New with a few questions

Hello everyone! i am super excited to be getting hopefully 2 juvie lotls in about 20days at the reptile show near me. i have a20 long set up and cycled and all ready for them(sand bottom, several hides, and some plants) and i plan on feeding the hikari sinking carnivore pellets and i can do brine shrimp and hopefully earth worms if i can find small ones(i cannot bear to cut up worms so that is not an option

so now for my qs i dont see anyone mention anything about red wigglers, are they safe to feed?
i use Prime as a declorinator for my fish, is this safe for axolotls?

also i think to help keep the tank cool i would like to get a fan system. but i was hopeing i could get one designed for a larger aquarium in case i upgrade them to a larger tank in the future i wont have to buy a new fan, do any of them have maybe 4 fans but that individually turn on and off? so if all 4 were too strong i would only have to turn 2on?
i would love a chiller but that will def have to wait till tax season

it is sitting right now at 69 degrees so im ok so far but i would like to have a good brand in mind just in case. though i shouldnt need it for winter as we keep our house pretty cool.


anyway, thanks for any help im sure i will think of more qs in the future but thats all i have for now. i will post a pic of the tank later to make sure it looks ok

I feed my juveniles red wrigglers all the time and they seem to do fine, also i only use prime as a dechlorinator. (not because i think it's the best just because of convenience). For the cooling methods i'm not sure what they sell for larger fans but it may be easier and more cost effective to buy personal clip fans from walmart or something and make your own. Hope this helps.

thank you for the reply, i didnt think aboyt that. i am using a fan right now that is not made for tanks and is a personal fan. it is basically useless for anything else, as you have to b like, less than a foot away or you cant feel a thing lol. but is it working well for the tank so it is finally useful yay!!! the tank is setting at 67.8 right now

Ice blocks are good, like coke bottles filled with tank water and frozen

As previously said clip on fans or free standing should work just fine if placed close enough to the water surface or there's ice bottles. It's a cheap and effective method BUT obviously ice melts much more quickly than it freezes so if its a hot day....you're going to need a lot of ice bottles! Good Luck

Floating ice bottles in a tank is not a good option. It puts your tank on a temperature roller coaster stressing out your axolotl. That should only be used as a last resort and a better last resort would be putting your axolotl in the refrigerator during a severe heat wave. A clip on fan blowing over your tank can lower your water temp 2-3 degrees at most but is a much better option. Adding a air stone will also help. It will aide in water evaporation, helping to cool the water like a fan and also adds oxygen to the water. When water temperatures rise dissolved oxygen levels decrease. The best way to keep your tank cool is to use a chiller, keep them in an air cooled room or keep them in a cool basement if your house has one.

I've used a continuous cycle of bottles and had none or very little temperature fluctuation.

thanks everyone the tank is staying about 5-6 degrees cooler than room temp so the fan seems to be working!! i will have to purchase a chiller for the summer( yay tax return) or it will definitly not stay cool enough but i am set for winter.

now its just the wait to get my lotls! thanks everyone