Habitat - Indoor :: Basking Area

[joeturtle1]

Yeah I leave it on all the time but the box says for night. Does anyone have any ideas for a good ramp to go up to my basking area?

[steve]

Many say the red-heat can be used at night since they can't see that spectrum, it will not disturb them. I'm not convinced on that though. Anyway, you can use it during the day. Incandescents and halogens produce a pleasing, warm colored light that I think they prefer.

Their skin absorbs the UVB, so in the water they are not exposed to it. Water and glass easily block out UVB rays. For the ramp.. acrylic is pretty good, but you will need to add something for traction.. strips of gripping material work . Cork is good too.

[Kansasslider]

Most of us build atba's. Your setup is kinda strange because your turtles need to climb up in both directions. I would consider building an atba.

[joeturtle1]

I already have everything built, I just need to do a ramp that works... Also, I think I accidentally bought sand meant for marine aquariums... is it fine to use that with the turtles?

[joeturtle1]

Everything built for an atba

[Kansasslider]

No you don't want to use that sand. Its for saltwater tanks only. It might contain live bacteria? I made my ramp out of 1/4" plexi and bathtub anti slip tape for traction.
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=34211

[joeturtle1]

Well crap... Waste of money

[Kansasslider]

I'm not a sand expert so don't throw it away just yet. Let someone else chime in. What does the bag say?

[joeturtle1]

It's aragamax sugar sized sand if you search it. It's says on the bag that it's best for marine or reef tanks..

[steve]

Can you return it?

Aragonite sand is calcium carbonate sand. (sea sand if you will). It will very slowly dissolve in water and buffer calcium to your water column. This is great for saltwater where we're trying to maintain a PH of 8.2 and buffer calcium for corals. This isn't so good for freshwater. Aragonite sand is also very expensive compared to silica based sand. We suggest you stick with play sand / pool filter type sand (all silica based sand) for any freshwater tank.

[joeturtle1]

I doubt it... It's out of the bag and everything and I think I threw the bag away

[Kansasslider]

This is the ramp I have now.

[joeturtle1]

So, after much trial and error, this is what I have come up with!! My dads house is modern so he made me make sure everything looked clean and simple, which I think it does! The sand in the tank and basking area is play sand, the little circle things are clay plates upside down and they heat up a lot for the turtles. Theres the heat lamp, the UVB lamp, which still shines on the basking area even though not directly over it, and finally a new water heater which keeps it between 77-80º! The ramp and basking area is made out of poleax-glass that I bent and cut myself, and the black tracking on the ramp is velcro (the rougher side, but not too rough).
What do you guys think?

[Kansasslider]

Looks nice. Has it used it?

[joeturtle1]

Yeah! I saw one up there today, but as soon as i started walking over he leaped off the platform haha