Habitat - Indoor :: My new 75 gallon tank and setup with above tank basking!!!

[LurycNitsuj]

Well, i posted earlier about how I was given a 75 gallon tank from a relative that used to breed fish. Well after a long drive crammed in a car back to my respective city with this tank, and about a week of getting everything situated and ready (waiting for big als shipping and me building an above tank basking area) this is what I am now the proud owner of.


The tank is 1/3 filled with live plants and driftwood and the rest is left open with a couple of random pieces of driftwood.


By lurycnitsuj, shot with Canon PowerShot SD400 at 2008-01-07



By lurycnitsuj, shot with Canon PowerShot SD400 at 2008-01-07

My above tank basking area. All the plants are live, with some moss and rocks and a couple pieces of driftwood, with a rock and some sort of natural tank lining as the "carpet".


By lurycnitsuj, shot with Canon PowerShot SD400 at 2008-01-07


By lurycnitsuj, shot with Canon PowerShot SD400 at 2008-01-07


By lurycnitsuj, shot with Canon PowerShot SD400 at 2008-01-07

And some pictures of Apollo exploring...


By lurycnitsuj, shot with Canon PowerShot SD400 at 2008-01-07


By lurycnitsuj, shot with Canon PowerShot SD400 at 2008-01-07



One question though... My basking area temp is at around 98 degrees, i know thats too high, is there anything i can do to change this?

[DocShay]

Looks fantastic! Wow, nice and earthy!

About the temp, either try getting the light further up more, or if thats not possible get a lower watt bulb would work.

[octpusgirl8]

Beautiful tank! What a lucky little turtle! What kind of lighting are you using? If you're using a MVB over the basking area disregard this comment. If you're using one of the bulbs for heat and another for UVB you need to have them bothe positioned over the basking area for him to absorb the UVB rays (they don't penetrate water well). Also, make sure none of the plants in the land area aren't poisonous. I know the dracaena isn't, but there's one plant i can't identify, it looks like it could be pothos (a.k.a. devil's ivy, marble queen). Pothos is poisonous to dogs and cats so i'm assuming it's no good for turtles either. I love how natural the basking area is, it looks so cozy!

[Spookster]

Looks like a tropical island paradise.

[SpotsMama]

Nice look. Very tropical. Will Apollo go up on the basking area on his own yet? What does he think of it?

Ditto Octpusgirl's comments on the lighting. On temperature, the easiest way to lower the temp on the basking area is to raise the bulb higher.

I notice something about the shape of your turtle's shell because it reminds me of another turtle's shell that we've seen on here recently. In the photos it looks as if the edges are curling upward, and the overall profile looks fairly flat. A normal turtle shell is more dome shaped and the edges don't curl. You sometimes see this condition in turtles that haven't had a large enough habitat or enough water to swim in - and the nice big tank with lots of water should solve that problem if the previous setup was too small. The main causes for shell curling are related to calcium metabolism - not being able to bask under good UVB light and not having a balanced diet. Turtles have to have the UVB in order to absorb the calcium they eat - otherwise it's wasted. And the diet needs to have good quality pellets plus fresh green veggies every day and a cuttlebone to nibble on.

When you tell us about your lighting setup, why don't you also describe Apollo's diet. Also, if you haven't read it lately, why don't you review the section on here on nuitrition - it's got everything you ever wanted to know about a good turtle diet. Here's a link:

http://www.redearslider.com/index_nutrition.html

One more observation - it would take my turtle about 5 minutes to escape from that tank! He would climb up on the heater or the filter tube or even the rim on the edge of the tank and pull himself up. Turtles are remarkably good climbers and strong as can be. You could make your tank escape proof by lower the water level a couple of inches. He will still have plenty of swimming room.

[Cramer]

I like the dark water. It looks very natural. I used to keep driftwood in the tank to purposely give it that tannic river look, but people were always saying it looked dirty. They didn't know it was supposed to!

And you named a Pleco "Boba Fett," eh?

And 5 minutes, Spotsmama? Why so long

[MasterSplinter]

Thats a great set up and the basking area it especially great... The plant issue can be a concern... though I've known turtles to be a little more discerning about the plants that they eat than are dogs...

I was going to make the same observations as Spotsmama. The shell seems to be showing early signs of pyramiding. I see some lettuce floating in the tank... What else is he eating?

Is the water cloudy? or is it just the reflection of the light in the area... ?

