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New res owner we have 2 in a 10 gallon tank, both are hatchlings, Chukwa and Genbu. We started with the very small critter keeper then upgraded to a larger 1, neither had a filter. We bought a 10 gallon tank and an internal filter rated for a 15 gallon tank. Both res's are under 3 inches scl. Tank is bare bottom, Zilla small basking platform, bubble wand, plastic log and jug for hidding. No UVB or heat lamp or water heater yet we were ld by the pet store they are too small/young to really need those yet. I have a Perfecto 89 gallon breeder that we will move them to once we can afford a F5x. I used to have piranah so I bought that tank for them. My main question is will the Fluval U2 be enough for the 2 in the 10 gallon? The tank is almost full for swimming room, but not too full for a Houdini move. We are definately experincing new tank syndrom. Trying to be patient and wait for the BB to clear the water. There is room for more biomax, should I buy more and add it to the Fluval U2? I have used Nutrafin Turtle Clean, was that a mistake? Also the turtle shapped water conditioner before I found this awesome site and forum. I reoved the turtle shaped water conditioner. We have been feeding reptomin, fluker's medley treat (more so the wife) and red leaf lettuce

Most small internal filters have a sponge and maybe a small amount of carbon. I wouldn't hold my breath on waiting for the water to clear up as it may never happen. The U2 does have a small bioload however it would never be enough for 2 turtles. The pet store like most seems have misinformed you. I would at least get the little guys a UVA bulb if that's all you can afford right now and a UVB as soon as possible. Since you have close to no filtration the way it is now I would put them in the larger tank and do very frequent water changes. Just think the more water you have the more there is to dilute everything. Versus having a 10 gallon tank with very bad water conditions. I would get rid of an additives ASAP and change the water.

Don't feel bad most everyone experiences a sharp learning curve when it comes to turtles. I myself ran only a Fluval 4+ for months....poor little guys.

Rubicon's advice is spot on. Gold star for you sir.

Unless its a reptile specialy place, You can pretty much ignore any advice from the local pet store. While we're on the subject of ignoring things- any tank sizings printed on any filter package should be added to the ignore list. Those ratings are based on the filtration needs of fish. A single turtle will produce more waste than a tank full of fish. The filter media thread on the equipment forum has our suggested filter sizings for turtles.


A regular incandescent light bulb will do both heat and UVA and you may already have one laying around. A hardware store clamp light or $7 is a great inexpensive fixture for this bulb or the UVB bulb.

Since you can do water changes to keep the water semi clean, but you cannot produce UVA/UVB...the lighting would be the next thing to focus on.

The bulbs I will take care of asap. As for the filter issue I seem to have a few choices, either get a canister filter for at least a 50 gallon tank to adhere to the 5x rule or add more biomedia. The Fluval U2 does have room to add more. I am trying to hold off on setting up the 89 gallon until we can afford everthing we need for it.

If you're keeping them in a 10 gallon for awhile, stick to whatever is cheaper and put that money into future upgrades. You should consider a 55 gallon (that's the max size for the ones on a special sale at Petco) or a 100 gallon (used on craigslist) and this will be good for them until you can sex them. Once you do, you'll have an idea of the kind of forever setup they need.