Very New and Curious :) Help!

Kal El said:
. However, if you already have the equipment...well, I just gave my fingers quite the work-out for no apparent reason :p
Jay.
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No, not at all Jay! :D

I was just thinking I would like a new...um...maybe you should start writing this down Jay...

Another tank so I can start raising guppies, Some more filter piping, some lovely rocks, a log, a couple of toys wouldn't go astray...sorry Rex, axolotls only...wood, plastic plants...oh and some cat-nip to distract the blasted cat away from the tanks ;)
 
Kriltex said:
Wow that sure is alot of room.. do they really need so much when they stand still most of the time? a goldfish alone is reccomended to have 10 gallons to itself because it patrols the whole tank where-as an axo i believe, mostly stays at the bottom.. is it really that bad if i put one into a 7.7 gallon tank? maybe just for a year then?
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Actually ten gallons minimum per goldfish is because of the waste it puts on the bioload, like axies, the goldfish produces a lot of waste and fast. So it really doesn't matter if he moves all over the tank or just sits and poops a lot.;)

Just be patient so you know you will have the room to provide adequatly for a axie, I am in the same boat as you right now, I just no room either:(!...But I know when I do get that extra room I will have one very happy and healthy axie, or maybe a couple.:D




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Thanks everyone for so much advice, you all give better advice then those pet stores aha!, Well i decided im going to use the 7 gallon tank as a home for One betta fish ;). I've also found someone whos willing to sell their 4 foot tank for 200 Aus Dollars ^^ Is this a good price? If so, i'll buy it and get ( How many axolotl can go in there? ), Ofcoarse ill only introduce one at a time over 2 week periods. I Have a huge garden at the back where i grow all sorts of fruits and vegies- i do use liquid fertiliser for some parts of it but theres one area in the garden where its alllll natural so maybe i can dig worms from there and feed it to the axolotl later on!

Kael El, that really really sounds awesome, all them spare parts you got :D If you are willing and you do not mind, i would love to accept them from you :) At the moment i only have Gravel, Bags of sand, a filter that runs 300 litres per hour, and a few plants so if all is good, Yes, i would love the things you are offering! :D Thank you heaps :)
 
A 4 foot tank will fit 3-4 axolotls comfortably. If you do not buy them all at once, you must quarantine each one for 30 days before introducing it into the tank to prevent introducing diseases.

I wouldn't use worms from your garden at all if you use fertilizers and pesticides. Worms move between places, and can easily pick up fertilizer along the way.

Do not use gravel in your axolotl tank.

$200 Aus sounds ridiculous for a 4 foot tank. I don't know what they normally go for over there, but I bought a brand new 4 foot tank for $80.
 
What food should i use then :S? The pet store reccomended pellot food, but i dont trust them anymore lol, Would it be best to introduce 3-4 axos all at once into a tank? or if i do introduce each one every 2 weeks, how would the whole quarantine thing work? And how much did it cost for your filter ( what kind also for the 4 foot ). Hopefully you can post a pic of your tank and axos for me :D thanks! Oh yeah. For decorations- I went to a very foresty area ( The wild outback i guess lol - Kangaroos and all ), and found lots of nice sized rocks and cool looking pieces of wood from burnt trees ( i think its called driftwood ), Would these be safe to add or would i have to wash them with tap water, then leave them in the sun to bleach?
 
Earthworms are the best. You may need to buy them. Bait shops, and 'walmart' type stores usually carry canadian or european nightcrawlers, which are best chopped up into bite-size pieces.

If you buy them all together, you can introduce them together. If you've cycled your tank properly, you shouldn't have a problem.

I use a Rena canister filter for my 4 foot tank. It cost about $130. I may have pictures in my gallery, but I'm not sure.

As for decorations, the rocks should be scrubbed thoroughly and boiled to remove any possible contaminants. Wood is not generally acceptable in an aquatic tank, as it rots. It can also discolor your water.
 
Oh Thank you very much Kaysie : ). Earthworms hmmmm, I dont really have a bait shop nearby nor a walmart type store... Is pellet food acceptable? or i could dig in a total different area from my garden ;), $130 sounds alright for a filter, did the flow disrupt your axo or did you have a flow control on it? And what type of filter is it? the one where you replace the white carbon part inside of it every 8 weeks or something different?.. Its a shame i cant use that piece of wood, it looked sweet ^^ but if it rots, how come shops sells the logs to hide in, or is that man made with something else lol. Thanks! I'll boil the rocks now
 
Good quality carnivore pellets are acceptable. You can often find carnivore pellets, or pellets for feeding trout or salmon. In the US, Rangen makes salmon pellets.

The filter has a spray-bar attachment, which diffuses the outflow. Canister filters have a large basket, in which you place filter media. This can include coarse and fine mesh, as well as (usually) something on which bacteria grow (ceramic rings, plastic disks, etc). You rinse the filter pads occasionally to remove trapped debris, and you NEVER wash the ceramic on which the bacteria grow. I don't use carbon in my filters.

