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Water Quality

B

brett

Guest
What is the upper limit for Ammonia and Nitite for Axoltls? Above which it is considered to cause stress/desiese?
The axolotl.org site doesnt say, nor does any book Ive read, axolotl.org simply advises to test regularly, not much help unless you know what the tolerance limits are.
By way of an example, some fish are very tolerant of (say) ammonia, others less so.
 
L

leah

Guest
I don't think there is one clear answer for this, there are too many different variables at play.

Ammonia becomes increasingly toxic as the temperature rises, and also as the pH increases. Because of that, what is toxic and what is still tolerable can vary from tank to tank. The amount of natural protection an animal has will also play a part (Scales, gill covers, overall health of the animal, etc.) Generally speaking, I think cold-water species like goldfish will be tougher than tropical species (not just temp, but pH is higher in many tropical waters too.) You also find more scaleless fish like puffers in tropical systems- doubly bad for them, who lack any real bodily protection. Axolotls are a bit harder to place, because they do live in cold, fairly neutral pH waters, but their bodies are quite fragile. To give an exact number on what is toxic... I really couldn't say. Wouldn't the period of exposure also have an affect? I mean, isn't lengthy exposure to low levels of toxins as potentially harmful as a short exposure to very high levels? To me anything above zero is a red-flag- you could try emailing the Indiana University Axolotl Colony and see what they say. They've helped me out with questions before, and maybe somewhere in all their research they've done some studies on ammonia/nitrite tolerance limits?
 
B

brendan

Guest
speaking of water quality i always get high levels of nitrite. How can i stop this? I do partial water changes and the tank is fully cycled and it still comes up with the high level. Ammonia is always low and ph sits just right on 7.2-7.4
 
B

brett

Guest
Ive got high Nitrite at the moment and Im trying out some "Nitrozorb" its supposed to adsorb (not absorb) Nitrite & Ammonia.
Is your setup established? Or quite new?
 
J

joan

Guest
If your tank is 'cycled' and the nitrite and ammonia levels are still high (or even existant!), it is not cycled enough, or you have too many animals in too small a volume. You either need a bigger tank, or you need to take your animals out until your tank has finished cycling.
 
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