Habitat - Indoor :: Need something to hold divider....

[RaytheonLiszt]

Hi everyone,

I currently have a 65G tank with two turts. Unfortunately, because of aggression, I've had to put up a divider in the middle of the tank and basking area. I used the white egg crate for both above and below water and it works really well...

...except the underwater part. For the past couple months, I've been using suction cups to hold the divider in place (I can't use clips because there is a large pane of structural glass over the middle of the tank). These cups worked well for the first month, then they started to get all slimy and fail. I cleaned them and they worked well for another couple weeks before they failed again. Now, even after I cleaned them, they will not hold anymore (and they've turned from soft clear to hard white).

This has happened with all new suction cups I've gotten to replace failing ones, but now I'm always afraid of the aggressive turtle breaking through!

I was thinking of using high-powered magnets to hold it in place...would this be a good idea? They of course would have to be big enough so the turtles can't eat them but not too large where if they do get knocked off it won't break the bottom of the tank.

So do you guys have any recommendations or sugestions? Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!

Thanks everyone!
RL

[BullDog]

I think magnets would work.
I don't know if they sell them, but the suction cups that come with the FX5 on the intake strainer are really strong. I had mine in the water for 6 months or longer, and they still suck (in a good way!) really strong.
These look like the same as the ones from the FX5:
http://www.bigalsonline.com/StoreCatalo ... 12&offset=

I had them only shortly attached to the strainer in Frankie's tank, and she managed to rip the cups out of the strainer, but the cups held fast to the wall!

[untsmurf]

If you can't find magnets, you could try supporting the divider on either side with some decorations.

[seanwb]

You could use silicon sealant to stick it in place. Make sure it is safe for aquarium.

Downside. This would mean emptying the tank.

[RaytheonLiszt]

Hi guys thanks for the replies.

Unfortunately untsmurf, I tried the decoration idea already, but nothing seemed strong enough to withstand the pressure of a turt!

I think I'm going to try the magnet idea...just gotta find some now. In the mean time I'll get the FX5 cups. They're cheap-ish anyways.

I thought about silicon (I still have a tube of it from when I built the ATBA), but the divider isn't that "snug" (did this on purpose so it wouldn't rub the silicon edges of the tank!) so I don't think it'd hold.

Thanks again guys!

[theartbook35]

Ray, at some pet store they sell tank dividers, which come with parts to hold it securely in the tank. I personally have not used them, but they exist. It's like a net/screen that goes into a slot thing, and I don't think a turtle would be able to break it.

[BullDog]

Somebody here uses one of those algae magnets to hold up their basking area. It might work for your divider, although they may be able to just push the magnets around...

[untsmurf]

You could attach some sort of tubing to the tank with sealant, then slit a hole down it to slide the divider into place, if that makes sense. It would require emptying the tank of course, but it should work.

[xstefanx]

untsmurf that sounds like a neat idea...

[VeipaCray]

What about super glue gel? We use it all the time in the saltwater community to glue coral frags to rock. You can work with it under water.... it cures very quickly under water and is safe for fish / inverts / coral, so I'd have to imagine it'd be safe for your turts. It does need to be the gel kind of superglue and not the regular liquid stuff. I've used the locktite gel with great success.... http://www.loctiteproducts.com/products ... 4&plid=195

This could be an option if you don't want to empty your tank.

[RaytheonLiszt]

Thanks for the idea guys!

untsmurf's idea sounds good, along with theartbook35's divider idea. unfortunately there is a large pane of structural glass over the middle of the tank, so getting to the middle of the tank is kind of hard. Sliding in the divider would be hard and there would be nowhere to clip the store-bought divider onto.

I was thinking of using the alge-cleaning magnets, but are they strong enough? I've never personally used them so I don't know.

I'm still trying to look around for strong, medium-sized magnets, but I'm not coming up with much. And it's getting really frustrating because my aggressive turt just knocked out a suction cup yesterday! good thing i caught it quickly.

thanks guys

[xstefanx]

I actually saw a divider at a shop a few days ago that had some kind of widening function. Like you turned a knob and it got wider and the pressure pushing out against the glass holds it in place, not sure how well this would hold against them.