Question: Ready To Go?

[Sean1364]

New Aquarium. No cycling.

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
pH: 7.6
Temp: 68 F

Are we ready to go?

 

[lea]

hi sean..are we ready for what????... if you are asking if the tank is ready for axie i would have to say no(unless you are going to cycle with a axie in the tank...if you are cycling with a axie in you have to watch the water very carefully(daily water testing) and do daily water chamges to keep the ammonia at a safe level(i did it this way).......once the tank is cycled your nitrate should go up and not at a nil reading........someone please correct if im wrong
i hope this helps

 

[Sean1364]

hi sean..are we ready for what????... if you are asking if the tank is ready for axie i would have to say no(unless you are going to cycle with a axie in the tank...if you are cycling with a axie in you have to watch the water very carefully(daily water testing) and do daily water chamges to keep the ammonia at a safe level(i did it this way).......once the tank is cycled your nitrate should go up and not at a nil reading........someone please correct if im wrong
i hope this helps

I plan on cycling with the fish, yes.

I have a 40g tank with live plants which should help mitigate a bit of that.

I did throw a clump of shrimp in the tank to get it started, at least. I'm testing and changing water every day.

P.S. How long does it take shrimp to rot? Does it completely disappear, or do I have to remove it on some other way than daily water changes?

 

[lea]

if you have a axie in there i wouldnt think you would have to add food to start the cycling process..i thing i would take the food out ...the axie will mess the tank very quick.......keep up the 20% daily water changes and daily water checks......the cycling can take 2weeks to 2 months and can be very frustrating.......

 

[Sean1364]

if you have a axie in there i wouldnt think you would have to add food to start the cycling process..i thing i would take the food out ...the axie will mess the tank very quick.......keep up the 20% daily water changes and daily water checks......the cycling can take 2weeks to 2 months and can be very frustrating.......

I have two days before getting the animals. I thought I'd start cycling for these two days with food.

 

[lea]

good work.........are you excited???....i would take the food out when you get your new friends.......remember to post some pictures..........somoone with more experience with post later with more advice im sure..
lea

 

[Sean1364]

good work.........are you excited???....i would take the food out when you get your new friends.......remember to post some pictures..........somoone with more experience with post later with more advice im sure..
lea

Here's my question.

I'm getting small Juvie's. I heard Axolotls of all ages love Brineshimp. So I got those bricks of Brineshrimp. But they just break up into a million pieces when they hit the water, and float on the top. And the top of a 40 gallon tank is pretty far above the sand. So...is there anything better to feed them? Earthworms?

 

[daniellog]

I feed mine defrosted bloodworm cubes and pellets. Mine are still little so I haven't really fed them any earthworm yet but its a really good food for them. Just buy some from a bait shop.

 

[Sean1364]

I feed mine defrosted bloodworm cubes and pellets. Mine are still little so I haven't really fed them any earthworm yet but its a really good food for them. Just buy some from a bait shop.

Thanks a lot.

 

[Mac Myers]

Frozen Brine Shrimp are a saltwater animal and as I rule I think it best to steer clear of them. Someone kick me if I'm wrong.
Frozen Bloodworms, pellets, and most importantly earthworms (as the major diet staple).
Depending on the amount of shrimp you put in there you may already have a heavy ammonia load. You will need to test daily and do water changes as needed to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels in check until the tank cycles. :happy:

 

[Sean1364]

Frozen Brine Shrimp are a saltwater animal and as I rule I think it best to steer clear of them. Someone kick me if I'm wrong.
Frozen Bloodworms, pellets, and most importantly earthworms (as the major diet staple).
Depending on the amount of shrimp you put in there you may already have a heavy ammonia load. You will need to test daily and do water changes as needed to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels in check until the tank cycles. :happy:

Strangely, even with the shrimp floating around for 2 days now, the ammonia level registers 0 on two different tests. The pH is a bit higher than I'd like though, at about 7.8.

 

[Sean1364]

Everything is fine except the pH. I measured again, and it seems to be closer to 8.2. The employee at the pet store said I wouldn't want to mess with the pH as the water here is naturally "hard," but I bought some stuff anyway. If this chemical stuff doesn't work, I have no idea how to control pH.

