General Care Discussion :: Help with new water color -tanish??

[BWest03]

Hi guys,

I have 2 red eared sliders (Buck, and Crush). Usually I clean them weekly and the only color the water may get is a slight greenish if there is alot of alge growth that week.

I cleaned them last tuesday and while i left for a few days on thanksgiving break my roomate took care of them, he had instructions on basking lights/feeding etc, and he has taken care of them before. I got back friday night and by that time in only a few days the water had turn completely tanish/yellowish and the room and hallway up to the room smelled horrible it smelled like a turtle urine/feces smell or at least bological smell nothing chemical. The rocks took the smell and even the turtles themselves when i took them out and got them in clean water still smelled like th scent. I replaced everything sunday and by last night the yellowish color of the water is turning again.

Any thoughts?? this is the first time this has happend and i have had them 3 years.

brandon

[ilikeadabox]

Maybe you should replace your filter media?

[BWest03]

I actually do not have a filter in my tank i clean it out once a week and never had a problem so have never had the need, any other thoughts?

[Fuzzy Hamster]

How big is your tank?

There is a chance that you are just seeing a different kind of algae that is brown, but the smell makes me believe it is a turtle waste problem. Two growing turtles can produce a great deal of waste in a small tank.

Its possible that what you are now seeing is a result of your turtles growing too big for the tank such that cleaning once a week is no longer enough. It may be time to consider an appropriate filter. If you do then you will need to stop doing 100% water changes every week and take some time to learn about the tank water life cycle (a.k.a. nitrogen cycle).

Also, remember that the general rule of thumb is 10 gal. per inch of turtle length, so that for 2 x 3" turtles, you would have about a 60 gallon tank. You could cheat a little and have a 55 gallon tank, but since they will continue to grow to about 10-12" each, a bigger tank is always better. Once you get into anything bigger than about 20 gallons, it can be very cumbersome to do 100% water changes every week, so that is where a good canister filter will pay for itself.

[octpusgirl8]

I'm leaning towards what fuzzy hamster said, it's a combination of a too small tank and inadequate filtration. Tell us about your setup and we can make some suggestions on how you can improve it.

[mikee]

I think Oct-girl is on tract. Sounds like the tank it too small, not enough filtration. You must think in terms of gph when sizing a filter. You need AT LEAST 5 turn overs per hour through proper media in you filter. Good Luck!!

[marisa]

How big are your turtles, how many gallons is the tank, and how much water do you have in it? As turtles grow and become messier, the water will become foul more quickly, especially in a too-small tank, which wouldn't have that much water in it, and with no filtration...

Also, when you say "rocks took on the smell," do you have gravel or small pebbles on the bottom? If so, they will trap poop and other debris, which will cause the tank to smell, often surprisingly quickly.

[bradmeisel]

Please get a filter ... my turtles dirty water in less than an hour when I take them out to clean their tank.