Looking to get my first Axolotl: general questions about tank & set up

[lucyz83]

Hi, I'm new here and wanting to know more about creating an appropriate set up for an axolotl, in preparation for when i eventually get one. Any help is greatly appreciated

I have a 45 litre tank which i used to keep fish in some time ago, and plan on housing 1 axolotl. I bought a heater that can be set to 17 degrees celsius. The tank will be placed near a window but not directly in it's light (there's also a blind/curtain i can close if it appears to be stressing the axolotl)
I have very fine sand-like gravel as a substrate. I also have a good filter (used when i used to have fish) which i hope to build a diffuser for so it will disperse the water flow as i think it might be a bit powerful at the moment.

To begin the tank cycling process i wondered if it would be a good idea to use pond water and a small plant from my outdoor pond? as i've read that bringing existing water or plants from another tank can be benificial, and my pond has had comets breeding in it for a good few years so i assume the waters conditions are very suitable (the pond is also attatched to a large filter and has substantial water flow)

I'd be very greatful if anyone could let me know if so far I'm anything wrong at all and what i could do to fix it if that's the case I'm very exited about getting one of these beautiful little creatures and want everything to be as good as i can make it so i don't run into complications or make large mistakes leading to the Axolotl feeling stressed, ill or unhappy.

 

[charleybambino]

Good luck with your new axi.Just wonder about the sandlike gravel substrate.....is it sand...good, or gravel....bad.... as can be swallowed.

 

[lucyz83]

Thanks very much I'm actually not to sure, they guy at the store said it was sand but now that i look at it closely it appears to be extremely fine gravel which is not what i asked for :/ so i might have to consider taking it back, good thing i still have the reciept i guess

 

[keiko]

I'd skip on the heater. Axies don't really need it and there's always a chance it would malfunction and overheat the water. The temperature should be around 16-18 C.

45 liters is really small for an axie tank. They can grow to over 30 cm so they would barely have any room to move in there. My 9 month olds are already over 25 cm. I'd suggest getting atleast 80 cm x 30 cm floor area and atleast 30 cm of water for one or two axies.

The easiest way to kick start the cycle is to take old filter media. Old water doesn't really have much bacteria in it, but it can be used to get food (ammonia) for them. Though the ammonia level would be very low so it would take a long time to get the cycle ready. So easier would be to buy pure ammonia and use that.

 

[lucyz83]

okay then i'll give that a go. I thought 30 litres was the absolute minimum for one?
At the moment i'm looking at buying one from someone who has very young ones so if i do get one from them when my tank is ready i might wait for it to grow and save for an upgrade in tank size in the mean time and change over so it will eventually have more room. I just measured it and my current tank has a floor space of 50cm x 30cm.
Okay great i'll try that Thank you.

 

[auntiejude]

Floor space is as important as water volume. For one axie I would say 60L is a minimum (60cm tank), but you could put 2 in an 80 or 100L if it was long rather than deep. The 45L will be OK for a small juvie, but you will need to upgrade the tank as it grows. You can transfer the filter over to a new tank to preserve the cycle though.

I agree about the heater - you won't need it, in fact in Australia you'll probably want to save for a chiller instead. Bare bottom is recommended for small axies as even fine sand can cause problems.

 

[keiko]

Some people say that 10 us gallons is the minimum for one axie, that's about 37 liters. But I can honestly say that my axies were miserable when hey had to be in tanks that small when there was a heat wave. They were in 50 cm x 39 cm containers in my basement so that I could be sure the temperature stayed at about 17 C. They hated that they didn't have enough space. My leucistic was going round and round along the walls like a lion in a cage and my wild type would just sit still all the time. As soon as they got back to their real tank (120 cm x 45 cm) they've been normal again.

 

[lucyz83]

Okay thanks so much guys! That's very good to know, I'll definately look into upgrading down the road and make sure there's enough room for it to swim around happily as it gets older.

That's good to know about the heater also, I'm generally at home during summer especially on hot days so i'll be able to monitor the temperatures for the time being but i think the chiller is probably a good idea for summer as our summers have started to get hotter substantially in victoria.

 

[Cacique]

Everyone pretty much got it covered but I wanted to add that a bigger tank will stay cooler as well. I moved my axolotl to a 55 gallon (208 liters) from a 10 gallon (37 liters) he was in when I first got him as a juvie. The 55 gallon stays a good 5 degrees cooler without doing anything different.

 

[lucyz83]

That's great to know also! I don't think i'll be able to fit a 200 litre in my room haha XD but i think i'll more than likely be able to fit one that's probably around 80 to 100 litres maybe more depending on the shape, and i might try and find one with the shape my current tank is (it's a somewhat hexagonal shape like a normal rectangular tank has an elevated front giving it a wider floor space). Then hopefully if it drops the temp like you said i'll be able to keep it a little cooler in summer. (i can also block out all of the sunlight in the room by pulling down my blinds and we have very good air conditioning as well so if i monitor the tank this summer and see what the temp does in those conditions i should hopefully be able to fix any major heat fluctuations) thanks again for all your help everyone! this has been extremely helpful!