changing tank

[Cheryl2203]

I have bought my axolotls a new large tank but was wondering if anyone could give me any advice on transfering them from their old tank to the new one.
I'm worried about just dropping them into a new tank with fresh water and the new tank water is also cooler than what they are living in now. Will the chemical balance in the water be ok or not?
Also, wot do you think about putting them in the tank together? Someone suggested to me to separate them by some sort of barrier but not sure wot to separate them with. Any ideas?

Many Thanks

 

[digger]

hi,
firstly if you transfer all the things in your old tank to your new tank this will speed up the cycle just rinse it off in the tank water dont scrub it.
how much larger is your new tank? because you can also transfer the old tank water as this will contain the bacteria to help things along also, this is what i do when changing tanks as it also helps bring the temps in line with each other.or else just let the new tank stand until temps are about the same.
have your axies been in the same tank now without any problems?
if so why do you wish to seperate them?
if you are going to seperate them you can get tank dividers from aquatic centres just remember to take tank measurements with you.
you will have to keep a check on your new tanks parameters as you might find this go a bit awry at first but regular 20/30% water changes will do if this is the case.

 

[Cheryl2203]

Hey, thanks for your reply.

The old tank is about a third of the size of the new tank so may be I could put a bit of the old tank water in with the fresh water?

The axolotls have been in the same tank for about 3 months but recently one damaged the others leg by accident when they were feeding and I had to take him to the vet so i'm a bit anxious about keeping them together now. What do you think would be best?

If the temps in the tanks are the same and they have some of their old water in could I just transfer them over straight away?

I also don't have anything to test the water with at the mo, do you recommend anything?
Thanks again

 

[Jennewt]

Yes, transfer some of the old tank water with them. Try to have the two tanks the same temperature. And what Frances mentioned is very important: transfer over as much of the tank decor (rocks, ornaments, plants, filter media) as possible without scrubbing it! The beneficial bacterial live primarily on surfaces inside the tank and inside the filter. If you don't understand what I mean by "beneficial bacteria", see:
http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/cyclingEDK.shtml

Even if you transfer some water, it would still be nice to adjust them gradually, rather than just moving them. You could do this in a bucket, gradually mixing in increasing amounts of the "new" water with them, or you could move water back and forth between the two tanks.

I think if you provide plenty of hiding places, you can probably prevent further injury, particularly in a larger tank. Try to feed them at opposite ends of the tank.

For testing, I would recommend, at a minimum, some way of testing pH and ammonia. The ideal is a full test kit for pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, but some people don't like the cost for this.

 

[digger]

i would imagine they would be fine together in larger tank more hidey holes ect.
if in doubt do like jennewt says and feed them opposite ends.
the test kits which use test tubes are by far the best ive found, you can get kits that will test for all things, ammonia , nitrite being the 2 most important ones.
if you cannot get one yet take some water to your local aquatics shop and ask them to test it for you, make sure you make a note of readings and post them here, im sure someone will let you know if they are ok.

 

[Cheryl2203]

Great, thanks very much for your help! I'll change the water etc and then test it to c if its ok for them.
Really appreciate ur help.
Thanks

 

[Cheryl2203]

Hi,
Just got my tests done at the local aquatics shop. The levels are:
Amonia= 0
Nitrate= 5ppm
Nitrite= 25ppm
P.h 7.3

The shop owner was also concerned about phosphate but i wasn't sure if this would affect axolotls. Phosphate was 0.50 any way if you know anything about this.

Do you think these would be ok to transfer them over yet?
I keep transfering water from the existing tank over.

Many thanks for your help.
cheryl

 

[digger]

idealy the nitrite should be zero aswell, but if you are willing to do 20-30% water changes daily whilst they are in there it shouldnt be a problem.
just keep up water changes until all is well then test weekly.

 

[Jennewt]

I think you have the words "nitrate" and "nitrite" reversed. If you had 25 ppm nitrite, the axies would probably be dead! But 25 is a normal reading for nitrate.

Phosphate is not harmful to the animals, but it's the #1 cause of algae growth. There are various ways to bring down phosphate, including more water changes. How much and how often are you currently doing partial water changes?

 

[Cheryl2203]

Yeah I prob do have them mixed up, i'm not sure which is which.
I'm doing about a 25% water change every week at the minute and have an external filter in there.

 

[Cheryl2203]

haven't moved them into the new tank yet! Do u think I should? will the water be ok for them?

 

[digger]

they should be ok but you will need to do daily water changes 20/30% everyday until levels are right.
as once they are in there things might go awry again as they will be adding more waste

 

[Cheryl2203]

Hi
I've been doing daily water changes for coming up to 2 weeks now and all seems fine. How long should I keep them up for? If I get the water tested again, what should the readings be before I can stop the daily changes?
Thanks for your advice, they seem to love their new home!