🧴

Water care for a Axolotl: 15 to 20°C, pH 7 to 7.5

Axolotl : Water must stay below 22 °C at all times: above that, stress and infections set in quickly. Gentle filtration, 20 percent weekly changes and no salt or fish medication on its fragile skin.

See it in the Planète Pets shop: Hang-on isolation and breeding box for aquariums (€28.90) · the whole shop

Outside our shipping area? The downloadable practical guide: Beginner axolotl: aquarium and care (€19)

🩺 Reminder: this page informs, it does not diagnose. For any symptom or health question, your veterinarian remains the only reference.

In short: 20 to 30 cm as an adult, 80 to 100 L minimum per individual, cool water between 15 and 20 °C. A placid, curious neotenic amphibian, to be kept alone or among axolotls, never with fish that nip its gills. A cold-water animal kept below 22 °C on very fine, non-ingestible sand: swallowed gravel and summer heat are its two deadly dangers.

The Axolotl’s water: its real parameters

For a Axolotl, water quality comes in numbers: 15 to 20°C on the thermometer, pH within the 7 to 7.5 window, nitrites at zero, nitrates under the 25 mg/L bar. A drop-test kit (NO2, NO3, GH, KH, pH) beats any strip — and the nitrogen cycle, three to four weeks before any fish, is non-negotiable.

Water changes and tank upkeep

10 to 20% of the volume weekly, with water near tank temperature — easy for this temperate species, gentle substrate siphoning — the bottom is the Axolotl’s home zone, respect its landmarks and filter media rinsed in tank water, never under the tap: chlorine sterilises your filter.

Health: what stalks the Axolotl

The Axolotl watch-sheet: intestinal blockage from swallowing fine gravel and heat stress and infections above 22 °C. Before any treatment, the reflex is a water test — pouring medicine into loaded water is treating the fever by breaking the thermometer. Well kept, a Axolotl lives 10 to 15 years.

Frequently asked questions

What water parameters for a Axolotl?

15 to 20°C, pH 7 to 7.5, zero nitrites and nitrates under 25 mg/L — checked with drop tests, not by eye.

How often should a Axolotl tank get water changes?

10 to 20% weekly, water brought to temperature, filter rinsed only in tank water. Consistency beats volume.

The guides that apply to you

• Hexamitosis (Hole-in-the-Head Disease) in Cichlids: Causes and Treatment

  Small erosions appear on the head or lateral line of some cichlids: hexamitosis remains poorly understood but is often linked to diet and stress. What to know before acting.

• Damaged Fin: How Does a Fish Actually Regrow It?

  A scientific review explains how a fish regenerates an injured fin and what speeds up or slows down that regrowth.

• Using Rainwater for Your Aquarium: Good Idea or Risk to Avoid?

  Rainwater seems soft, free and chlorine-free, but it is far from neutral for an aquarium. What it actually contains, the real risks, and the cautious uses that remain possible.

• Chlorine and Chloramine in Tap Water: Why They Kill Your Fish

  Chlorine and chloramine in tap water are toxic to fish and to your biofilter. Why you must condition water before every water change or new tank setup.