Question: I need help with my tank...

My tank is pretty boring at the moment, my axolotls dont seem too happy with it either, and because the tank is in a tv cabinet, which is black, you can even see my wild type, Axel. i want to make it look better, and make them as happy as i can, there is nothing in the tank at the moment eg. the only thing in my tank is the two fake logs for my axolotls to hide in...

1. what flooring (they started eating the old rocks...i was thinking sand?) will white sand make my tank cloudy?
2. how to make the water crystal clear instead of murky
3. how to stop the PH from dropping and rising constantly
4. what decorations are best (plants, hiding places?)
5. what kind of filter is best for a two foot tank (my old one just broke)

If you could answer all of my questions, that would be awesome!
however, please keep in mind that i dont earn that much with work, so i would like the cost to be kept as cheap as possible...

1. Play sand, washed WELL and left to settle in the tank for a few hours. Can be purchased at your local hardware store.
2. The water will be murky due to a few things such as substrate, poop, decaying plants and a bad filter.
What kind of filter do you own and use?
3. The pH shouldn't be dropping and rising constantly.. anywhere from 7-9 is okay for axolotls, preferably in the 7-8 range.
4. Hiding places for your axolotls and plants fake or real are the best decorations.
5. I have an AquaOne clear view filter, it's a hang on the side one with a waterfall flow. It works very well for my tank.

thanks, thats a big help, Pets Paradise sells aquarium sand, but its pretty expensive for a small bag...i dont have a filter at the moment, its busted. where abouts can i get a filter like yours?? and how much would i cost me, approx. it sounds perfect for the axols

Try to avoid Pets Paradise as much as possible, they know nothing about axolotls or how to keep them.
Check out your local pet stores that are family owned or bulky (like Pet City) or aquarium based pet shops.
I live in the same area as you and go to a pet store in Taringa for my axolotls, it's where I buy them and all the things I need for them. If you want I can message you the address and name of the store.

i have no idea where Taringa is... i live in Caboolture... there arent many pet stores around here >__< but thanks for the advice, ill try to steer away from Pets Paradise from now on ^^

I just bought a really great filter from the pet section in Big W. It's an internal filter with a spray bar and it only cost $16.95. I seems to work really well and keeps the water crystal clear. They also have really cheap fake plants and hides (I got a pack of 3 large fake plants for $4.95).

wow thanks soooo much for your help XD as soon as pay day comes around, im heading straight to the shop

The only thing I've bought from pet shops for my axolotls were a thermometer, a piece of slate and 2 plants. I live on the north side of Brissie and I've been to 8 aquariums in the area... they are all idiots when it comes to axolotls. Their axies all look terrible, but I've found one shop with one guy who actually cares about the fish section so I go there. Just look around.

1. Play sand from Bunnings is around $8 and mine seems to be going alright. I washed it for hours in a bucket... I now hate sand... but if I get in my tank and ruffle up all the sand it just drops back down in 2 seconds without doing anything to the water.

4. I got PVC pipes from bunnings as well, but I prettied them up by gluing rocks to them with aquarium silicone (if you decide to glue stuff make sure you wait a week or so before putting it in the tank, until they don't smell) Try finding some nice rocks if you want a more natural looking cave.

My tank looked much nicer after I added a heap of fake plants. I bought 8 silk plants off ebay for $24 including delivery. They looked terrible when I got them, but i ironed them over a moist tea towel and now they look great. I can give you pics of the ones I bought if you're thinking of getting some, they look a little bit different in the tank.
This is where I got them - http://stores.ebay.com.au/AquaCor-A..._W0QQcolZ4QQdirZ1QQfsubZ12QQftidZ2QQpZ2QQtZkm

Java fern and java moss work well in low light, and I've got a banana lily that looks really nice as well.

thank you so much, you are a huge help! and your axolotls look sooo adorable!! i shall take your advice ^^ thank you XD

Im on a budget as well, so i called around to all the pet shops/warehouses in my area before i purchased anything. I got 5kg of aquarium sand from Pet Care 2000 for $13.50. I also got my log thing from Pet Barn for $14.50. Previous to that i had PVC pipping from bunnings, which was only marginally cheaper then my log.....

I wasn't happy with my PVC pipping, cause i thought it looked ugly, so i got the log, and he likes it better. But since i have seen Neke's PVC with stones, i so need to do that! lol

http://www.caudata.org/forum/showthread.php?t=57484 This has my tank before finding this site, and after!

Rexi loves uprooting all my plants!

hehe i can see that he likes it just by looking at the pictures... ^^ i went out and got play pit sand for my axols today a 30kg bag for $6 at a landscaping place XD

Neke said:

1. Play sand from Bunnings is around $8 and mine seems to be going alright. I washed it for hours in a bucket... I now hate sand... but if I get in my tank and ruffle up all the sand it just drops back down in 2 seconds without doing anything to the water.

