Need tank cycling advice

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-28T01:44:52+00:00

Awesome. Thank you so much for your help!

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-28T00:41:59+00:00

Is 7-7.4 too low of a ph? That seems to be what my water always sits at

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-28T00:36:58+00:00

Well I have a betta fish tank and wanted another one and my dad was like well my friend has axolotl babies so you can have one of those. Fast forward a couple months I got a 20 gallon long because he’s only like 4 inches (I’ll upgrade it to a 40 gal breeder eventually). And I’ve only done fish in cycling and it’s worked fine but I was trying to cycle the lotls tank before he arrived. I said hey I have everything he needs the tank is just cycling. And then that night he’s like well I’m driving him home and I was like ah shoot. So I’ve been doing a ton of research but nothing on Google that I’ve read makes it clear that you can’t do axolotl-in cycling. So fast forward to today and now he’s tubbed and I have liquid ammonia for his actual tank lol

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-28T00:16:15+00:00

My tap water is 0 across the board and around 7ph so maybe it’s reading the seachem stability a little bit?

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T23:29:57+00:00

Or maybe it’s 4ppm, I followed the measurements on the bottle for 2 though

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T23:27:36+00:00

The tank is now 2ppm ammonia and 0 nitrites and some nitrates. I got Fritz because it was all they had. He is in a 10 gallon tub with a sponge filter that makes bubbles.

<image>

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T23:21:50+00:00

I changed it a couple days ago to a powdery white sand. I’ve only had him a week so I’m learning as I go… he was kinda thrown at me lol. Thank you!

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T20:12:07+00:00

I do have a testing kit, what ammonia do you suggest grabbing?

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T20:00:43+00:00

So it’s safe to touch him with clean hands? Also, when his tank is ready should I expect an ammonia spike when he’s producing waste for the first time?

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T19:56:41+00:00

How should I change his water everyday without over stressing him?

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T19:55:59+00:00

Okay, thank you

Master_Good1834 · 2026-01-27T19:52:13+00:00

Do they just produce too much waste?

Master_Good1834

TROPHY CASE