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Question: My water smells after a week

K

kenn

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As the title says: "My water smells after a week"

Does anyone have an idea what I can do?
Because now, every week I replace about 1/2 - 1/3 of the water in my aquarium.

Here are some pictures:
my tank:
aquariumnew.jpg


one of the axolotl's..
31651995.jpg


I feed them Krill (don't now the English word, :eek:), Tubifex, Larvae of mosquito's..

Any help can be usefull.
 
S

Shizeric

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You need to host the images elsewhere....like on caudata for example. I assume those images are hosted on imageshack...which doesn't work well when posted in a link such as yours.

There are a lot of reasons why your water may smell, and a picture would help point to or rule out these possibilities. Please try and rehost the pictures on caudata.org.
 
Jacquie

Jacquie

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Hi Kenn,

Sorry, I can't see your pictures. If your posts are hosted from Imageshack, the reason they will not work is addressed in this announcement (the third post in this thread).

A tutorial for posting pictures to a thread can be found here.

How large is your axolotl? If the axolotl is an adult, I strongly recommend switching to a more nutritious diet than Krill, tubifex, and mosquito larvae can offer, these articles will help:

- Earthworms, the best diet option for your axolotl.
- Adding variety to the menu.
- Nutritional value of foods accepted by the axolotl.

If the axolotl is not eating the foods you have provided, this could be attributing to the bad 'smell' - as uneaten food becomes rotting food - rotting food becomes a toxic menace (ammonia) which is dangerous to the axolotl's health.

How large is the tank? Does the axolotl have any tankmates (fish, another axolotl, etc)?

Do you have a filter running? If so, what type of filter? Does it need a clean, maybe? If the filter is all gunked up, you can clean the filter media (such as the sponges) in a bucket of the aquarium tank water (using this water will preserve the beneficial bacteria in your tank, please do not use tap water if your water board utilizes chlorine or chloromine as these chemicals will kill the bacteria).

Have you tested the water for Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate and pH?

Also, what is the water temperature?
 
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K

kenn

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Okee, thanks for the fast replies..

Here are some pictures:
kenn-albums-my-axolotl-tank-picture10345-4.jpg


The tank is 60cm x 40cm x 40cm
kenn-albums-my-axolotl-tank-picture10344-aquarium-new2.jpg


The filter goes on day and night, I already cleaned it..
For the peaces of food that my axolotl's don't eat, I put these guys in the tank:
(5 of them)

kenn-albums-my-axolotl-tank-picture10346-dsc01973kopie.jpg

In Dutch they are called "Glasgarnalen", the store told me that they could live together.

T° is always above 20 degrees, (because the tank is setup in my living room)
pH and rest isn't tested yet..
Should I?

thanks anyway!
 
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Shizeric

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That temp is way too high, you need to find a way to lower that. And as for uneaten food, it needs to be removed, you can't just rely on the shrimp.

Your tank should be cleaned (with a vacuum or siphon) at least once a week, and extra food needs to be removed quickly.

I think the rotting food is the cause of your smell.
 
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Tappers

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Hi Kenn

Is the filter mature? I notice that you said you cleaned it and that might be a factor as nitrite has a rather foul meaty smell.

Test for NO2 and ammonia as Jacquie suggested and see what results you get.
 
K

kenn

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That temp is way too high, you need to find a way to lower that. And as for uneaten food, it needs to be removed, you can't just rely on the shrimp.
Your tank should be cleaned (with a vacuum or siphon) at least once a week, and extra food needs to be removed quickly.
I think the rotting food is the cause of your smell.
Click to expand...
Ok, thanks.
What is a vacuum or Siphon? (sorry to ask..)

Hi Kenn
Is the filter mature? I notice that you said you cleaned it and that might be a factor as nitrite has a rather foul meaty smell.
Test for NO2 and ammonia as Jacquie suggested and see what results you get.
Click to expand...
What do you mean with mature?
It's a new one, just bought it..

I am going to buy a testkit tomorrow.

Thanks guys.
And sorry for the questions.
About snakes and spiders I know pretty much everything.. but Axolotl's definitely not! (my own mistake by the way..)
 
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Shizeric

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Also...sand more than an inch or so deep can develop foul smelling pockets of build-up, so you may want to lower your sand a bit.
 
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Tappers

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kenn said:
What do you mean with mature?
It's a new one, just bought it..

I am going to buy a testkit tomorrow.

QUOTE]

Aha! There's the answer.. mature = full of beneficial bacteria that do the actual filtering and this takes a few weeks to happen.

A filter is basically just somewhere for your bacteria to live and without them you'll get ammonia and nitrite that can make your water smelly (and a bit cloudy as well). When you buy your test kit, see if you can get a 'maturation agent' as there are a couple of good ones. I can recommend JBL filterstart and Tetra safestart or ask for a little mature media from a working filter if that's an option.
Click to expand...
 
K

kenn

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Okee,
I bought a thermometer to be sure --> 23°C
so I searched around, and because this is the only place they have place.. is it save to try to cool down the water with the Frozen plastic bottle (once-twice a week)?

Test kit results of JBL Easy Test:
pH = 7,6
KH = 6°d - 10°d
NO2 = 0,5 mg/L
NO3 = 50 - 100 mg/L

As Tappers said:
JBL filterstart and Tetra safestart
Click to expand...
but the store didn't have them.. So I'll try to buy them elsewhere.

Greetings
Kenn
 
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