when I increased the water change frequency. My Kenya tree doesn't like my halides too much, I put it in shaded areas and it gets the reflected light off the bottom.
Mike
 
Saw your post in the LPS forum.

Oceanic is high Ca and low alk? One trick was to use half Oceanic and half Instant Ocean, to get the alk and Ca to more decent levels.

Hammer is demanding as far as calcification. You may want to dose 2 part, or do more frequent water changes to keep the alk and Ca where they should be. Low Mg can cause calcification prob. Calcification prob makes sense that your hammer starts out ok, and deteriorates over time even though you feed it.
 
hammer problems

hammer problems

Water Parameters
Water temp 76-80
Ph 8.2-8.4
Calcium 410-450
Ammonia nh3 0ppm
Nitrites n02 0ppm
Nitrates n03 0-20 ppm
Alkalinity 2.9-3.9 meg/l 8-11dkh
Specific gravity 1.023-1.026
Strontium 8-10 mg/l
Magneium 1200-1400 ppm
Iron 0.002 ppm
Iodine 0.06 ppm
Phosphates po4 0.00- 0.02

My thinking after reading everything is water change with another brand of salt. I use Tropic Marin Pro reef, I have found these salt is very good on stablizing cal 420, alk 8-9, ph 8.1-8.3. I do weekly water changes with a vac of my sand (just about 2 inch into the sand bed.) Top off water everyday to keep the salinity stable(I use a kent doser for my top up) I run a poly filter to remove any po4 and any other chemicals. I run carbon for 2weeks and out for 2 weeks. Skimming really helps keeping the nitrates down because I feed my lps/ leathers/ sps every 2 days. I run on nitrares about 15-25 ppm. I have found lps love organic matter. When I ran 0-5 ppm nitrates my tank did not do as will.(go figure) I have double and tripled growth of my hammers,frogspawns, bubbles and other corals. Water flow is a big problem, these guys do not like alot of water flow direct on them just a little. Light is kind of crazy, I have seen them grow at the bottom and the top. I think it is water quality, feeding and some lighting. I think you need to determine do you want to grow your corals or just house them. If grow, you need to feed them and get your water under control. If housing, you can feed once a week but still stabilize you water conditions first. I think you are having problem with the leather run carbon, Water problems do water changes, temps can be a problem and feeding you must take your time let the hammer take it. Feed each mouth and turn off your main pumps when feeding this helps alot. Good luck. happy reefing dennis :D
 
thanks for the ideas,
I have given the hammer to imsqueak, it was not getting any better. So instead of letting it die in my tank I thought i would let someone else try with a more established tank. After everything gets more stable I may try again.
 
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