[LurycNitsuj]

yes, he is showing signs of pyramiding. I was under the impression that this was because of the improper diet i was feeding him. ( way too much, he was a fat little turtle for a bit, and it was all protein). I have sense started to feed him much much less, and have lettuce and anacharis constantly floating around in the tank. He does like the anacharis a lot, and he will take a couple of bites out of the lettuce before it goes bad. Other than that, he gets a guppy once every few months and about 6 reptomin pellets a day. oh, and there are little chunks of cuttle bone floating around. I will take pictures of his shell up close and post it. And yes, I previously had him in a 20 gallon long only filled about half way with water, so he did not have as much room as he needed until a few days ago. Will the shell curling ever go away? or is it going to a problem for life?

Sorry about the blur in some of the pictures.



(im not actually holding up upside down in this picture, just on his side)








In regards to the lighting, i was under the impression that it was an all in one bulb, but i could be wrong, They are both the ZooMed Turtle Tuff halogen lamps. Is that good? or should I get a different lamp? If I should, what do you recommend?

As for the plants, I dont know what kind they are, i just dug through the trash and there little tags just said "tropical" on them. I will take an upclose picture of each and post in on here.

One of my roomates said he caught him up on the basking area, but as soon as he walked in he dove off into the water. Ive tried to put him up there, and he just dives off. I fell as if he may not be able to walk up the turtle dock ramp. I feel like he cant get enough grip. And if he does happen to make it to the top, i feel as if he would have to work very hard at it. Is there anything I can add the ramp in order to make it easier for him to climb?

and yes, i agree with cramer, I love the darker tinted water from the driftwood, I mean, what river or pond has perfectly clear tap water??

In the pictures i think the coudyness of the water is because of the light, it is a bit cloudy, but not as bad as it looks on camera.

And yes my pleco is Boba Fett, They look just like slave 1! (boba fetts ship, for all you non star wars fans out there.) I see by your avatar that you like the Mr. Solo, my idol actually, got to see his actual outfit in person a few months ago. best moment of my life.

Thank you all for the help.

[megcornell]

Has his shell always been curved a little? It seems like there must be at least a little genetics involved in such a sharp curve. Improving the diet goes a long way to preventing further damage in terms of pyramiding and I assume also with the unusual curving. But it won't undo the damage. As the turtles shed and their shells keep growing the pyramiding will look reduced though, so it won't always be so noticeable.
Nice job on their tank, I like it!

[emma]

Nice tank and cute turtle!

[MasterSplinter]

He will dive when he's spooked that's their natural defense mechanism... their strongest in the water... they move the fastest and can hide the best...
His ramp looks a little long and I wouldn't b surpised is you found him just hanging out on the ramp sometimes...

the curling "might" be genetic, but certainly a recessive gene if that... the shell in that area looks awefully thick... but yes over time if you correct diet and lighting you should see an improvement in appearance as he grows...

The diet sounds good... try some kale instead of lettuce... it holds up better in the water...

Good LucK

[octpusgirl8]

The bulbs you're using don't provide UVB. You'll need to get another for that. Mercury vapor bulbs are the only true all-in-one bulbs. When you go shopping, make sure the packaging says UVB specifically. Read this, it'll help you out with the specifics: http://www.redearslider.com/light_sources.html

[SpotsMama]

If you go for a mercury vapor bulb (all-in-one, provides both heat and UVB), there are two main ones to choose from - Powersun (100 watt flood) and T Rex (100 watt flood). Your tank is big enough for an MVB - that's what I would get if I were you. There are also some other brands of MVB out there that may be good but I don't think the test results are in on them yet.

The turtle tuff halogen is a good bulb for heat. Its main benefit is that it is shatterproof. Other types of heat bulbs, including the MVBs, are vulnerable to shattering if cool water splashes on them because they burn so hot.

[Krzyspam]

I am very interested in using some of your basic design ideas!! I am curious, is the ramp made from a store bought dock?? I have one that looks like it might be the same product...did it have suction cups on it originally? Also, looks like zip ties or something holding the ramp onto the edge of the tank...what are the zip ties holding onto? Is there something behind your tank that they are anchored to? Thanks so much!

[LurycNitsuj]

yes, it is a zoomed turtle dock, probably the same one you have. the thing holding it to the tank is actually just a metal clothes hanger bent and holding it in place. I hope it works out for you. please let me know of any help i can be.