Posted: Fri May 15, 2009 8:16 am
Well for a 20gallon a power filter-( the one that hangs on the outside of the tank) Will do you well. Get one rated 40-75 gallons. There the dual waterfall ones.
For 55gallon. Same filter but 2 or look into larger more expensive canister filters.
Food- reptomin, romaine lettuce rotating everyother day will be good. but lots of other food to throw in with it too im sure someone will add on or search the site.
Snacks - Fish are a great snack to feed feed your turtle a couple times a month but when choosing what fish to feed your turtle you should look for feeder fish like Guppies, Red Rosies, Tuffies which are healthy to feed to your turtle, goldfish are cheap but the reason not to get is the fact that they are high in fat and should be avoided as a fish to feed your turtle. Also the dried shrimp is another nice snack that will get any turtle to eat
Bulbs- A normal house hold bulb 75 watts or above to produce a basking in the 90 degree range. You also need a heater to keep the water around 75 degrees.
Also a Uva/Uvb bulb of 5.0, these are very specific fluorescent bulbs that are designed to produce the same uva/uvb that the sun does. This is very important to turtle growth, helps them absorb Vitamin D3 for the metabolism of calcium in bodies. Also a note with these bulbs if you have glass or a very fine screen in front of the bulb it block most if not all of the rays from getting to the turtle.
Basking area- you can do what you want. It just has to be completly dry. Most people use a floating turtle dock.