General Care Discussion :: My Shopping List. Problems with Light/Heating Sources

[dangsdunks1]

So i am going to buy a couple of baby Red Ear Slider's and going to house them in a 20 Gallon Long Tank.

So far this is what i am going to purchase.

1) Aqua Clear 50 Filter For 20-50 Gallon Tank
2) Fluval 2 Plus for 24 Gallon Tanks internal Filter
3) Marineland Stealth 50 Visi-Therm Submersible Aquarium Heater
Or if anyone has any other recommendations

4) Zoo Med Turtle Dock
5) Thermometer

So now here's the problem i am having not sure but i read that getting the Mega Ray MVB is just too much heat for my tank size. Should i just get two light sources, one with just a regular light bulb and the other with one that uses UVB such this Zoo Med ReptiSun Compact Fluorescent UVB Lamp? http://www.petco.com/product/13365/Zoo-Med-ReptiSun-Compact-Fluorescent-UVB-Lamp.aspx It's pretty expensive, any cheaper alternatives? And with the regular light bulb i heard it just doesnt give off enough UVA, so should i just use one of those basking bulbs?

The only problem that i have is the light/heating source, so let me know what you would do for a 20 Gallon Tank, Thanks so much. [/url]

[francinemarie]

for UVB you can try this -> http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... Id=2752555

[TheComputerGremlin]

Unless your tank is over 50 gallons, any MVB will be too much. You will fry the little babies! Just stick with the two bulb setup for now, or get a larger tank. You'll need one anyways.

Might I suggest that rather than "a couple", you just get one? He/She won't be lonely, and you will reduce the potential for future problems (such as aggression and mating). Just because they were hatched together or grew up together, doesn't mean that those two issues won't come up. If you do insist on getting a couple, remember that at any time, you will need double the tank size (so your 20 gallon tank will be too small as soon as you get the turtles), and you will want to start a fund to purchase additional equipment when the time comes. It may be a few years, it may be a few months, but aggression is almost certain. At that time, your turtles will need to be separated permanently, and that will require an additional ~$500 setup for EACH turtle.

Back to your question, UVB can be either a 5.0 ReptiSun or ReptiGlo, the compact version is more common than the tube, it's easier to work into the setup. The heating element can just be a common incandescent bulb, I'd recommend starting around 60W and check your basking temps until you find a distance/wattage that gives you the temps you need. Don't bother with those turtle bulbs, they just cost too much for the same thing.