Question on sand Changing

[Kenneth]

Hi everyone, I just did my tank upgrade to a 40 gal (she loves it), and I decided to buy nice new sand for it and from what I've read it appears to be ok with axolotls:

CaribSea Super Naturals | Moonlight Sand | Tahitian Moon | Torpedo Beach | Rio Grand | Amazon | Ramblin Rose | Kon Tiki | Zebra | Peace River

Its the very fine white moonlight sand (1st one).

I was wondering how often you change the sand? I believe my cycle is almost over, I don't have ammonia readings anymore and nitrites appear pretty low (but the API test kit colors make no sense, lol). So do you do minor changes weekly? Monthly? And does anyone use a turkey baster here to suck up particles? I may get one because the hose doesn't want to work for me (it just defies gravity and never sucks up anything, no big deal)

 

[Kaysie]

I've never changed the substrate in my axolotl tank. It's been running for like, 10 years.

You can spot-clean with the turkey baster (everyone swears by the turkey baster), and then siphon gunk out of the sand, but you should never need to change it. After all, a lot of beneficial bacteria live in the sand; why would you want to take them out?

The best way to use a siphon is to 1.) have your tank up high, rather than on the floor, and to have a fair amount of water in it. If it's really shallow, it won't work as well. 2.) fill up the big tube that sucks the water out of the tank and the hose all together, as much water as you can get in them. Keep the big tube under water. Put your thumb over the end of the hose (which is now full of water), and 3.) put it in the bucket you're filling up, which is as far below the tank as you can get it, and take your thumb off. It should suck like a champ then.

Then, get someone else to dump your buckets while you stand there with your thumb over the hose. Then you don't have to refill it! I recruit my husband for this. Dirty poo water makes great fertilizer for plants!

 

[Kenneth]

Ah ok thank you kaysie .. I may add some more sand, its thin at parts of the tank. And the hose tips are really useful, I knew about the tank being higher than bucket but those other methods should help a lot ...I felt really dumb not knowing simple suction methods, my girlfriend had no idea either, ill try this right away

 

[Kaysie]

It's a learning curve. I've seen some siphons come with the instructions to 'pump' the siphon up and down in the water. Talk about scarring your axolotls for life! How traumatic would that be?!

The real key is to have the water in the hose go up-and-over the side of the tank. Then gravity will take over when you take your thumb off the hose. I fill up my big tube, then pull it out of the water upside down (with the opening facing up so the water doesn't run out) so all the water runs into the hose, then cap the hose with my thumb, put the tube back in the water (still facing up) and fill it back up. Remove your thumb, and watch the water fly!

Let me know if that works better for you!

 

[kiathepooch]

I had the same trouble using mine earlier for a water change!then randoml;y thought about syphoning petrol and worked out how to do it!though i don't recommend using the suck on end of tube method to move trapped air-mouth full of tank water is unpleasent!!

 

[Kaysie]

I'd say it's a lot more pleasant than a mouthful of gasoline!

But yeah, don't suck on the end of the tube. It's not good for you or your axolotls to exchange those kinds of germs.

 

[Kenneth]

Yeah mine said to do the vertical modems, and I did it and said "this is dumb, she's obviously scared". Your method worked a charm kaysie thanks ... I also have a quick unrelated question. Can there be too much oxygen? I have 2 sponge filters, one in each corner, and they both are for up to 20 gallons and she is in a 40 (granted, probably 30 gal are in it) and a new 4 inch airstone I put in today. She seems okay, she got startled by something just now and her gills were moving rapidly, but I doubt the stone creates a current right? So too much oxygen? Fast gill flapping = startled?

 

[Kaysie]

When you're only using small air pumps/sponge filters/air stones, you're probably not introducing too much gas exchange into the tank.

Airstones don't really 'add' oxygen to the water, they just increase gas exchange at the surface by increasing the area at which the water and air meet.

If the gill-flapping settles down, I wouldn't be worried. When they're more active, they have more demand for oxygen, so if she was startled and zoomed around, she probably needs more oxygen, so is flapping faster than normal.