Cytops p. upgrade?

[braden]

I have had one c.p. in a 10 gallon setup for a little over 8 years now and i want to move him into a 20 gallon that will be setup totally different. The only question I have is will this put alot of stress on him? If so then would this setup be too much for say two c.o.?

 

[kaysie]

what do you mean by 'setup totally different'? Moving to a new setup is usually only stressful for a short time, if the setup is adequate.

 

[braden]

hes been in a 10 gallon with gravel substrate and a large rock that he can hide under and use as the land area. The gravel then slopes to where he has about 4" of water with two pieces of mondo grass. I'm wanting to put him in the 20 gallon with a gravel substrate and then using bricks for his land area and for him to climb on and to hide in(the ones with the holes in the middle of them). Then i would add more water and some more plants.

 

[kaysie]

Sounds fine, but a 20 gal is pretty big for one little newt. I'd set up the 10gal like that for him. Its harder to find a newt in a larger tank.

 

[jesper]

I disagree, I think 20 gallons(70l) will be excellent. Of course if he is a bad eater things will be different. I think he deserves some luxury after 8 years of service. I have had one c.o. in a 50 gallon tank without problems. If you have had him for eight years I assume he likes the food

 

[jesper]

I would have to add that nobody should put newts that are new or eat poorly in big tanks.....

 

[kaysie]

Jesper, surely you agree that one C.o. does not NEED a 50 gallon tank.

 

[braden]

I know that he doesnt need that big of a tank. I just have one lying around and thought he might like the bigger space and that if it wasn't too much trouble on him then i would move him in there. I've been feeding him crickets and he seems to eat them up pretty quick so food is not a problem.

 

[kaysie]

Make sure you send us pics of the new setup! As long as you dont move him in and out and handle him a lot and rearrange his tank a lot after you've put him in there, its hardly any stress at all. After all, people ship newts across the country, and they arrive stressed, but usually still doing great.

good luck

 

[braden]

Ive got everything in the tank except my newt now, but i have a problem with the water. It's a whiteish color. Im not sure if its because of the bricks or the gravel i put in there. The gravel is old aquarium gravel that has been unused and stored for a year or two and the bricks have been cleaned with a very low amount of diluted bleach and soaked in water for 4 days. Im not willing to put my newt into harm so i need help.

 

[kaysie]

take everything out, rinse everything really well, put it back in, and run the filter with a dechlorinator for a few days and see if that doesnt help. I'm betting the 'white' color is from the gravel, and I'd run extra dechlorinator every time you use bleach to clean something.

 

[jennifer]

There are several possibilities for the cloudiness. Some leftover debris in the gravel could be causing a bacterial bloom. Or could there be some powder in the gravel?

Some tap water sources just "cloud up" when you first set up a tank. I used to live in an area where I had this problem. I never did figure out what caused it, but every new tank I set up would get cloudy. Eventually the cloudiness would clear up and the water would stay clear from then on.

You can try "starting over" as Kaysie suggests. It wouldn't hurt. But if the cloudiness happens the second time, the only thing you can do is run the tank empty for a few weeks until the cloudiness goes away. Using some water from your old tank may help. Before you transfer the newt, you might want to move some if the gravel, or ornaments, or filter media to the new tank to seed the biofilter.

 

[jesper]

Kaysie> One c.o. does not NEED 50 gallons, but I bet it ENJOYS 50 gallons. So if given the choice...

 

[kaysie]

Jesper, I dont NEED a mansion, but I'd sure like one too! So when are you going to start building that for me?

 

[braden]

The water is clear. Im pretty sure it was the gravel seeing as how i put some in another bowl with water and it got cloudy too. He likes the extra space too...im not sure if hes trying to get used to the new tank or not but he seems to move around a lot more. If i can find the camera ill try and post pics later. Thanks for the help.