 

[dragonlady]

The brine shrimp could be affecting the pH - overfeeding can cause pH to jump up. Please test the pH from your tap to get a reading. As far as getting an ammonia reading, you probably haven't given the shrimp long enough. They will need to start to decompose to get the ammonia reading.

The guy at the pet shop actually advised you correctly, you are much better off not messing with the pH. It will do the axolotls more harm to keep trying to adjust this rather than letting them adjust to the pH. They can handle a wide range - just needs to be constant.

 

[Sean1364]

The brine shrimp could be affecting the pH - overfeeding can cause pH to jump up. Please test the pH from your tap to get a reading. As far as getting an ammonia reading, you probably haven't given the shrimp long enough. They will need to start to decompose to get the ammonia reading.

The guy at the pet shop actually advised you correctly, you are much better off not messing with the pH. It will do the axolotls more harm to keep trying to adjust this rather than letting them adjust to the pH. They can handle a wide range - just needs to be constant.

Well, luckily, I don't have the Axolotl yet. I'll see what this chemical does to the pH and then just leave it at whatever it ends up (unless it's above 8?). If necessary, I can always do a complete water replacement. I don't know. The test from my tap shows tap pH at about 7.8.

How long do you think it should take for this pH chemical to disappear?

 

[dragonlady]

The pH chemical is not necessary. Your pH is up because of the shrimp. The pH from your tap is your true reading. Just do a 20% water change before your axolotls go in - use water changes to get the pH down. The pH adjuster should not be relied upon at all. If you drop it too low and the tap raises it, it will be harmful to your axolotls. Allow them to adjust to your normal pH - they can handle it.

Are you planning to cycle with the axolotls in? If so, then do a 50% change to get the pH down and forget about the shrimp (get whatever you can out), if you are getting the axolotls in a couple of days, there won't be enough of a start on the cycle to worry about.

It's never a good idea to play with chemicals in a new tank, it is vital to get accurate readings so you know exactly where you are in your cycle. Chemicals can cause you to get false readings, this could prove fatal to your axolotls.

 

[Sean1364]

The pH chemical is not necessary. Your pH is up because of the shrimp. The pH from your tap is your true reading. Just do a 20% water change before your axolotls go in - use water changes to get the pH down. The pH adjuster should not be relied upon at all. If you drop it too low and the tap raises it, it will be harmful to your axolotls. Allow them to adjust to your normal pH - they can handle it.

Are you planning to cycle with the axolotls in? If so, then do a 50% change to get the pH down and forget about the shrimp (get whatever you can out), if you are getting the axolotls in a couple of days, there won't be enough of a start on the cycle to worry about.

It's never a good idea to play with chemicals in a new tank, it is vital to get accurate readings so you know exactly where you are in your cycle. Chemicals can cause you to get false readings, this could prove fatal to your axolotls.

So let the chemical settle and hope it didn't change things too much, or do a full water replacement and start over?

 

[dragonlady]

Let the chemical settle, give it about an hour or so. Check your pH. If pH is too low or too high, then do a 50% change.

If you happened to get it right back where it should be, okay. I'd still work on getting that shrimp out if you are planning to cycle with axolotls in. You don't need there to be a spike right when you add them.

 

[Sean1364]

Let the chemical settle, give it about an hour or so. Check your pH. If pH is too low or too high, then do a 50% change.

If you happened to get it right back where it should be, okay. I'd still work on getting that shrimp out if you are planning to cycle with axolotls in. You don't need there to be a spike right when you add them.

Yeah, I removed all the shrimp yesterday. My Ammonia level has been 0 all day.

 

[Sean1364]

Alright, my tank still looks extremely cloudy like it did after I put that pH chemical in, even after leaving it alone for 12 hours. My pH is still 7.8 and all other levels negative. Even if that chemical is the cause of the cloudiness, it still should be safe to put the Axolotls in, right?

Name of product is Wardley Bullseye.

 

[Mac Myers]

Sean... as I understand it (PH) Shannon is right when she says to leave it alone. It seems that the "PH Down" chemicals destroy the waters buffering ability which can cause the PH to fluctuate wildly and easily.