Hammer coral not opening?

[MACHO]

My hammer coral has been closed for weeks he has not bleached and i can still see his polyps he just won't open at all.
parameters
ph 7.8
salinity 1.026
alkalinity 8
magnesium 1520
calcium 300
nitrate 3
nitrite 0
ammonia 1.2

ammonia is a little high since ive added a bunch of inverts all other corals are open and doing fine even the xenia and green star polyps are open

It is placed on the bottom rockwork of the tank.

 

[Hincapiej4]

The problem is ammonia. Any amount is bad.

AND your ph is low, making it even more acidic.

 

[BlennyTime]

Yeah, anytime there is ammonia in an established tank that is a red flag. It means your biological filter can’t keep up with the waste being produced by the system.

I’d consider a large water change, and potentially the addition of filter media or ammonia reducing chemical.

 

[LeftyReefer]

How big is the tank?

Inverts shouldn't add too much to the bio load as long as they are added/sized appropriately. I'd look for other causes of your elevated ammonia levels.

Anything die off recently? any surfaces or media removed from the system recently? any fish added in the last month?

The fact that you say the hammer has been closed for weeks is concerning. That is definitely not normal. The only time my hammers really close up (besides night time) is when I greatly increase my flow to kick up debris temporarily. The higher flow causes them to temporarily close, but other than that, they should stay open unless disturbed.

 

[piranhaman00]

That is very high ammonia imo. Those tests can be finicky.

High flow will keep them closed up.