Habitat - Indoor :: Water Quality Issue Revisited

[bgettel]

I'd posted earlier about a cloudy water issue with my new tank and 2 RES. Didn't get much of a response but kept trying things. Here's the latest.

40 Gal tank, currently 1/2 full
Nat Geo canister filter rated for 80 gal tank
All gravel, as well as under-gravel filter REMOVED
2 x 5" RES

Removing the gravel and under-gravel filter made a major improvement in the odor and water cloudiness issues I was having. I'm pleased with the progress and *think* I'm almost there, but need some advice.

The current issue is water discoloration (it's a greenish-brown tint, but not cloudy), and I still have an odor issue that needs to be addressed. Odor is nowhere near as bad but is noticeable enough that something must be done.

I just added a large air stone disk tonight, to try and increase O2 levels in the water, hoping that it will help fend off anaerobic bacteria. I also plan to add a circulation pump to keep the water moving / help make sure more of it gets to the canister intake.

Any ideas on what my next move might be? Should I consider a UV sterilizer of some sort? My goal is to get to a point where I only have to do one water change / filter cleaning per month.

Thanks in advance.

[steve]

What are you packing into the filter? Greenish water is usually algae related... are you feeding in tank and what's the lighting situation? UV sterilizers can help, but usually more water/better filtration takes care of it.

[bgettel]

Thanks Steve. I really appreciate the help as I'm new to this and really want to keep these turles.

The filter has a single white pad, a ring-shaped, sponge-like filter for mech. filtration, and three layers of that media that looks like cocoa puffs. All that came with the filter. We do feed in-tank and there is very little, if any, debris of any time left in the tank after each feeding. As of now, the lights are the dome-type items that typically come with kits. One is for UV and the other has a regular 60W incandescent bulb for basking. These will be replaced when I build my turtle topper; UV will be from tube-style and I'll get something lower profile for the basking area.

On the filtration - what are your thoughts on the "stock" media? Are the larger bioballs or ceramic rings a better choice?

[steve]

Spun glass/ceramic media is better than bio balls... more surface area. Bio Balls are better for wet/dry systems. The little black things.. carbon, needs to be replaced monthly. The pads for mechanical filtration are fairly important but you don't need the other pads - prefilter and polishing pads as they will clog faster against turtle waste. Most of us bag our own carbon media (buy it in bulk and place in a small pouch) and just rinse before use. Again, 2 5" RES produce a lot of waste, and with 20 gallons of water, you can't win that battle.

[bgettel]

Great info Steve - thanks again. Get this - my Nat Geo filter has this:

Bottom tray is full of the pea-like filter media
Tray above that is full of the same
Tray above THAT is full of the same
A white filter pad placed on top of the top tray of filter media
A ring-shaped, blue mechanical filter

And that's it. The only charcoal anything it came with was a thin black pad that goes atop the white filter pad, and the instructions say to remove this after the first week of use and not replace it.

This explains my odor problem. Any idea where am supposed to put my charcoal? Can I replace one tray of filter media with bagged charcoal?

[steve]

Pea-like stuff is probably the bio media that came with the filter (a guess would be EHEIM Substrat Pro). Do they tell you how to lay out the media? Canister layouts vary, but basically you want water flowing through mechanical media, then carbon, then bio media. See this diagram: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=30145#p288939

You do not need a lot of charcoal, a small bag will suffice. You can also pre-filter the water before you add it into the tank, however that will not solve the odor problem as it's mainly your limited water volume that is the issue (in my opinion). But it will remove chlorine/chloramines and is cheaper than monthly carbon replacement, though thats pretty cheap too.

[bgettel]

You are the MAN, Steve. The canister filter is a rebranded Eheim and you nailed the bio media. That's exactly what it is, and the directions for the filter instruct the user to layout the media exactly as I have it. There's not even a mention of charcoal in there.

I'm going to apply your advice/tips this weekend and am looking forward to it.

I owe you a beer or 12 . . . .

Thanks again, Steve!

[steve]

Glad to help! I don't drink, maybe keep the beer money in the turtle fund