Habitat - Indoor :: NEW AND HAVE COUPLE QUESTIOSN

[martinc9090]

Hello everybody. My name is Martin and I'm new to RES. It's actually my little brother who is interested in them but I'm here to help him. I'm pretty expereiced in both freshwater and saltwater aquariums. Saltwater being my current and favorite setup. So my mother got my little brother a 5.5"(from head shell to the tip of the tail shell part) and he/she is in a 26g tank for the moment. I just have a couple of questions.

1. How do you figure out the sex?
2. I know a 55g will work but still(good idea or bad)
3. Will crushed coral work as a substrate.
4. I have a light fixture that was for my iguana and it has two sockets and I had a "repti basking spot lamp" and a "75w Night Glo Moonlight Lamp" and the fixture is like a hood that goes on top of the entire aquarium. would that work.
5. Do I have to use ro water.
6. Can I use a fluval 304 as a filter and if so what media should I add.
7. would the lamps get to hot for my 55g long ACRYLIC tank?

thanks in advance

[turtledudee]

1. males have long claws females dont
2.for now it will
3. he/she will probably eat it.
4.the clamp light for basking is good, you'll have to get a UVB though
5.tap water is ok but use conditioner!
6.yes you can, i dont know. im not a fluval user
7.i wouldnt think so.

[scripta_elegans]

The repti basking spot lamp is good for heat, but you need a UVB bulb as well. Reptisun 5.0 or 10.0 are the choice of many keepers. I would say that using no substrate is the best choice according to all that I have read. Some people use large river rocks, but anything smaller than the turtles head will probably be ingested. They are little piggies. You can use the 55 gallon and fill it up with water as much as possible, but not to the point where he could escape. The legnth in inches referred to often on this site is just the shell legnth without the curve, not including head or tail, so your turtle is probably closer to 4 inches? I am unsure about heat with acrylic, but I would check with the tank manufacturer to be sure. If you post a pic of the turtle, lots of folks will vote on gender. We enjoy that!

[martinc9090]

I'll take a pic right now. it'll just be a minute.

[grey goose]

A fluval 304 will work fine in a 55 gal.

[grey goose]

Whoops! Forgot about media. I run 304's and 404's here's what I put in them:
Bottom basket: Filter floss (or polywool). Don't pack it! Just use a small layer, about 1/3rd the way up the tray when dry.
Middle basket: Get an aquarium "sock" I believe they are called, and put 9-10 tablespoons of charcoal in it.
Top basket: Fill with Bio rings. One box should do it. Thats where the good bacteria hangs out, so put in as many as will fit.

Once a month just change the floss and charcoal, rinse the bio-rings, also called bio-max, I believe, and the sponges in the old tank water (not tap water!). And you're good to go! All this stuff can be bought at any pet store or online.
Some keepers skip the charcoal, and put more bio-rings in the middle basket, but I use it to keep the smell away.

[martinc9090]

my tank is 48"high 13 wide 20"high.

how much water should I add?

[scripta_elegans]

RES are great climbers, so I would say fill it as much as you can without any chance of an escape. If you use the hood for the tank 1) be sure there isn't glass or plexiglass or screen with openings less than 1/2 inch between the turt and the bulbs. 2) be sure the turt can't be burned by the bulbs. I would guess you could probably fill it 3/4ths? I am unsure exactly how high he might be able to reach, but i'd guess that if you filled all but 6 or 7 inches at the top you'd be okay with a 5 inch turtle. Also be sure to check the basking temp. You want 90 degrees or so. Good luck!

[martinc9090]

since it's acrylic it has the top braced sheet of acrylic so that the sides won't bow.

[martinc9090]

Being my mom going to the local fish store and buy this RES she just got one and left. The turtle's shell looked as if it was dry in some parts and I guess my mom thought that it was perhaps shedding it's shell. So we took it to another store and they told us that it had a certain type of fungus. I took a really bad pic but I think it's viewable.

[CountryGirl68]

Hard to tell from the picture.

BTW, be advised that the turtle will scratch against the tank walls while swimming. With an acrylic tank, this can result in scratches that will make the tank look dull. I won't damage the tank but some people don't like it.

[martinc9090]

there is already a ton of scratches on the acrylic plus the scratches could be removed. (it's not a good idea to think that way) but still

[steve]

If its fungus.. there are a few sites the go into detail about home remedies. I would suggest you go to a vet to make sure what it is, get a stronger, prescription medicine and go from there.

[martinc9090]

The person i bought it from wanted it back so we returned it to him and we got two smaller ones instead.

How long would they take to get full grown.

[missibsu]

Good rate of growth is an inch a year. This will vary based on environment, genetics, etc. Given that adult males can reach 9 inches, and females can reach 12, it will be a period of years.