2 x 1 year old, leucistic females @ 20cm (8") ,
1 x 18 month old, golden albino female @ 23cm (9")
1 x 18 month old, wild type male @ 25cm (10")
74 Gallon tank filled to the top (89 US Gallons).
121cm long, 45cm deep (front to back) and 60cm tall (48"x18"x24")
Sand substrate with rocky decor and hides
Regular spot cleaning, weekly 15% water change
I started off with 2 x 15cm (6") axolotls in a 60cm, 19 Gallon tank. (24", 23 US Gallon)
Even when they got to about 23cm (9") they seemed to have plenty of room and when I moved them to a 90cm (36") tank, I felt it was more out of choice than necessity.
I thought the new tank looked practically empty and decided to get another couple of axolotls. (Thanks Melfly) I quarantined them for about 5 weeks before introducing them to the 90cm tank. I then used a glass divider giving about 1/3rd of the tank to my new juvies and only removed the divider once I was confident they wouldn't get bullied.
There was so much space once the divider was removed. All 4 axolotls spent quite a bit of time huddled together in various parts of the tank, it seemed wherever Mike was, the rest wanted to be too.
So, after about 6 months of blissful existence, my axolotl family were growing up and there still seemed to be so much room in their tank. This really gave the impression that you could happily house a few more axolotls in with them. However, it's not just about floor space is it?
There was something not quite right. My water parameters were all good, except pH, which began to decrease by about the 5th day after each water change. I started doing 10% water changes every 3 or 4 days rather than 15% every week and things were fine. I carried out a few control experiments, monitoring containers of standing water, water and sand, water and rocks and then repeated this using water and dechlorinator - just to eliminate these things from my enquiries; everything was normal so I'm really non the wiser. Though I do still wonder if there's a link between big juicy earthworms, humic acid and axolotl waste?
Anyway, I was sure that the increase in acidity was probably a precurser to a complete collapse of the axolotls' ecosystem. My 90cm x 30cm x 40cm might have
looked more than adequate but in reallity, it only had a little over 4 Imperial Gallons more capacity than the 60cm tank...my axolotl family had literally out-grown their home. The juveniles might have only grown 7cm longer, but they were easilly twice the size they were when I put them in the tank and the other 2 had grown considerably too. If I hadn't been keeping a fastidious eye on water parameters and if the acidity in the tank had been left unchecked, there could have been a catastrophe.
The guys have now been in their bigger home for a few weeks and, fingers crossed, it's all going well with no deviation from optimal water parameters. I have to say the tank looks like it could hold a few more axolotls but looks are deceptive right?
I do plan on keeping 4 or 5 of the babies I'm rearing at the moment and I think, once they get big enough, I might add a couple of them (making 6 ) to the 74 Gallon tank (89 US Gallon). When I do, you can be sure I'll be keeping a close watch on my water chemistry.
By the way, I used
THIS online calculator to work out how many gallons my tank held and to convert real UK Imperial Gallons to girly little US Gallons.