anchor hammer

steamboatwv · 02-20-2007, 02:25 PM

as far as i can tell its not receeding any, but at the LFS when i bought it the hammers were blown up alot bigger than they ever have been in my tank was just wondering if there was something i could do to help it along so it will show its full potential again, i have only had it for about 2 weeks...its midway in the tank and gets plenty of water flow without it being directly in it getting slammed the flow kind of alternates where it is so you see it moving different directions constantly but like i said it looks tiny now compared to when i first brought it home...has lost a little color also...

steamboatwv · 02-20-2007, 02:45 PM

oh and i guess you will need this

my tank params
ph 8.3
nitrate 10ppm
nitrite 0ppm
calcium 390
alkalinity around 300
water temp at night 78 by day 80
lights PC 4x65watts 2-12000k white and 2 true actinic blue
power head 600 gph
large skimmer
canister filter 300 gph

ChilisREasy · 02-20-2007, 04:35 PM

is your SG 1.023-1.025 ? & your calcium may be a bit low

steamboatwv · 02-20-2007, 04:38 PM

SG has been a stable 1.024 for quite a while...I thought the calcium should be between 350 and 400?

ChilisREasy · 02-20-2007, 04:42 PM

well mines almost 500 & my hammers doing fine..let me check on a few sites see what i can find.dont go changing anything yet !

ChilisREasy · 02-20-2007, 04:48 PM

ok your right i was getting confused with another thing sorry. how old is the tank ? is it in direct light ?

steamboatwv · 02-20-2007, 05:37 PM

tank is roughly 6 months old now, havent had spikes from anything in quite a while the only thing i cant seem to keep and really not sure why is mushrooms, the anemone is browning up proper was snow white at purchase, the tree coral is doing great as well as the stars and the pagoda, the hammer seems to be the only thing having issues. No its not in direct sunlight only light it recieves is the canopy lights, unless you mean is the coral itself in direct light from the canopy in which yes it is and its middle level in tank, which are pc 4x65watt and 2x15 watt 50/50. i have tried to spot feed it a couple of times to see if that would help but all that causes is the fish to flog it for its food so havent tried that again for a week.

Reef-Keeper · 02-20-2007, 06:13 PM

i would raise it up to as high as you can get it in the tank. LPS, IMHO, should be kept under VHO, T-5, or Halide lighting. this is my opinion, but i think it would do A LOT better up high in the tank.

also IMHO, PC lights are pretty much only good to keep soft corals and A FEW lps's.

it sounds like (from the color description) that you have a sebae anemone. these anemonies are SUPPOSE to be brown, NOT white.

steamboatwv · 02-20-2007, 06:19 PM

yes the anemone is a sabae when i got him he was snow white being novice i didnt know they were supposed to be brownish colored, all of them that the LFS had were snow white but the one i purchased is now the brownish color its supposed to be and still getting darker in color and getting larger as time goes on so he is doing great from all i have read on them. so the lighting and the feeding accompanied by his 2 little hosts are doing him quite well, which is one of the reasons i didnt understand why the hammers were staying small now, the lighting should be fine for them if the anemone is getting enough to build him back up proper...

HermitSolo · 02-20-2007, 06:52 PM

It seems everything looks good in your tank. Like Reef Keeper said I would suggest raising it higher in the tank. Mine also like Krill and mysis. When I feed it Krill I kinda pinch it into a mash before I feed it to the hammer. I'm not sure if it needs food like that, but mine seems really happy.

(I have a vivid green tipped anchor at the top right corner and a lighter green tipped at the top left corner in my PC and VHO lit, LPS tank.) Sorry about the bad pic, but it'll give you an idea of what I'm talking about.

steamboatwv · 02-20-2007, 07:28 PM

very nice tank, and i will see if i can find a way to move it to a higher level, it will probably require me to get some more LR but if thats what it takes then will do....
ty for all your info and help. and how do you keep your fish from taking the food away from the corals while spot feeding, i feed them all at the same time but they still dont give the corals a chance to keep it long enough for it to do any good i dont think...

Reef-Keeper · 02-20-2007, 08:04 PM

you may want to try cyclopeeze or oyester eggs for feeding and see if that helps.

steamboatwv · 02-20-2007, 08:11 PM

one more question about raising it up, if i put it to the top its going to be in alot strong current is that going to be ok? wont beat it to death...
I will see what the LFS has here for food, right now i feed the tank marine quizine and angel&butterfly food "mysis shrimp spinach etc... also 3 times a week i feed the tank phytoplankton...

Reef-Keeper · 02-21-2007, 10:10 PM

i would try to find a moderate flow area towards the top, not pounding, but moving the coral enough to make it sway back and forth in the current.

steamboatwv · 02-22-2007, 01:20 AM

well i moved it up and back out of the current, will let ya know if and when i see any improvements ty for the help..