Question: Newbie here: setting up a new aquarium..

[Stefferson]

I apologize for posting yet another thread about setting up a new aquarium. I was skimming through some previous threads, but I was having trouble with finding answers to the specific questions I had in mind. I'm completely new with aquariums. I've just recently purchased a 20 gallon tank and wanted to get it started up and have it running smoothly before getting an axolotl. My brother has 75 gallon tank, but he keeps fresh water fish, so I don't know how much of his knowledge can be applied to setting up a aquarium for an axolotl.

Here are some of my main questions:
Filters-I've heard a great deal about how axolotls are sensitive to strong currents so I was wondering if anyone could refer me a good filter to buy that's relatively simple to care for an not too expensive, perhaps around some where in the price rage of $20-$35?

Substrates-I've read that small pebbles are an absolute no no due to issues with ingestion. I was originally going to go with sand because it's inexpensive, but a friend told me that sand can irritate an axolotl's gills. So, I was just wondering if anyone could suggest what type of substrate would be best?

Temperature-My room can get pretty warm during the day in the summer and vise-versa in the winter, so I guess my main question concerning this subject is if there anything I should buy to help regulate the temperature of my aquarium?

Miscellaneous- concerning the pH level and such would it be alright to just prepare everything as if I were setting up a tank for fresh water fish?

Well, I suppose that's all the main questions of concern I have for now. Thanks for taking the time to read my thread, I truly appreciate it. If there is anything at all that you feel is worth mentioning, by all means, please feel free to share your own personal experiences and knowledge. I'd love to offer the best I can for my future axolotl, since I'm inexperienced any advice or tips, links to other helpful websites, or even books you may have or know about would be great.
Thanks again ^-^

 

[Minniechild]

Welcome to the world of axolotls!
To answer your questions:
1) Filter- Perhaps try a sponge filter to start with- low on the current, good on the oxygen, but you will need to do spot cleans for the poop remnants.
2) Substrate- You're right, DO NOT GET GRAVEL!! Sand is good, my lot haven't been irritated by it, or else there's putting down natural slate tiles (infill the edges with sand).
3) Temperature- This one is the pain up the butt for axie owners. You want to keep it stable, most of all. You need to be below 23C 99.95% of the time, and your goal is 18C (Which will lead to very happy little axolotls). To keep it cool, test around your room for the coolest point where you can set the tank up, and have a thermometer where you can see it all the time in the tank itself. As for cooling options, if you're home all the time, two water bottles in the tank, alternatively switched out for freshly frozen ones every half hour. There's also fans (If you can get one of the really large ones, straight across the water will knock off a few degrees), and also, if you save for a while, chillers (Which are phenomenal). You could also (Especially on a tank that size) try a DIY heat sink- My dad made me one for $10, which worked brilliantly as long as I remembered to keep the inlet clear.
4) Water conditions- You want your pH around 7.6, or higher, make sure you dechlorinate, watch your salt levels.
Over at axolotl.org there's some really fantastic info which is a pretty good bible to follow to set up your tank. And people will always be here to help you out when you need it!

 

[Aaran]

Whats great is that you have obviously spent time reading up,

Firstly, regarding substrate, i have all my aquatic friends on sand they love it, i have 2 juvinile axolotls on it too, ones just nearing 2 inches, the other is just over 3 inches. I havent heard anything or read anything about this. Sand or barebottom and slate bottom are your best options. unless you could find some aquatic matting?

about your temperature, you could invest in a heater for the winter and maybe a chiller for the summer? unless the chiller is too much, a fan aimed at the surface of the water can reduce temps by up to 3degrees c. and you could always use icepacks.

Regarding your filter, i use 2 of these one at each side of the tank attached to an airpump Low flow good cleaning and no heat increase! - Aquarium Fish Tank Super Biochemical Bio Sponge Filter | eBay UK I really do recommend these

Now your PH levels, well firstly i would invest in a water test kit, you can get some that test 5 in 1 so all your no3 etc and your ph, axolotls tend to go for around 7.6 - 7.8 ph water. Also invest in an ammonia kit.


And yes set it up like a fresh water but take more care to note the water parameters and quality!

another tip - Search this forum for tank idea's and setups.

Axolotls dont like light, they dont have eyelids!

If you have anymore questions dont hesistate to ask were all friendly.

