Hammer not opening. Any ideas?

BeltedCoyote · Jul 26, 2020

Welcome to R2R! Good looking tank, and good on ya for helping your friend!

PTXReef · Jul 26, 2020

Billldg said:
Their is something you can try, I would dip it in some Seachem iodine coral dip, it will help it in case it’s stressed or has a bacteria infection.

Welcome to R2R and your tank looks great! Definitely a good suggestion from @Billldg! Hope it recovers and happy reefing!

Evanbardiel · Jul 27, 2020

I have mine on the bottom of the tank in open light and low flow and within 30 minutes my hammer opened up. It doesnt want intense light but it does want some light

Kryptonian · Jul 27, 2020

If you can, simulate reef flow. I've noticed hammers open up to great sizes when flow ranges from VERY low to short moderate bursts. They stretch out to receive light in low flow but they also need the benefit of an occasional low-moderate burst to detach debris. If one is still showing skeleton after a few days, that's more than just a light problem. Hammers tend to acclimate fairly quickly. That is, showing skeleton all the time. It's natural for a hammer to retract 1-2 times per day primarily when lights go out and when moonlight ends.

A good coral dip can hopefully remove a batch of waste and help the hammer reset.