Habitat - Indoor

1) I don't know what "current" views on carbon is... but it absorbs impurities like chloramines until it's exhausted. I don't think it will leech it out once exhausted and you will probably have beneficial bacteria colonizing on it until replacement. To polish water, there is usually fine filter media for that.

2) Yeah, they are capable of doing cute things

Superman pose, stacking, claw your eyes out stuff.

3) Inconsistent (bad) diet/lack of calcium/lack of UVB lead to most issues with curling and bumpiness.

4) The nice thing about filters is that the good ones don't cost much more than the cheap ones, unlike filters. It's worth the extra cost.

Ballpark lifespan is tricky because they hide illnesses and injuries so well. Genetics also plays a bigger role than we realize. I think I've read about 50-60 year old terrapins but I would expect 25-30 years to be very good. My RES are 13 and still very active.

Thanks for the info!

RES peachy

Always good to see another cork bark user

peachy basking

Rjs wrote:peachy basking

I love the look of Cork Bark and I love how you can get it in just about any size for any tank. The only thing I didn't care for was the over time it becomes waterlogged and it no longer stays afloat. I think the trick to using Cork Bark is to get a piece big enough that it can be wedged between the glass to provide a basking area versus using it as a floating dock.

That's what I do. If I can get a big enough piece, I'd keep it an angle as well. My RES has a habit of eating bits of it (and it makes some of his poop float), so I'm looking to replace it every few years. The last one lasted about 7 years.

we now we have picked up another res she is a big girl about 9 x 6 in full heath but now when she gets on the cork bark platform it sinks i need to find away to support it but i dont want to make it look like an eye sore any ideas

Another, thicker piece of cork? Or add some support? People have used those those tank cleaning magnets to support their basking areas.

Well my cork bark didn't last to long....I installed it by cutting it 1" longer than the width of my 125g tank...it worked with the 2 res turtles but I have gained another one she is a big girl about 8 X 6 when pumpkin got on top of the basking platform 2 sides sank in the water then when the other 2 turtles got on it it gust went in the water completely. Here are some pics how I fixed it...now I need a custom screen to cover the whole to so I can run 2 basking lights

Greetings Turtle Talk forum. My name is Ryan and I am offering my services of building custom acrylic basking docks. I have owned yellow belly sliders for the past 3 years and like most people was very unimpressed/disappointed with the quality and selection of basking docks offered through brick and mortar stores (pets mart,petco,etc) and online vendors. I've used plastic docks which suction cup onto the glass (suction cups gave out), floating wood style (eventually deteriorate), and floating foam style (turtles started eating it and it had to be removed!). All of these docks were a waste of money because they never held up, looked horrible, and quickly became to small for my growing turtle family. I created a beautiful above tank basking area that would never need to be replaced and maximized the room inside the tank for my turtles to enjoy. I believe if given the chance I can hand craft a basking dock to meet all your expectations and it will last as long as you have turtles.

Message with inquiries.

TL:DR
*I will build a removable acrylic above tank basking dock to meet your specifications
*price based on size of dock
*My tank in picture is a 55 gal

Pictures:
*Final Product with decoration (rocks and Succulents)

*Turtle for Scale

*Turtle using the ramp

*All Three enjoying

Nice basking area but your setup looks like a lot of our setups.....that we all will be repairing and replacing including yours. Your turtles will get bigger and the outer walls will be to short .in here we help each other with info dyi medical and non medical issues. Water, filtering. Turtle behavior...and so on

Hey All!!My boyfriend and I are currently renting and we are only allowed to have 20 gallon tanks so to take advantage of space we've "built" above tank basking areas for my turtles. Hopefully in a few years we will be looking to settle down somewhere and buy a house which equals getting them proper size tanks. Any advice on improvements is welcomed. I have 2 turtles with the same set up in different tanks, was told my turtles were the same sex turns out they aren't and had to rush one to the vet for a prolapse. Poor thing. Anyways...I have a UVB light, Repisun 5.0, with the egg crate cut out from below it. I also have a reg. light bulb for heat and from what I read they can serve as UVA too? The basking area will get to around 88 degrees. I'm thinking about trying a other watt light bulb to get the basking area to 90 degrees.? The lights are 8-9 inches away from the basking area. Other then decorations...rocks, a tree branch, and plants that's it. Other useful info. water heater keeps water temp. 76 degrees, I feed them jello shots every 3 days and do 1/2 water changes every 2 weeks with a whole tank change/filter clean every 2 months. My turtles have been neglected the last year or two and their shells show it. I'm hoping these changes will help them out. I included some picture.
Any advice/input on basking area, tank, shell health would be wonderful?

Hi Bridget, what's the history on the shells? It looks like to have some lengthy infection issues, possibly still active. Cardboard will weaken quickly when near moisture, so I would be concerned about the strength of the box. You have the right idea but need better materials.

Thanks Steve. They are boxes but they have a wax layer on them, if they start to go soft I can easily get a new one. The shells have been getting worse over the last 6 months to a year, which is when they were neglected. Do you have any advice on things I can do to help the shells or should I wait it out and hope with the improvements to the tank they start to improve or should I take them to the vet?

Habitat - Indoor :: POST YOUR BASKING AREA PICTURES HERE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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