Gravel in Tank

[shop worn angel]

I'm wondering if there is anything wrong with putting gravel in a tank? In my adult newts' tank, I have gravel, but in my babies' tank, I haven't put any in. For some reason, I recall reading somewhere not to put gravel in the bottom of the tank. The babies ( Chinese Firebelly newts) are now over a year old, and are still quite small. I just think it would make the tank look nicer if I put something at the bottom. Also, I like the idea of gravel because I could then add more water to the tank because the land masses could be raised more.

 

[xMIDNIGHTx]

You have to be careful with gravel. For one you have to make sure with out a doubt that the gravel is big enough NOT to get ingested by your newts.

Another big problem with gravel is food and waste easily fall in between the gravel where you can't see it and where newts can't get to it. This is another reason NOT to put tons of gravel in to make high land areas because waste buildup gets in there and it is very hard to clean. Stick with floating islands or big rocks, plants, driftwood, etc. This gives the newts more water area to play around in.

I think gravel looks great, I use it for my fish but it not worth the risk for newts IMO. As long as you have a thin layer and the gravel itself is big enough not to get swallow then the choice is yours.


Mitch

 

[theHIguy]

wen i owed newts i gorilla glued gravel to a sheet of acrylic sheet worked well

 

[Jennewt]

I've done something similar to several of my tanks. I apply black or brown aquarium-safe silicone caulk to the bottom of the tank, then sprinkle small rounded gravel over it. Takes a long time to stop smelling like silicone though, so the tank is unusable for a couple of weeks.

 

[shop worn angel]

Thanks for your replies! I'll have to think about this for a while and figure out what will work for my newt family. :happy:

 

[TLaw]

I use gravel on the bottom of my newt tank. To limit the amount of food that falls between gravel I've put a small food dish on the bottom, so that when I put in food (I use frozen blood worms) it thaw and fall down into the dish. I think it works OK.

 

[Gregh]

Is there some reason why sand substrate won't work here? Worked great for me and the good doctor.

 

[eldaldo]

I've honestly never had a problem with gravel. I have always had it in at least one of my tanks. I realise that some people have had problems with newts eating it, but I have never seen a newt go for gravel. I hand feed my newts though and remove them from the tank when I do. A little tedious, but it cuts down on food frenzies, and I doubt they will ever go for the gravel by mistake because their food is never in close proximity to it. I understand how if you had 100 newts, or in your case, lots of babies, handfeeding is out, and so is gravel. That's just my two cents though. I'm sure anyone who has lost a newt to gravel will strongly disagree with me.