Ammonia

Hey all,

I tested my water for my axxie on monday (4 days ago) and the ammonia levels were fine. I then went to feed my axxie yesterday and the water smelt foul so i tested ammonia and it was at 1.5mg/L (I had cleaned put fresh water in tank on Sunday). So I replaced half the water. I check the ammonia levels today and they are 1.5mg/L again. Besides changing some of the water everyday till the ammonia levels go down, is there anything else I can do to get it down??

Thanks, Sam =)

Small water changes (10-20%) every day should eventually do the trick. Do you regularly spot clean for left over food/detrius? Also, if sand is used as a substrate, gas pockets can develop (if the sand is too deep) which will inevitably cause water quality problems.

There are also various carbon products you can buy to add to your filter media which should speed the process up.

It might be a good idea to keep your axolotl in a separate container until ammonia is under control.

Cheers

How big is your tank and how many axies you keep in there? Do you have fish in the tank as well? Overstocked tanks often present with water parameter problems.

Other than regular water testing and changes and removing detritus, keeping some live water plants (suited for axie tanks) can help prevent ammonia spikes. Zeolite granules can be incorporated for chemical filtration as well to help detoxify the water.

I have a 20 L tank with just the one axxie and no other fish in there or anything. Just a few plastic plants and stuff.

What type of plants would be the right ones to use?? The only pet shop here that sells water plants are pretty useless.

I will have to go look for the zeolite granules and some plants.

Thanks heaps =)

20l is WAY too small for an axie. I consider it too small even for a single Cynops...
You really need to get a larger tank, because your water quality problems most definitely come from the fact that there is very little water volume in proportion to the animal and waste it generates. A larger volume(and i think the minimum recomend for axolotl is a 60l) will help dilute the waste products so that the ammonia and nitrites never reach dangerous levels(provided the tank is cycled and you do regular water changes).

As for plants, Elodea are hardy, fast growing and thrive if you just leave them there, floating, which is good cause the axolotl would outroot them anyway. Java moss cna be used, but i wouldn´t recomend using it as a free mass, the axolotl may get tangled. Microsorium and Anubias might do well, as long as the axolotl doesn´t break them.

eekkk really?? me and a friend both got axxies around the same time and were both told that 20L is big enough for a baby axxie. damn!!!

Oh, ok, it´s a baby. Then it should last for a little while. But they grow very fast and it will soon outgrow the 20l tank. As i said, an adult needs a minimum of around 60l...preferibly more, of course.
Anyway, my comment still stands....the smaller the water volume, the sooner it fouls and the hardier it is to maintain correct water chemistry and temperature.