All Turtles Message Board

G63 · Guest Joined: 23 Sep 2005 Posts: 3

Lots of questions hopefully u guys can help...

i jsut bought a 20 gal long tank and was wondering if that is big enough for a turtle? I have to types of turtle to choose from they are the red ear slider and soft shell i think both are 7-8 inches... first off is my tank big enough for one of them? wat size/type filtration system should i get? wat kind of light do i need for the basking area and wat size UV light do i need? Wat kind of heater is best for that sized tank? Am i forgetting anything else that i need? If the tank is to small i wont be heart broken as i will just turn it into a fish tank but really wanted a turtle lol. Any help is greatly appreciated and thank you in advance. Oh and the trutles run for 19.99 and 25.99 is that expensive?

STRAYKINGFISHER · Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 10:36 am Post subject:

Hi G63, welcome to the board Very Happy

The rule of thumb is 10 gallons for every inch of shell(not including the curve of the shell) per turtle, so for a 7 inch turtle it would have to be in a 70 gallon tank and so on.

With filtration, I believe that you should get something that is rated for a tank four times the size of yours(turtles are messy eaters).

The kind of light you can use as a basking light can either be a "Red Heat" bulb, regular 75 to 100 watt bulb, spot type bulb, or a ceramic heater(doesn't produce light only heat).

For the UV light, it really isn't about size, you need to go by the percentage of UV rays it puts out, I believe that 5 to 7% is good, more is better. Make sure that it provides UVA and UVB rays, if the box doesn't say "UV" it isn't a UV bulb.

Depending on what part of the US or Country you are from, you may not need a water heater, I haven't used mine since winter time. Pretty much, "You get what you pay for", the more you pay, the better the heater, the more costly ones will be made of stronger material and will be safer for use with your turtles, they will sometimes bump into the heater and damage it, when that happens, there is a risk of electricution. The water heaters will have a rating on the box somewhere, it will tell you how big a tank that heater will work best in.

I got my turtles for about 5 dollars each at about 1 1/2 inches in size.
Don't forget the basking dock/area, get the bigger ones, that way you won't have to worry about upgrading for a long time. Very Happy

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dixieee · Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 10:40 am Post subject:

welcome to the board Smile

first of all, the rule says u need 10 gallons/ inch of turtle length. if u follow that it means that u need at least a 70-80 gallons tank. yes too much we know. why are u choosing those turtles particularly? u can get a smaller one if u want and it'll fit in the tank for a good time. for ur other Q's, here they are:

heater: http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/care.htm#Heating

lighting: http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/care.htm#Lighting

if u want a small tip, u can build the basking area to be above the tank so u'll have the whole space for the turtle to swim

good luck and keep us posted Smile

_________________
Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u

dixieee · Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 10:41 am Post subject:

hey stray u were faster Mad

_________________
Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u

G63 · Guest Joined: 23 Sep 2005 Posts: 3

the reason is those are the only ones i found reasonably close for sell... I have one more pet store to check out but i H havnt found anywhere else that sells them...

building the basking area above sounds like a good idea....any tips on wat to use? lol i have a few ideas... also if i do that how deep should i have the water... and i found afilter that can create a water fall effect (supposedly) it sounds neet but would it stress the turtle out any?

dixieee · Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2005 3:43 pm Post subject:

i don't think it will stress them out cz turtles are curious in nature and love such things. here are some samples of on-top basking areas

both from http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/care.htm#Basking%20Area
_________________
Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u

G63 · Guest Joined: 23 Sep 2005 Posts: 3

Does the basking area have to be fully out of the water? or can there be water on it?

dixieee · Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2005 2:52 am Post subject:

no they should get completely dry up there. after all, they're semi-aquatics Smile

_________________
Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u

STRAYKINGFISHER · Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2005 10:39 am Post subject:

dixieee · Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2005 2:02 pm Post subject:

hehe i was joking Smile

_________________
Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u

STRAYKINGFISHER · Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2005 2:48 pm Post subject:

I know

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turtledude123 · Level 2 Joined: 24 Aug 2005 Posts: 52

i've kinda gotts disagree with the "rule"

i think it should be only five gallons for every inch of shell my turtle is and ich long and seems to be boing just fine, even though i only filled the water up half way.

i don't like to argue, buut that is just my opinion i'm sorry!! Twisted Evil

dixieee · Posted: Fri Sep 30, 2005 6:41 am Post subject:

no it's ok i'm not convinced with it either Smile

i really think it is too much the turtles don't need all that space (at least when they are so tiny). as they get bigger ok it might apply but that would be when they're 5 inches +. they say that the 4-inch rule is to provide the top best setup for ur turtle
_________________
Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u