Hammer coral lighting

[Lavey29]

These very ones did ok on bed. I elevated them a mere 3" and they exploded - see pics

Incredibly beautiful, always amazed at how many different corals can be right next to each other with no warfare issues. Mine on the bed have decent stocks so they are not really all over the sand but they sure are happy down there so far.

 

[sharkbait1122*]

The light is 9 inches off the water surface, the tank is 22 inches deep I believe and the hammer is about a foot from the t

These very ones did ok on bed. I elevated them a mere 3" and they exploded - see pics

beautiful Tank!

 

[sharkbait1122*]

Could inadequate lighting cause under inflation? Yes. Your Kessil is only running t 55% for two months.

Try bringing it up to 75% and stay there for a month. If you get the results you want, then keep it there.

How deep is the tank and how far below the water line is the Hammer positioned?

Seems like I might have the hammers too high up? Unless halfway up 2with my light is good, might try moving them a bit lower to see how they respond

 

[Shirak]

Seems like I might have the hammers too high up? Unless halfway up 2with my light is good, might try moving them a bit lower to see how they respond

A kessik 160we is max 40 watts. You have it running at 55% or 22watts for approximately 4 hours

I think you are majorly under lighting in intensity and duration

 

[sharkbait1122*]

A kessik 160we is max 40 watts. You have it running at 55% or 22watts for approximately 4 hours

I think you are majorly under lighting in intensity and duration

Would slowly ramping them up to say 70% and slowly upping the photoperiod help that out? Thank you for all the help! Lighting is my biggest weak point for knowledge and understanding

 

[Shirak]

Would slowly ramping them up to say 70% and slowly upping the photoperiod help that out? Thank you for all the help! Lighting is my biggest weak point for knowledge and understanding

Really hard to judge lighting even for experienced reef keepers. If you can find a Par meter to rent or borrow it is well worth the effort.

The coral has been there for several weeks at least? So you do need to be careful at this point not to zap it. I think I would slowly raise the intensity while also increasing the on time. Give the coral at least a week after making changes. The first few days after adjusting it may react negatively for a day or two or three..

Maybe something like 5% bump in intensity and lengthen the peak time by 30 minutes. The hour ramp up and down is fine in my book. I think your end goal should be around 6-7 hours of peak time. You could also adjust the ramp up and down. My ramp up time is only 30min but ramp down is 90. I am not around when the lights are coming up but I am when they are going down. I have the light getting more and more blue/uv as the ramp down progresses which gives some nice changing colors on the tank. As for intensity? I dunno if 70% will be enough. Without a par meter or practical experience with your light, I couldn't say. Maybe BRS has a video on your kessil with par figures? 100ish par would be a decent range for your hammer. Maybe you could post in the lighting forum and get some feedback from other users of the Kessil 160WE

 

[Dom]

These are my Hammers...


This guy is about 12 inches below the water line and about 14 inches below the lights.



These are two Hammers placed close together. They too are about 12 inches below the water line.

I'm running Current-USA IC Loop Pro lights. (4) fixtures totaling just under 150 watts.

 

[sharkbait1122*]

These are my Hammers...


This guy is about 12 inches below the water line and about 14 inches below the lights.



These are two Hammers placed close together. They too are about 12 inches below the water line.

I'm running Current-USA IC Loop Pro lights. (4) fixtures totaling just under 150 watts.

Are they 14 inches from the light or a grand total of 22 from the light cause you said they are 12 below water line and 14 below lights. Also what intensity do your lights sit at?

 

[Dom]

Are they 14 inches from the light or a grand total of 22 from the light cause you said they are 12 below water line and 14 below lights. Also what intensity do your lights sit at?

Yes... that was a confusing. I'll try again...

I have 15" of water in a 16" tank. The lights are mounted about 3" above the top of the tank. Total distance from the light to the bottom of the tank is about 19".

The top of the Hammers are about 5-6" from the water line.

I do a 4 hour ramp up (sunrise), 8 hours of daylight and a 4 hour ramp down (sunset). I also do 4 hours of (moonlight).

Intensity:

Red - 100%
Green - 100%
Blue - 100%
White - 35%

 

[GHOSTLY]

These very ones did ok on bed. I elevated them a mere 3" and they exploded - see pics

how do you get that much extention? My hammers are paleish and are maybe 2cm max

 

[vetteguy53081]

how do you get that much extention? My hammers are paleish and are maybe 2cm max

Moderate flow and light, suspended feeding and placement at 3" off bottom. It helps also with having all orphek lighting

 

[A;exr54]

I have my hammer at 100 par at the bottom of my tank.
my clown treats it like an anemone which I’m sure irritates the heck out of it.
But still doing well at that par level.

 

[sharkbait1122*]

Yes... that was a confusing. I'll try again...

I have 15" of water in a 16" tank. The lights are mounted about 3" above the top of the tank. Total distance from the light to the bottom of the tank is about 19".

The top of the Hammers are about 5-6" from the water line.

I do a 4 hour ramp up (sunrise), 8 hours of daylight and a 4 hour ramp down (sunset). I also do 4 hours of (moonlight).

Intensity:

Red - 100%
Green - 100%
Blue - 100%
White - 35%

Thank you for that clarification! Your hammers are getting some pretty strong light then but they look absolutely stunning!

 

[Dom]

Thank you for that clarification! Your hammers are getting some pretty strong light then but they look absolutely stunning!

Yes... I had not realized how much light they were getting until I replied to the post.