Ideas on why this hammer is angry?

[The Life Aquatic]

I’ve had it for almost 2 months and for 3 days now it won’t open. Was fully extended and happy before. I feel like this is an issue of my own creation - I attempted to target feed multiple times and it simply doesn’t seem to want food so I may have forced too much. On top of that I was playing with flow to try to accommodate some new coral and it may have had a day of too much flow and then too little.

There are however dark brown spots that worry me on/around the polyps in limited areas but I don’t think it’s BJD. I’ve seen BJD and this is much more thick, almost plaque like, and isolated.

I may be tricking myself into seeing things but it also looks like it’s spitting up (not from the mouth but from the polyp) a brine shrimp which is one of the foods I did try to target feed several days ago (circled).

I’ve since moved to the sand bed and it’s getting moderate flow. If nothing changes I will try low/no flow, then a dip, but any ideas? Everything else in the tank including other hammers I added at the same time are all fine.

Parameters are all normal/stable. Slight drop in NO3 but above 0.

Normally a temperamental hammer wouldn’t worry me but now we’re on day 3.

 

[KrisReef]

That hammer clearly has anger issues. I usually just let things slide but with the discoloration I think I would dip it and see what comes off?

And let it catch extra fish food on the drift if it comes out. Target feeding isn’t necessary ime.

Hope it recovers.

 

[kevgib67]

Could you provide a DT picture and list your nitrates, phosphates, magnesium and calcium?

 

[The Life Aquatic]

Here it is tonight. The brown is spreading which makes me really nervous it is BJD however I have seen many instances of BJD and it is usually a thinner, silky goo that rises up in my experience. This is thick and stays close to the tissue.

Parameters:


NO3: 1ppm (Salifert test, hard to be too precise but lightest pink on the ULR). This fell from 2.5ppm a week ago and is the only major change. Obviously this is too low and I’ll work on getting it up but nothing else seems to care.
Phosphate: .06ppm (Hanna) this fluctuates a little - was at .02ppm 1 week ago. I have upped feedings and pulled out some macro between then and now which seems to have brought Phosphate up yet nitrates have actually gone down.
Calc: 450
Mag: 1350
Alk: 7.5
Salinity 1.025
PH 8.2
Temp 79

i am still leaning towards this being my fault. I overly forced a feeding, won’t ever do that again, and it did also fall now that I think back on the past few days. Thinking irritated from food it didn’t want, then perhaps a bit of physical trauma. I just hope it didn’t cause an irreversible process (or trigger BJD).

I have Seachem Reef Dip coming tomorrow. Big decision will be whether to leave it or dip it. Leaning towards if it’s worse, dip. If the same let it recover until it takes a turn.

 

[kevgib67]

Here it is tonight. The brown is spreading which makes me really nervous it is BJD however I have seen many instances of BJD and it is usually a thinner, silky goo that rises up in my experience. This is thick and stays close to the tissue.

Parameters:


NO3: 1ppm (Salifert test, hard to be too precise but lightest pink on the ULR). This fell from 2.5ppm a week ago and is the only major change. Obviously this is too low and I’ll work on getting it up but nothing else seems to care.
Phosphate: .06ppm (Hanna) this fluctuates a little - was at .02ppm 1 week ago. I have upped feedings and pulled out some macro between then and now which seems to have brought Phosphate up yet nitrates have actually gone down.
Calc: 450
Mag: 1350
Alk: 7.5
Salinity 1.025
PH 8.2
Temp 79

i am still leaning towards this being my fault. I overly forced a feeding, won’t ever do that again, and it did also fall now that I think back on the past few days. Thinking irritated from food it didn’t want, then perhaps a bit of physical trauma. I just hope it didn’t cause an irreversible process (or trigger BJD).

I have Seachem Reef Dip coming tomorrow. Big decision will be whether to leave it or dip it. Leaning towards if it’s worse, dip. If the same let it recover until it takes a turn.

Your parameters look good, other than your low nitrates but you already know that. Fingers crossed.