Wall Hammer

[basiab]

I have a 4 inch wall hammer and many heads of brancing hammers. The branching ones open very nicely but the wall version has the polyps very tight and short. I have a 24 gallon Aquapod with 65w PC lighting. Do you think it needs more light.

The first picture with the hammer on the right next to the candycane is about 4 weeks ago and the second picture is today. You can see that the polyps are not as extended now.

 

[straightjiggy10]

nope lps are fine under PC as long as they are supplemented with food whether its spot fed or filter fed along with good water quality

 

[D1J8Z]

how long have you had it? It took my wall hammer a few weeks before it opened up nicely and I got mine from a friends tank so it wasnt just cut or shipped. You might need to give it more time. Do you feed them at all?

 

[Awibrandy]

As well as some indirect flow!

 

[anthony27]

post a picture of it I would like to see

 

[basiab]

Thanks for the response.
I have this coral about two months. It was better when I first got it but lately it doesn't open as well as it used to. My other hammers are doing fine.
I will try to post a picture when I get home.

It is true that PC's are OK for LPS but 65w in a 24 gallon is really not that much light. Since the branching hammers seem ok I am wondering if the wall hammers need more light than the branching type.

 

[pdnyc69]

the rule of thumb for reef is 4-8 watts per gallon so you should have 96-192 watts for that tank

 

[pdnyc69]

on my 150 i have 1134 total watts. my corals are doing great

 

[marrone]

The rule of the thumb is your lighting is based on what type of corals you plan on keeping and also the size and depth of the tank. You're going to have a different light setup if you're keeping softies and LPS compared to keeping SPS and Clams.

 

[DCG1286]

the rule of thumb for reef is 4-8 watts per gallon so you should have 96-192 watts for that tank

Don't want to seem like a **** ... but that rule is old fashioned and serves pretty much no purpose in determining how much light you need over your reef tank. You can't compare 150W of MH to say 156W of T-5. :givebeer:


Also ... a big +1 to what Marrone said.

 

[basiab]

OK. so how much light do I need?? And does a wall hammer need more light than a branching type.

 

[anthony27]

that is a amazing pice of coral niceeee

 

[Josh]

No, it does not need more light than a branching hammer.

Make sure the flow is indirect, also you may want to reposition the hammer so that it is at a 45 degree angle instead of pointed directly up. In my opinion, wall hammers do much better when placed a bit on a slant (with the long part facing 45-75 degrees upward, i.e. the one side of the long part on the left and one part on the right). I'll post a photo I have of one that did really well in this position.

 

[Josh]

Here is one in the position I am describing. This was just above the sand bed in a 2' deep tank (with a 6" bed) under 96w PCs.

Note the presence of the stolons on the bottom.

 

[reefman]

your wall hammer is receding. if you look at the part right underneath the flesh, you can see the recession clearly.

 

[basiab]

your wall hammer is receding. if you look at the part right underneath the flesh, you can see the recession clearly.

Amazing obsrvation Holmes. The point of all this is what to do to improve it.
So Thanks Josh I will give it a try. Actually it is on a slant in the length but not the other direction.

 

[Awibrandy]

Here is mine! It is placed about 6" off of the sand bed facing the front glass. I run MH & PC

 

[mcnuggget]

if you already know your wall hammer has a recession problem then no matter how you position that coral will not make a difference.
but then you probably already know that.

 

[Awibrandy]

if you already know your wall hammer has a recession problem then no matter how you position that coral will not make a difference.
but then you probably already know that.

Not necessarily true!!! I have a hammer that I thought was completely gone. I took the skeleton out to throw it away when I noticed a tinge of color (so small that I thought I was imagining it), so I broke off the small piece of skeleton that had it. I placed that supposed dead skeleton back in the tank, and a few months later I have a new 4 headed hammer. TBTG, cause that is my favorite & first hammer I ever had.:inlove:

Don't give up! Place it where it is not getting direct flow, and as already stated at an angle, keep your water quality going, and you may be pleasantly surprised.:splitspin

 

[basiab]

I will give it a week and post back as to how it is doing. I have been thinking of adding more light but so far have not made the move.

I never give up on a coral as long as it has some life to it. I have a favid of some sort for about 3 years. It never grew more heads but it was a decent piece. A few months ago it started receding and is slowly dying. But I am leaving it in since it is still alive. It is all white now and the flesh is barely there but it is still hanging on. So who knows, maybe it will start to regenerate. As long as there is life there is hope.