 

[MereB]

Most of the procedure for setting up a tank for an axies is the same as for fish so your brothers brains will be of some benefit. You'll be using the same test kits and water conditioners etc.
Just watch your substrate choices and avoid sharp edges. Add some hides etc and you're good to go. Some water additives that would be ok with fish may be on the axie no-no list so have a peek at the health pages on Axolotls: The Fascinating Mexican Axolotl and the Tiger Salamander and make sure they ingredients are safe (there's a list at the bottom of the health page ) otherwise it's all the same as you would for fish. Oh and a good water conditioner is always a good idea :happy: I tend to skip that bit in my fish tanks

Substrate ~ You have a few choices. Fine Sand (1-2mm or under), Slate tiles carefully laid in the tank and cut to size, VERY large stones or nothing. Sand is your best option as it's the easiest to keep clean and traps fewer nasties that will mess with your water. It will not bug the axies gills at all unless they are going for a mudbath in it but I have never seen an axie do that.

Filter ~ It's up to you and what kind of filter you are most comfortable with. For a long time your only real options for a 20 gallon tank was an internal sponge (which takes up valuable space) or a Hang On Back Filter (HOB Filter which takes up space and looks fairly unattractive on the outside of the tank) The HOB also has the distinction of being the hardest filter to divert the flow of so that movement is minimal.
For my money though I'd go for one of the new mini canister filters. There are a few companies that make them and they are becoming cheaper as the nanotank market grows in populatity thanks in no small part to the increased popularity of the little shrimps you can get now. This is just one mini canister I found with a google search (I've never used this brand it's for illustration only)

Here's the online store I stole the pic from if anyone was curious, which would do the job. It's for up to 20 gallons and is just under $30 + postage but there are many more out there including the next size up which would give you better filtration and would, in my opinion, be worth the investment.

Cooling/Heating ~ unless your room get's down to below 10 degrees you probably won't have to worry about heating but you could add a heater in the winter to keep it at 18 (64), or whatever you prefer, if it did get really cold.
Cooling well there are several methods and in a 20 gallon you might just get away with having a fan blowing across the surface or frozen water bottles but the most effective and reliable way to keep the temp steady and cool in the summer would be a chiller and YES they also make tiny little chillers these days (thank you nano tank lovers world wide) but they are as you would imagine are somewhat more on the expensive side of things and would absolutely require the canister filter to power them.


I think that was everything.
Never be sorry for asking for information we all started from the beginning and many have learned valuable lessons from mistakes made having not gotten it all straight before they got their animals so you are absolutely doing the right thing.

If you have any more questions all you need to do is ask and someone around the forums will help you out.
Mere.

 

[Aaran]

Dang cait you beat me! oh why do i choose the best moments to go to the shop

 

[ZoeT94]

When they "sand" it means either Crazy sand, which comes in different colours and is mostly ordered online. Or they mean play sand, just normal kids play sand works.

 

[Stefferson]

Thanks so much everyone for all your quick and informative replies! ^-^
I think I may just start off with the sponge filters, since I'm kind of impatient about waiting to get an axolotl, and then save up to get a nice canister filter. I did a little more reading up on them and they seem to be worth the price in the long run.

As for substrate, I'm glad to hear that sand is acceptable. The next question I have concerning sand would be cleaning. My brother said he uses a type of siphon vacuum to clean up his tank, but again he has gravel, so how do you go about spot cleaning for waste remnants with sand?

Luckily my brother has some extra watering testing kits he's willing to give me so I think I'm all set with that. Are there are particular brands you would suggest for water conditioners?

Thanks again everyone. I'll be sure to check out some more threads concerning tank set up, as well as that axolotl.org site. I appreciate the advice you guys had to give. d=(^-^)=b

 

[Kaysie]

Spot cleaning: turkey baster! It'll be your new best friend!

Otherwise, you can easily use a siphon in sand. If you have coarser sand, it'll be just like gravel. With finer sand, you can siphon up your waste, and then whatever sand is sucked up and left in your waste bucket, you can dump out the water, and then just put the sand back in the tank.

I recommend Rena brand filters. They're quite economically priced, and they do a pretty good job. If you're rolling in the dough, Eheim and Fluval also make some pretty awesome canister filters, but they're not 'recession priced'.

You can use any dechlorinator you like. It's best to use one that does just dechlorinating, and doesn't contain anything fancy like aloe or 'ammo-lock' type products. Your ammonia will be taken care of by your cycle, and if you 'lock' it with chemicals, that can mess up your water quality in the long-run.

 

[Stefferson]

Awesome, I think my brother may actually have a spare siphon. I was gonna go with a finer sand so I thought it wouldn't work what with sucking up the sand and what not, but if all I have to do is drain it and throw it back in then that doesn't sound too difficult. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for the conditioner when I go shopping as well. Again, much thanks. ^-^

 

[ZoeT94]

I use a little seive.