Hammer corals are drama queens

[ackshee]

I'm very new to keeping a reef tank. I got a hammer coral about a week ago, and it adjusted really quickly to my tank. But I gotta say, hammer corals seem like drama queens! During the daytime, it's fully extended, and the polyps are nice and plump. But about an hour after "sunset" in the tank, the thing shrivels up and looks extremely... flaccid

I got home from work late last night, and as soon as I walked into my room I saw this tiny little shriveled hammer coral. I immediately went into panic mode thinking something was wrong, but nope, it was just "sleeping." Looking nice and plump again this morning.

 

[WalkerLovesTheOcean]

Yup, that's very normal. Nothing to be worried about at all.

 

[One Reefing Boi]

Wait till you get Acros

 

[ackshee]

I just need to manage my anxiety

 

[One Reefing Boi]

I just need to manage my anxiety

My clownfish when I first got them would sleep suctioned up against the overflow.. every night I got to play “is the clown dead or sleeping”

 

[VintageReefer]

Torches will also do that. And many other corals. And if it happens in day time, they might be excreting.

Shift your lighting schedule so sunset is much later.

My lights come on around 10-11am. Blues and violet 35%

Peak is 1-5pm. Blues and violet 45%. White 8-10%

Then from 5pm-11pm is blues and violet only, 35%

And 11pm-3 am is blues and violet on 5%

 

[ackshee]

Torches will also do that. And many other corals. And if it happens in day time, they might be excreting.

Shift your lighting schedule so sunset is much later.

My lights come on around 10-11am. Blues and violet 35%

Peak is 1-5pm. Blues and violet 45%. White 8-10%

Then from 5pm-11pm is blues and violet only, 35%

And 11pm-3 am is blues and violet on 5%

Unfortunately, that kind of lighting schedule doesn't work for me, for two reasons.

1. My tank is in my bedroom (rent a house with roommates), and the light would keep me up at night.
2. I have a cheap LED light that can only program a set of daytime settings, and a set of nighttime settings. It has a 15 minute ramp when it changes modes, but that's the most customization I can manage.

So the current lighting schedule is:

• Ambient light from the window early in the AM -- I've noticed the corals start to open up a bit just from this dim lighting
• From 8am to 6pm, lights are set to 100% white, 65% blue
• From 6pm to 9pm, lights are set to 0% white, 80% blue
• Then the critters go to sleep

I'm using a super cheap NICREW LED light off of Amazon. It's not that intense, and the blue really overpowers the white. The settings I've picked look pleasing to my eye and the corals also seem happy, but I guess only time will tell.

 

[Naekuh]

My clownfish when I first got them would sleep suctioned up against the overflow.. every night I got to play “is the clown dead or sleeping”

pish my foxface used to give me a heart attack every night.

They pale up, turn really white camo mode, extend all the spines, and looks like they are dead wedged in between either a rock, on the corner of your tank, or on the frag rack along the wall.

But that is how they sleep.

Next morning, that guy is fully yellowed up and is already mowing the "lawn"...

 

[ackshee]

Thanks for weighing in everyone. Here are some pics of my drama queen.

 

[Naekuh]

Thanks for weighing in everyone. Here are some pics of my drama queen.

Thats not drama queen, thats a tank.

Trust me, if you think that frammer is fragile, wait til you get your hands on a Indo Torch, or a exotic hammer.


I have had frammers growing well in even Tap water with conditioner and salt mix.
Torches on the other hand.... you look at them funny, or think they are not pretty enough, they will get PO'd and leave only the skeleton behind to spite you.