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i went out and bought plain white sand (they got it straight from stradbroke island) i washed it, put it in the tank and let the filter clean the water a little, however after hours, it is still cloudy... will it go clear soon? and also, is the sand ok for them??
i was also wondering... i got a new filter too, as my old one broke... its a VitaPet Crystal Clear Aquarium Filter 700, i got it from BigW... however it says that it is suitable for a 80-200 L tank and mine is only around 45L would it still be ok for them? they seem to be ok at the moment, they are eating like little water pigs (as usual)

Like I said, it took me hours I sat in our bath with 2 buckets, each 1/4 full of sand and filled them with water, mixed the sand around for a while so it was rinsed well and then tipped out the water. Keep doing that until the water in the bucket runs clear. I'm not sure how to fix the water in your tank aside from emptying it, taking the sand out and rinsing it using the method I just described.

Be careful about using sand from the beach, it might contain salt and other nasties. I just wrote an article on Moreton Bay, and one of the scientists I interviewed called the area a 'pigs pit' - a lot of nasty things end up in the water and on the beach because its so close to Brissie.

Tarja - my pvc piping was only a few bucks from Bunnings, the rocks were $4 from Big W, but the gluing was done over a month while my tank was cycling. I had to stick on a few and then wait for them to dry before I could do more or it would all fall down. But I was bored and I like it :happy:

well because its too late now, can i leave them in this water with the sand tonight, check the PH every now and then, and then see how they are in the morning, if i have to, i shall empty the tank, clean the sand even more so, then put them back in? would that work?

I think that I would be more inclined to make sure the sand was cleaned properly. As for you filter, it should be ok if you point the spray bar so that the water sprays against the side of the tank and runs down in to the tank water.

well it was really late and i couldnt, i cooled their water, as it was too hot for them, thanks for the advice about the filter, i moved it...they seem fine with the sand ^^ i dont think i need to clean it anymore, maybe its the filter thats helping it? its a REALLY powerful filter...

Axolotls are not very fussy when it comes to pH, they prefer a pH range of 6.5 - 9. As long as the pH is kept at a constant level anywhere in this range the axolotls will be perfectly happy.

If the pH falls out of the above range, there are natural methods at an aquarist's disposal which will in no way harm the axolotl. eg. To raise pH, one can add shell grit in a stocking to the tank or add coral sand to the sand substrate. I've only mentioned raising the pH as axolotl's prefer the high end of the pH range (alkaline) over the lower end (acidic) and it's very rare to have to lower pH.

Under no circumstances should chemical pH uppers and downers be used to adjust the pH as axolotls are highly sensitive to chemicals and most chemicals will harm them.

Sand is by far the best substrate for a 'natural' look and very easy to keep the tank clean. Bare bottom is even better but not as 'aesthetically' pleasing in my view.

You only need a centimeter depth of sand in your tank. If the sand is deeper than an inch, you run the risk of gas pockets developing underneath.

A 20kg bag of playsand from Bunnings was enough to cover the bases of my three tanks (a four foot tank and two three foot tanks) and I had some sand left over.

I wish I'd known at the time when I purchased the sand that I only needed a centimetre's worth or I wouldn't have bought two bags! But that's another story...

:blob: - this is how I looked at the end of the cleaning of 40 kgs of sand.

Cheers Jacq.

wow thank you sooooo much!! you have helped me more than anything!!! im glad that i dont need to clean their sand, as im so busy with work and all...im just wondering why its still cloudy and why they are so mopey...maybe they need to get used to the new environment,
i bought a filter suited to a 80L - 200L tank and mine is only 40L with that harm them in anyway?

chise8340 said:

im glad that i dont need to clean their sand, as im so busy with work and all...im just wondering why its still cloudy and why they are so mopey...maybe they need to get used to the new environment

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Sorry, I meant that buying 40kg was unnecesary, not the part about cleaning the sand. Cleaning the sand before putting in the aquarium is very necessary. By having only a centimetre depth though it won't take long so long to clean it.

You will need to spot clean the tank every day removing wastes such as axolotl poop and left over food. Axolotls are very messy creatures. Sand will help you keep the tank clean for easy spot and removal as the grot sits on the surface of the sand.

chise8340 said:

i bought a filter suited to a 80L - 200L tank and mine is only 40L with that harm them in anyway?

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40 Litres? That tank sounds far too small for two axolotls. The water turbulance caused by a powerful filter such a small tank would cause the axolotls a lot of stress - they prefer still water.

How long is the tank?

If the tank is small with a powerful filter then the sand is probably being blown around by the water turbulance causing cloudiness.

Is the tank full?

the tank i 2ft, so maybe it is bigger than 40L?? maybe i just didnt measure right...yes its full, and the tank isnt cloudy anymore, i guess that i cleaned it enough, coz they seem alot happier now ^^ they arent being so mopey, and right now they are looking for the food i just gave them, i guess the water was just too warm for them before i cooled it with a frozen water bottle...and i moved the spray bar, so it wasnt spraying into the water but it was still causing too much movement, so i took the little stopper thing off the end of it, and moved it so it was making a small water fall against the tank, and its not causing movement at all now! ^_^ but i have a question: what if the axolotls take sand in their mouth when sucking in food? will that harm them, or just go straight through their system?