Wall Hammer HELP!!!

[SiriusKohnohe]

I need help with my wall hammer. I got him about 4 day ago and has been a steady decline ever since. At first I thought it was just shock from the trip. (I got him in Myrtle Beach and drove home to Morehead City NC about 3 hrs) he was packaged good and with oxygen but was still shocked when he got home. I dipped him in Seachem brand dip. And put him in after acclimating him for about 20 min. Long story short I think I put him I. The wrong area wi try too much to much flow and he got hurt. I'm not sure if he's gonna make it. I moved him to the lowest flow area possible. This is now after he's been moved. Any ideas on weather or not he'll be ok or is he a lost cause ? :/

 

[Bjreef562]

How did you acclimate your hammer ? I don't think you properly acclimated it if you only acclimated it for only 20 mins. Here's a link for acclimation http://www.aquacon.com/acclimation.html can you post pictures of what it currently looks like

 

[SiriusKohnohe]

Sorry my fault. I floated the bag in the tank to get bag water acclimated for twenty minutes then I used my dipping bucket for the actual dip. That lasted for a little over 15 ( I got distracted with other tank things ) I did not use the drip method solely I have yet to acquire a tube to do so (I work an odd schedule so I get things mostly on weekends when I remember) so I used both the shipping water and half Gallo on my tank water. A bit harsh yes but it worked well for me with my zoas and mushrooms so I gave it a shot. In all honesty i would love to slow drip i just need a tube. I can barely see the green center anymore T_T ill try and upload a pic when i get home my phone is not letting me for whatever reason.

 

[Tab28]

The 3 hour trip would not be an issue unless it was hot in the car. I drip acclimate my frags for hours. I know others who do it less than 1/2 hour. But water temp difference is most important. I prefer side of caution for price of coral. I also dip after i acclimate in my mind, less stress. Not sure how you dipped for 10 minutes than acclimated for 20. Did u have enough shipping water to dip and acclimate?

Walls are far less hardy than branching types.

 

[SiriusKohnohe]

The guy at the lfs did say that the wall type was a bit testy and not as hardy. I decided to give it a shot since he did not have a branch at the moment. In retrospect should I have dipped it first and then acclimate to temperature. Assuming of course I don't get a drip hose and continue to do it the way I have? ( ill most likely get a drip hose though) and yes I did have enough water but I added tank water anyways :\

 

[Tab28]

Not sure how you dipped or acclimated so i can not say. But water temp is important. You do not want the water in bag to get above 82 for any period of time. Then no matter what that is the difference between your tank and the bag would have to be done slowly. But alk and ph also come into play. But if your tank perimeters are normal and lfs are normal. Temp is the main factor.

I live in florida so a car trip and the walk outside could bring a bag temp up pretty fast. Place bag unopened in my tank to get use to my water temp. After a hour i feel is a slow temp adjustment. I use an acclimating tank but a simple drip tube is same idea. I acclimate temp before water acclimating followed by dip.

 

[SiriusKohnohe]

Ok, next time ill definitely let it temp acclimate longer. Who knows that might have been the problem then so ill do my best to rectify. But for now I'm just not sure what I can do to save my hammer =/

 

[Tab28]

What are your perimeters? Cal/alk/ph/mag/salinity/nitrates and phos. Can you take picture? How old is your tank and only other issues like algae?

If acclimation was the issue. Any stress damage has been done. Being sure your water perimeters are not hampering the coral more.

 

[SiriusKohnohe]

I will post a picture when I get home. I tested two days ago and everything seemed normal but ill test again today to make sure nothing has changed my ph that day was around 7.9 but that's all I can remember and my SG at about 1.024 I'm using a basic red sea marine care test kit so I can't test for Cal phos or mag but I'm in the process if getting them when I have the time to do so.

 

[Tab28]

1.024 is on low side of ok. 7.9 is average as long as it does not swing way low at night. Night ph is generally lower than day time. Average is about a 0.2 dip. Consistency is key. No drastic swings to any numbers. But if your numbers are consistent through day and are good. Time may be all you can do. Keep in a low light and flow. Add liquid food to water. Since it can not actively eat. Pumps off to allow food to stay in water for awhile before being skimmed out.

 

[SiriusKohnohe]

Thank you for the help. I'll test again and hopefully it can make a comeback. I'll still post a picture later tonight and keep it posted

 

[Bjreef562]

You don't necessarily need a drip hose to acclimate, when I don't have a hose I add water to the bag by just scooping tank water with a cup, adding small incriments of tank water every 15 mins into the bag. This is gonna allow you to slowly adjust Ph KH and temp. Good luck hope your hammer pulls through

 

[SiriusKohnohe]

I know its late but I was extremely busy the last two days

That was 2 day ago when I had a few minutes after i got home from work.

This was today, I can no longer see the green florescent glow from the center anymore. nor do I see ANY movement coming from it what so ever. Im pretty sure he died but i just want to be certain.
My parameters the next day where
PH: 7.9
Nitrite:0
Nitrate: 5
Ammonia: 0
KH: 8

I ordered a test kit to test for Ca & Mg but i cant afford one for Phos. yet that will have to wait. I also decided to switch over to Red Sea Coral Salt Pro. I have been using the Coralife brand and it works great but I fear i might have been missing out on some desired nutrients for my corals and such. The test Kit I ordered is the Red Sea Reef Foundation Pro kit. I was going to get the Reef Foundation additives to go with it but opted to use The Seachem Alternatives. Reef Complete, Reef Plus and Reef Carbonate. dose anyone have any experiences with the test kit or these additives. I use the Seachem dip and it works great for me so i figured id give their additive a try.

 

[Martyd]

Sorry, it's long gone

 

[Tab28]

I have a few red sea test. But none you asked about. Test kits do very so stick with a good one. Also a easy to read one. I hate most test kits. Which shade of blue or pink. I use hanna for alk and phos. A number is given not a color code card. Anyway it seems your hammer is a goner. The numbers you listed are fine. The cal, phos and mag are also important but it is not likely any of those 3 that caused the loss that quickly. Ph or alk would but they are fine. Well we all had things like this in the hobby or the years. It was more likely the acclimation, temp swing or dip combo shock. Your next one will be better.

 

[SiriusKohnohe]

Thanks for helping me out. I will look into the Hanna test kit for the Phos. and its all been a great learning experience for me since the very beginning. I will let my tank get settled and sooner or later I will try again and approach it using a newer refined method. Thank you all for all your input and help.