Question: Temperature for a new Axie

ShrimpShepherd

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Essentially I'm making a specific post for this question since it seems nobody answered it on my first post. Anyways, my axolotl tank temperature has been a steady 73 range give or take a degree, and it has been going down incrementally with an installed fan. The Chicagoland summer heat is pretty intense and I'm sure this little one has acclimated well to a slightly warm temperature from where I got him. For the first week or so, he has and is continuing to do pretty amazingly from what I see. Swims around investigates his hornwort garden and likes to go into his cave sometimes. Loves thawed bloodworms and house flies.

So are the low 70's a viable temperature for such a summer? It seems I cannot get it lower than 70.
 
I wouldn't say anything in the 70s is viable in the long run unfortunately. Your axie might seem okay but long term exposure to warmer temps can cause problems.
How big is the fan you're using? A long aquarium fan that stretches along the length of the tank should cool it a few degrees more than a small desk fan.
If it's only a summer problem you can use the frozen bottle method, however this can cause temp fluctuations as the bottles melt and new ones are introduced. I was using this as an emergency solution (especially during the Aussie summer), but recently got a chiller which should make my life easier.
Is the tank in the coolest part of your house? Moving it close to the floor can also help it drop a degree or two.
How big is your tank? Chillers are pricey but worth it, you can get cheap second hand ones or if you're lucky a new one on sale. Alternatively I've seen handy people make their own. You can also get an ice probe which can cool it (depending on tank volume) and it can be placed in a HOB filter or separate housing.
 
With regard to frozen bottles, I personally use them on the awkward in between days where I know the water is likely to get too warm but it's not hot enough to turn on the AC. If you use them, be choosy about your size. I don't necessarily want a rapid drop in temperature, it might not do serious harm once in a while, but my axies seem happier with a more or less steady temp. So find a size of bottle that's going to do a more gradual drop...you have a 20 gallon, maybe a 1 litre? 3/4 of the way full, keep a couple of those frozen on hand, you can use them to bring the temperature down and cycle them but, and this is key, keep the fan going. it's much, much better to keep the temperature down than fluctuate, and I find if I have a fan going on my tank and I've had to use a frozen bottle, that temperature stays down much longer than if I just use the bottles. So keep the fan going. I'm using desk fans because I wanted proof on concept in our painfully humid summers before I invest in new aquarium gear (Because, you see, if it didn't work for the tank I still have some fans), since even those not ideal fans help keep the temp down aquarium fans are going to be my next investment and hopefully with those I need to use the bottles even less to the benefit of my pets AND my freezer space.



TLDR version; be judicious when using frozen bottles, and they are not a substitute for a fan but they can compliment one.
 
I got a cheap aquarium fan off ebay years ago and it's still going strong! I agree that it is better to use one in addition to bottles on the really hot days :)
 
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