The new guy wants an axolotl

Hi everyone. My name is Nathan. I've had aquarium fish my whole life, and I've known about the existence of axolotls for a few years, but I didn't realize they made good pets (and probably more fun than the average fish). I've looked into them quite a bit lately (and naturally ended up at this website). I'm seriously contemplating getting an axolotl, and that's why I became a member of Caudata. I have a couple of spare 10-gallon fish tanks sitting around (and one spare 14-gallon). I've looked at cooling fans on Amazon.com since my main concern is being able to keep the water cold enough without constantly changing out iced water bottles. I live in St. Louis, Missouri, where the winters are cold and the summers are hot. Does anyone have any experience with those inexpensive aquarium cooling fans? I certainly can't afford a big aquarium chiller. I would love to have my own axolotl (probably just one, but maybe two), but I want to get some opinions on whether I should go for it or not! Thanks!

Hi! I have one. It's a 2-fan model and seems to cool 5 gallons 5-10 degrees. My thermometer doesn't register low enough for exact numbers but when the tank hit 75 (don't worry, nobody was in it!) It brought it under 68 in a few hours; I'm guessing it was no more than 65, it felt quite cold. I hear they burn out pretty quick, but mine was only $18. Haven't run it long enough to rate longevity, but it cools nicely.

You'll need a bigger tank for an adult axie - 20gal as a minimum. A 10 or 14 will be OK for a juvie though.

I use fans - a 4 quad fan can make a good few degrees difference. Mine went from 21C to 17C quite quickly, but you do need to top the water up daily.

I have heard that keeping the aquarium on slate slabs with fans running above and below(above the water surface and below the slate) works well. I have not yet tried this method myself but makes sense to me...

I live in Ohio and the summer has been the devil for me. I have looked into any way to maintain a cool temperature gradient as my home does not have 'central air' and the room I am permitted to keep a collection is without windows so a window a/c unit is not an option. There are also portable a/c units but they require a window to vent... All these are options provided the room you keep them in has these amenities.

All my best-

JBear

There are lots of options for inexpensive chillers. I've looked into it a lot lately, being in Arkansas, I know the summers your talking about. I set up an office water cooler that pulls the water out of the tank, chills it, and waterfalls it back in it works really well and the office water cooler's temperature is adjustable. There are lots of people who use mini fridges to cool their tanks by running water hose through it.

cabbysarus said:

There are lots of options for inexpensive chillers. I've looked into it a lot lately, being in Arkansas, I know the summers your talking about. I set up an office water cooler that pulls the water out of the tank, chills it, and waterfalls it back in it works really well and the office water cooler's temperature is adjustable. There are lots of people who use mini fridges to cool their tanks by running water hose through it.

Click to expand...

I'm intrigued.. would you happen to have photos of your setup?