Aquatic tank set-up advice

I want to set up an aquatic tank and I want to do it right. I haven't gotten any newts yet. I hear it is better to get a tank set up and allow water to cycle through for a while before introducing new animals. Is that correct?

Information I have gathered from this site and elsewhere:
- gravel is bad because it can be swallowed, but "good bacteria" need some sort of structure at the bottom of the tank
- too much flow from a filter can stress the animals. Over-the-side waterfall filters aren't good because they allow a gap for the newts to climb up and escape
- live plants aren't ideal and plastic ones are better
- keeping the water temperature cool enough is essential

Is this accurate? I also have questions:
- What is the best type of filter, in your opinion?
- Should I buy a ph tester and a nitrate tester?
- What is the best way to keep a 20g tank cool?
- I have a bunch of latex gloves. Would it help to wear these whenever I have to handle newts? I know it is bad to handle and it should be kept to a minimum, but would this help reduce the risk to the newts? Or would the the latex be equally harmful as bare hands?
- Would putting in a limestone rock affect the ph of the tank?
- Any other pearls of wisdom?

Thank you!

What caudates do you plan to keep? Requirements differ from caudate to caudate.

That's quite a bunch of good questions, Bruce! Have you read through all of the FAQ and articles on the CC website? You'll find a variety of pearls of wisdom there if you take the time to read thoroughly.

Regarding plants, I disagree partially. I think that live plants do have some benefits that fake plants do not. But it's important to get plants that can tolerate newt conditions (low light, low temp, low nutrients).

CC has an article on filters that should help you with that choice. Yes, you should have a pH test kit, and I would say that ammonia and nitrite are as important, or more so, than nitrate. I would avoid using latex gloves. I handle my newts with bare hands (well rinsed) or with a fish net. Yes, limestone will make the water more alkaline, which can be good or bad depending on how much of it you use, what species you have, and what your normal water parameters are like to begin with.

Java fern and java moss are excellent live plants that thrive in a cooler environment and they can tolerate lower light. Keeping the tank cool can be tricky. I would foremost recommend keeping the tank in the basement. I live in Canada and keep my newt tank in the basement; during the hottest summer days the temperature will reach a maximum of 74F without air conditioning.

okay!

Thanks for the advice. I found the articles to be really helpful. I am setting my tank up with t. a. apaunus in mind. I have a 20 g tank with thin layer of small rocks and sand on the bottom, two plastic plants, a large rock with a cave hideaway inside, and a small island on top that rock with a log positioned to provide a transition area. I am going to try to grow java moss and fern in the tank, but I had to order some. I also read that you can put in "lucky bamboo" if you dip the ends in hot wax to control growth.

I just have an airstone going right now. I don't have a filter yet. I am probably going to pick up a sponge filter. I wanted to start cycling the tank so I dropped in a 1mm x 1mm pinch of frozen salmon two days ago. Right now my readings are Ammonia 1 ppm, 0 for Nitrite and Nitrate, pH is 7.4. Should there be that much increase in ammonia already? The pH also concerns me because the water I added were two types of spring water, one with a pH of 6.8 and one with 7.2. So what made it go up? I did not put any limestone into the tank, or anything else that would raise the pH to my knowledge.

Your setup sounds good. M. alpestris apuanus are not too demanding on water quality, so a sponge filter should be quite OK. With live plants, you could probably skip the efforts to cycle the tank in advance. I doubt that a few alpestris will create enough ammonia to hurt themselves, as long as you're careful with food cleanup.

I wouldn't worry about the pH. Sometimes aeration will change the pH, as the gases equilibrate (more CO2, less CO2, I'm not sure how it works, but the mix of gases can affect pH). A level of 7.4 is just fine, you have plenty of leeway on either side of that.

Is there anything unsavory about your tap water that makes you want to use bottled water? In the long run, it's quite a pain (and expense) to lug home jugs of water from the store all the time. If you have a Brita/Pur type filter, you could probably produce equivalent water for a fraction of the cost.

Lucky bamboo is OK for aquariums, but it likes warmth. If you plan to keep the tank under 68F, it will croak. It would be better to keep the tank cooler for happy newts and skip the bamboo. As an alternative, cuttings of pothos and spiderwort will grow quite nicely even on a simple island with only water.

That makes sense about the bamboo. I didn't even think about its temp requirements. I think I will just stick with the java fern and moss.

I was using spring water because I didn't have enough containers to dechlorinate my water in before adding it to the tank. I'm not so sure about my tap water anyway, I live very close to downtown Seattle and I know the water is fluoridated, at least.