hammer coral dying

[Zxknight]

ust want to know is my hammer coral dying? it looks like the arms are deflating. any advice

 

[tacosricos]

Have you seen any of your fish or inverts nipping at it?

 

[Zxknight]

Have you seen any of your fish or inverts nipping at it?

i have not seen any fish annoying it, i will keep an eye on it to see if anything changes.

 

[Xclusive Reef]

How long have you had the coral? Maybe try moving it to a different place. I would also test the water and post your info here

 

[Mal11224]

A good sign is that the polyps are still extended. Doesn't look like it's dying, just contracted a little. Should be fine as long as your water is good and flow is not too high. How long have you had it?

 

[Zxknight]

i had it for about 3 weeks, i also moved it to a diffrent spot this morning.
phosphate .0
ph 8.4
no2 .0
no3 .0
salinity 1.024
temp 77.6
alk testing tomorrow
ca testing tomorrow

 

[Mal11224]

You numbers are okay with the exception of nitrates. 5ppm is a good level to aim for. It could be starving. They can handle higher nitrates near 10 to 20 ppm but if you have SPS corals as well, then I would aim for 5 ppm. Hopefully your alkalinity and calcium are in check.

 

[Zxknight]

You numbers are okay with the exception of nitrates. 5ppm is a good level to aim for. It could be starving. They can handle higher nitrates near 10 to 20 ppm but if you have SPS corals as well, then I would aim for 5 ppm. Hopefully your alkalinity and calcium are in check.

how do i go about increasing my nitrates?

 

[Mal11224]

There are several ways. My advice would be to feed a little more (target feed) about 2 - 3 times a week and see if that helps. I have a bunch of euphyllias in my tank but my nitrates are about 15ppm, which is more than I would like it to be in theory because I have plenty of SPS as well. It's a struggle either way but you're on the good side of things. They like a mature tank and moderate light and flow. Target feeding just might help.

 

[tacosricos]

Increasing nitrates too much is more likely to result in problems rather than fix them. That being said, every aquarium is different. Personally I wouldn't try to raise nitrate higher than 1-2ppm. I keep hammers and torches in several tanks with 2ppm nitrate and they thrive. It's still adjusting to your tank and probably just needs some time. What test kits are you using? Absolutely no phosphates and nitrates can be bad for coral in general, assuming you have a pretty accurate means of measurement.

 

[Zxknight]

There are several ways. My advice would be to feed a little more (target feed) about 2 - 3 times a week and see if that helps. I have a bunch of euphyllias in my tank but my nitrates are about 15ppm, which is more than I would like it to be in theory because I have plenty of SPS as well. It's a struggle either way but you're on the good side of things. They like a mature tank and moderate light and flow. Target feeding just might help.

thanks for the advive

 

[HB AL]

Dip it in a coral dip, can't hurt and might help.