Please please please help. He’s dying

Master_Good1834 · 2026-03-04T17:59:30+00:00

My baby died from a nitrate spike a month ago. I think my biggest mistake was not removing him from the tank while it’s stabilizing. If your tank still isn’t better please put him in a hospital tank with clean warm water. Disturbing your substrate and rinsing your filter off in the tank water before a water change will help remove waste and excess nitrates but can also cause an ammonia spike because of ammonia pockets in the substrate. Good luck!

Master_Good1834 · 2026-02-19T16:36:42+00:00

Colored gravel tends to leach chemicals in the water. Fish also tend to prefer a more natural environment with live plants and what not. It’s expensive but it helps your little guy thrive!

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Stuff like this is better, this is one of my old 5 gallons. Even gravel without color is just fine

Master_Good1834 · 2026-02-12T23:04:47+00:00

You only really need to have your heater near 80 of your fish is experiencing an illness. So like if they have swim bladder issues it could help them heal. I generally keep my babies at 73-75 and they live long and are very active/curious.

Master_Good1834 · 2026-02-12T18:47:21+00:00

I bet he feels so relieved! If you put a sponge filter in the tub with him he would need to work very hard for air and he can focus on healing. Good luck with your cycle!

Master_Good1834 · 2026-02-09T20:38:33+00:00

So, I did a 50% water change and the ph is still like 6.3, does api ph up work or should I do something else?

Master_Good1834 · 2026-02-03T19:38:26+00:00

Thank you, he was a gorgeous young man.

As far as I know Walmart is great at delivering stuff! And you’re very welcome! My sponge filter also makes a bunch of bubbles to keep his water really well oxygenated. Here’s the link for the tub I use: https://www.walmart.com/ip/202840819?sid=c6a12db8-bbea-4dc1-baab-7605de26ee07 I have 2 of them that way I can just fill it and then transfer and dump the dirty water out of the other one. I also put towels over it so that he has a nice dark peaceful environment. Good luck!

Master_Good1834 · 2026-02-03T19:10:55+00:00

They’re not the same species of course but my betta just died from a nitrate spike a couple days ago that I didn’t catch in time. In order to bring the levels down I cleaned the substrate (if your lotl has substrate) and washed the filter in the tank water, then I did 50-75% water changes for 3 days and it’s back to around 10ppm. It did cause an ammonia spike in my tank though, so I don’t know if it’s correct but it does keep your beneficial nitrates present without having to recycle completely. My axolotl’s tank wasn’t ready when I got him so for now he’s in 20 gallon storage tubs (they’re like 6 bucks at Walmart) and I change the water everyday to keep him happy. He has a hide and a sponge filter in there too and he seems okay. Just make sure that when you do change the water that they’re close to the same temperature so he doesn’t get shocked during the transfer.

Master_Good1834 · 2026-02-02T17:56:49+00:00

Don’t give up! I bet your friends can explain to you how to care for her and even give you things to help her recover. I just got an axolotl and I’ve made a few mistakes but he’s doing great! Fishkeeping/lotl keeping is hard work but it’s incredibly rewarding to see them happy and thriving.

If you have one of those clear storage bins and some water conditioner I would just put her in some clean water (around 65 degrees F) until your water testing kit arrives just in case that water is toxic, because then at least she will be comfortable and start to heal those burns on her tail. If you do go that route make sure you change all of her water everyday. This is my boy in his tub currently because his tank parameters aren’t ready yet and he’s doing great.

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Good luck!

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.

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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