Most wood sold in pet shops is not suitable for aquariums. Some times are, but I couldn't say which, exactly. Almost all types of wood will leak tannic acid into the tank. This stains the water tea-colored. It's not exactly dangerous, but is unsightly. Some wood rots quickly in water.
 
Yea I have a fair bit of wood in my tank, it makes the water slightly yellow but not significantly so (Kaysie I actually like the tea look :p but am probably in the minority). Had it for nearly a year now and it has not started to rot at all (given how many old logs I find underwater, rotting is often not an issue over a few years anyway, you can always replace it after then). I soaked mine in boiling water for a while before putting it in the tank. So wood is an option, but you have to be careful.

I bought my wood at an aquarium and was assured it was suitable for aquariums so maybe find out what type it is and check it out on the net. My friends had used wood from them before with no issue so I was pretty certain it was safe.
 
I think ill still to the rocks, i like crystal clear water ^^, do you guys/girls use printed backrounds on the back of your tanks or do you prefer to leave it clear so your axo can look whats behind the tank ( most likely a wall ) lol. My correction on the tank being sold, ( pulls out paper ), Its...
- Length - 92.5 cm
- Height - 47 cm
- Width - 35.5 cm
And its second hand, been used for a few years ( Still good condition ) complete with a wood stand cabinet thing. The seller wants $150 aus dollars for this. Is this a good deal?
 
I would go and see it if you can. You need to check the tank for leaks. Ask them to fill it halfway for you. Don't be afraid to ask. Its your floor that gets damaged if you get it home and it leaks.

Check the cabinet is good and strong. It may have come with the tank originally so if so that should be ok. You have to be careful with homemade stands as they may lack the support a factory made one has. Price up all the accessories you will need before you buy it. Sometimes it actually works out cheaper to buy a complete set up from brand new rather then buy a secondhand tank and then have to purchase all the rest separately. Thats how it worked for for me anyway.
Plus with buying brand new you may get a guarantee on the tank (I did) so you know if it leaks you will get a replacement free.
Good luck.
 
If it's functional, and the stand is nice, that's not a super-ridiculous price. However, you may be better off buying a new tank for the reasons Becky stated, plus axolotls do not need a 'high' tank, but a long-wide tank. They don't use the water column, but instead prowl the bottom of the tank. Having a tank with a bigger floor space is more ideal than a tank which is taller. They may have the same volume, but they're different.
 
Kaysie said:
Most wood sold in pet shops is not suitable for aquariums. Some times are, but I couldn't say which, exactly. Almost all types of wood will leak tannic acid into the tank. This stains the water tea-colored. It's not exactly dangerous, but is unsightly. Some wood rots quickly in water.
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Ugh, my guppy tank is FULL of tannic acid. the colour doesn't bother me one bit though- the wood is great for my bristlenose. I bought three pieces of driftwood when I got Duchess, all for her tank, but the three didn't work together, because she kept knocking them over and nearly killing herself. She made quite a game of it, I'd hear a dull 'clunk' as the wood fell, I'd jump up in fear of finding a Duchess pancake, and I'd find her on the other side of the tank, staring at me as if to say, 'haha, I wrecked my tank again.' so I took out two pieces. One piece I took out I put in the guppy tank as a split second decision because the tank looked quite bare(And I needed more hidey holes for my gourami's), and forgot to resoak it. Now I have an epic case of tea tank. :p The last piece is in my huge guppy tank, where my males are(females are ready to pop in the smaller tank, woot for live fish for Duchess!!) The tea colour can take up to a year or so to dissapate, but I don't mind- the fish don't care. None of my wood has rotted yet. I get the ocasional fall off bits from when Duchess goes skitzoid and knocks stuff around, but that's easy cleaned.
I sound like such a proud parentXD Next thing you know, I'll be carrying around a million pictures of her, whipping them out at every party!!!
 
Ahaha Urgh. I'd love to see the pictures here ^^, .. I'll probably buy a brand new tank, maybe custom made so it is more LengthxWidth rather then height. Thanks!. Althought im probably not getting an axolotl for a few year since i really dont have the room here at my mums. All i have now is 7 gallon tank i use for two goldfish ( 25% change every week ) and a 5.5 gallon tank that im going to use for one male betta ( Fighting fish ).. its sad how they keep the fighting fish in such little cubes at the pet store, i want to see their long flowing fins!, i'll adopt one as soon as possible ^^. Then later on, with my own house.. i'll build a Koi pond for kois and goldfish, and have a long 6 ft tank inside with an appropriate number of axolotls :D, maybe another tank for coral and tropical fish :D
 
Just be careful. Axolotls are addictive!
 
haha i bet they are, how many do you own kaysie?
 
Right now? Um... 30? I'm not rightly sure. I have two adults (down from 5), who thoroughly enjoy making me a grandma, over and over.
 
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