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Hey all,
So I have had Milton for about two weeks now, and I just had a couple questions I was hoping you could help me with.
1) Milton is very scared when I am around. I keep the tank in my bedroom, which is where I spend most of my time, and when I am around he spends a lot of time hiding under the basking dock or under the interior decoration. If he is swimming around and I move around in my room (walk out, walk in, etc.) he freaks out and hides under something. He won't bask when I am around either, which causes concern that he isn't getting the necessary basking time. Will this ever stop? What are some tips and tricks to helping my turtle getting used to me and not freaking out every time?

2) I know that turtles are supposed to shed skin on a regular basis, but it seems like Milton is excessively shedding his skin. I work from about 5-2 everyday and have the UVB bulb and basking lamp set up to turn on at 8am and off at 8pm, but I never see him basking (refer to #1) and if he is basking when I get home from work he immediately jumps in the tank when he sees me. Also, I feed him 6 pellets every other day and just recently started feeding him green leaf lettuce. My tank will vary between 76 and 78 degrees, depending on whether the AC has been on or not. What can I do to decrease the shedding? Or, how much shedding is normal?

3) What is a good water cleanser I can buy for when I am putting new water in the tank? I want to make sure I give Milton a good habitat to be in, but it has been hard to keep his water perfectly clean the last two weeks. I clean up his feces immediately when I see it, and try to scoop out all the dead skin occasionally, but the tank always seems to have something in it. I change the water every ten days or so. Any other suggestions (besides feeding in a different tank) to keep a clean tank?

Hi Matt

1) It's normal. Do you know if he basks a lot when you're not there? He'll eventually learn to bask in your presence and you'll learn to avoid doing anything that might make him stop basking.

2) Water quality can also effect skin shedding. How's the filtration and how much water does he have?

3) What kind of filter do you have? The best filter options include using bio media, carbon and Purigen. This will remove the need to add liquid water conditioner and a waste degrader (both of which can be harmful).

Thanks Steve.
1) I do not know if he basks when I am not there, but I assume he does since there have been times that he has been basking when I got home but dove in the water right when I walked in the room.
2) I bought a Fluval 205 filtration system for a 40 gallon tank that is filled about 6 inches from the top with water.
3) The Fluval 205 uses carbon and BioMax ceramic rings. If I cannot add liquid water conditioner and a waste degrader, then how do I clean the water when it is fresh from the faucet?

Thanks again.

3> Adding hazardous chemicals to tap water isn't cleaning the water at all...it's actually doing the opposite. The purpose of water conditioner is to remove chlorine and chloramine. The carbon in your filter will do the same thing for you without adding any chemicals. Just make sure you replace your carbon on a regular basis. As far as the turtle waste, it's the ammonia that becomes toxic in the tank. Your bio media is a home for nitrifying bacteria that convert ammonia into nitrites then again into less toxic nitrates. Your regular monthly 10-15% water change will keep the nitrate level in check. No need for any chemicals.

I just let the water filter in my tank for about an hour after the water change and put my turtle back in. If you're worried about the chlorine that's what I'd suggest doing. Plus those water purifying chemicals are expensive, and go fast when you do use them.

Leaving the water circulate would allow the chlorine to evaporate but most water municipals do not use chlorine any more for potable water. Most are now using chloramine which doesn't evaporate. Running the water through a carbon media will remove the chloramine.

Water conditioners are actually toxic to the turtles / fish and shouldn't be used at all.

VeipaCray wrote:Leaving the water circulate would allow the chlorine to evaporate but most water municipals do not use chlorine any more for potable water. Most are now using chloramine which doesn't evaporate. Running the water through a carbon media will remove the chloramine.

Water conditioners are actually toxic to the turtles / fish and shouldn't be used at all.

Ugh that's terrible. I hate that they market things towards turtles that aren't safe for them. What about Reptisafe water conditioner? Same deal?

Same with ReptiSafe. It's definitely not "safe"

Here's the psuedo MSDS sheet for ReptiSafe
http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/cg ... d=26004003

Unfortunately the companies that produce these products are not required to disclose all of the information about them. Using phrases like "propietary chemical or substance" get's them from disclosing what's actually in the product.
Fortunately, there are a few very honest companies like API that do a full disclosure of their chemicals and a proper MSDS sheet. Sodium Theosulfate is the common universal chemical in aquarium water conditioners.
API water conditioner

Here's a few highlights...

SODIUM THIOSULFATE: ■ Very toxic to aquatic organisms.
■ Sulfide ion is very toxic to aquatic life, threshold concentration for fresh or saltwater fish is 0.5ppm. The product therefore is very toxic to aquatic life.
Harmful to aquatic organisms. May cause long term adverse effects in the aquatic environment.

The safe way to condition your water is to run it through a carbon filter or to run carbon in your filtration system.

Does Purigen count as carbon filtration?

No, unfortunately it does not though it is still effective media and is regenerable.

Looks like i'll be saving money now. Had no idea the carbon in my filter would condition the water. Not buying anymore chemicals.

I didn't know either until a few months ago. VeipaCray really expanded our information on the topic

Yes, thank you veipacray. You were a big help.

That's crazy.. I had stopped using ReptiSafe years ago from the cost, and I had noticed Touche's eyes seems irritated more often when I used it. Now I know why.