Whats best to use in tank

hey guys iv had a look through forum but cannot find an answer i am looking for iv had a look through a few pics in the tank photo thread to see what is on the bottom of tank but i am still not 100% sure on what to do..

when i bought my Axolotl i was given gravel, which i have removed and added coral sand which had bits of small rocks in there which i tried to seive out as much as i can but it does still contain little bits.. (only so much a lad can do with a sieve bending over a 4ft tank trying to get all the little bits out.

iv been told different things like:
- gravel is ok
- gravel is not ok
- sand is ok
- sand is not ok
- clear bottom is better.
- reflection off bottom of tank will stress them..
- filter can cause stress

i just dont know what to have as a "perfect" Axolotl set up..

im quite new to having the Axolotl and the only other pet i have in a tank is a yellow belly turtle which is in his own tank with basically garden stones.. so im not sure of the different names of sand and things.. i see in some photos there is a black sand looking substrate in one or 2 of thanks,, does anyone know what this is called?

any info would be fantastic here guys..

thanks very much

ashley

Both sand and clear bottom are fine, though it does seem that most axies enjoy being on sand. NEVER use gravel, they swallow it and it causes impaction.
When you use sand however (I myself use river sand) make sure you rinse it well before placing it in the tank, or your water will end up extremely messy.

You can use a filter, as long as the flow is not too strong. Get a filter that has the appropriate flow strength for your tank size and use a flow divider. It usually comes with the filter you buy, but in case it doesn't, it shouldn't cost you much at all. It basically looks like a tube with a bunch of holes along the length.
What I find also helps is turning the flow of the filter towards the wall of the tank nearest to the filter rather than letting it stream directly into the tank.

Another thing you should have in your tank are what we call "hides". This means the axolotl needs places to hide, to crawl away in. It makes them much more comfortable and at ease, especially during water changes.

Also know one thing; axolotls are very sensitive to the water conditions. Both temperature and chemicals in the water can be very decisive in the fact that your axolotls will be happy and healthy or sad and sick.

Give this a read:
Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity

Thank you I'm dying to know what the black sand is called to search it..

The tank at the bottom of this pic is for the axolotl



I have the plant pot there for them to hide in

Thanks

Ashley


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Try Ebay, just search Black Aquarium sand, there's a couple of sellers. Be warned though it is rather pricey and some brands are not Ok for Axies. Your best bet is to find one you like and post a message on here with a link to it then let the resident experts say yay or nay!

how much sand would you say i need? how many KGs would be sufficiant to cover bottom of tank as there is 2kg bag for £9
or 25kg for £34

Coral sand is not acceptable. This will alter your pH, sometimes to drastic levels.

What you use as a substrate is a matter of aesthetics for YOU, not for your axolotl. They will do fine on sand, slate, large river rocks (which must be MUCH larger than their adult-size head), or a bare bottom. Bare bottoms don't stress them as much as people say, as long as you provide adequate hides.

A 25kg bag of sand will last you the lifetime of your axolotls, and then some. I bought a bag of pool filter sand, and I had to start giving away sand to people, after filling half a dozen tanks with it. It was a plague that haunted me for years! lol

You need at least one hide per axolotl, but more is better. They need to be big enough for the axolotl to swim into, and turn around. They like hides that are low, rather than tall (think about where amphibians hide in the wild).

The coral sand was brand new and never used in a marine tank it's been thoroughly washed out and I used a liquid given to me by pet store which takes pH level to 6.5-7


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The crushed coral will wreak havoc on your pH, and using liquid pH altering chemicals will just cause wild swings in your pH.

Coral sand and freshwater aquarium, regardless of you not using it in a marine tank prior, is only suitable for malawi cichlids and fishes of that nature.. It also makes a big drop in alkalinity then when adding water for water changes.. Does it say it's marine coral sand? because I know there's also coral sands that are okay in marine and not okay in FW and vice versa...

Doesn't sound like a good idea for an axolotl regardless- but you could make yourself a sweet cichlid comm. with it

also as a side note- a lot of the typical aquarium chemicals aren't suitable for 'lotls, and chemically screwing with the PH when the coral is just going to fluctuate it back up and down doesn't sound good for the wellbeing of the animal.

It's only temp sand until I can afford to spend £40 on sand lol


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Play sand is about a fiver from b&q

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If you pull out the substrate that's been cycling for x days/weeks in order to put new stuff in, you run the risk of damaging a major element in your nitrogen cycle and quite possibly disrupting it entirely. Plus having all of the kicked up hardness from the coral substrate then in your tank when you go to replace it and fluctuating ph levels; It just seems like a lot of added stress on you, the lotl, and the tank.

Anywho, you were looking for feedback on an ideal axolotl set up, and that's my 2 cents; I just wouldn't trust the coral sand. But good luck! I'm sure it'll look great when it's all together

You're much better off having no substrate at all than having crushed coral.

A bag of river sand cost me 3 euros here in Belgium. I put a nice big layer in my aquarium so that I can "shape" some hills and such, and my axos love to dig...

I still have more than half of the bag left.

A sand substrate shouldn't cost you that much, really. As long as it makes your pets happy

Probably the wrong time of year to hit Tescos for play sand, go to a builders merchants instead, probably have a Terry Howells near you, get them to load it into the back of your car as well they are very helpfull if you pretend you have a brocken hand, dont buy from a pet shop they are rip off merchants.