General Care Discussion :: I just bought a 120 gallon tank and need to know...

[dtarver]

Hello

I just bought a 120 gallon tank.

How do I keep the water clear and reduce the amonia smell?
I have a filstar XP3 that I rinse out every two weeks, and I change the water once a week.

I fill it 2/3 rds.

I use 'stress coat' and 'turtle clean'.

I have nickle sized stones for substrate just one layer to prevent my 7" turtle from scratching the seal.

Thank you,
Dora

[papoopeepoo]

You change your water every week? You shouldn't need to do that. I haven't needed to do a 100% water change on my 135 gallon since I set it up 8 months ago, I only compensate for evaporation by adding 3.5 gallons every week. I test the water biweekly and chemical levels are fine.

You should let your filter cycle to gain beneficial bacteria. The bacteria take 2-3 weeks to get established, so be patient.

You may also need a larger filter, one that does about 400GPH. I recommend the Fluval FX5.

[mikee]

dtar-ver -- The xp3 only puts out 350gph. You need at least 5 times per hour water exchange per hour. When the manufacturer says it is for a 175 gallon tank that means for fish. I would suggest that you consider a FX5 which is a larger filter. If you get your biological filter going you should not have to change your water that much. That is a lot of water! m.

[jozzep]

To reduce the smell of ammonia, add activated carbon to one of your filter baskets.
At this time i'm running a fluval 404 on my 125 gallon.To my surprise as well, it's keeping it crystal clear!I had the filter laying around so i tried it before purchasing an FX5,needless to say, i don't need one.

[Azfar]

Jozzep - the one your 125 gallon tank is the tank you just finish setup isn't it? with the red cabinet stand. and you use Fluval 404 and the water is crystal clear? Woww..

I think you might remember me the one dat have 90 gallon tank.. so is it worth it for me to get Fluval 404 instead FX5?? 404 a bit cheaper than FX5, different about RM400..

[jozzep]

Of course i remember you Azfar
Yup that's the tank....I already had the fluval 404,so tried it, and it works great.But if you don't have a filter,an FX5 is top notch.

[Azfar]

Owh I see.. In my 'Dream List for my Turtles' is to get FX5.. but I'm worried I can't afford it.. It cost about RM1000. the cheapest I can get is around RM950. No less. But I'm still saving on it just dunno when can get RM1000.

If Fluval 404, here sell about RM600... but if you said that yours can handle 125 Gallon.. why not my 90 gallon

[TheComputerGremlin]

Dora - First, congrats on the 120 gallon tank! You make many of us jealous! As others have said, don't change the water weekly. As long as your tank is cycling well and your filter up and running, you should ideally change out about 25% of your water every 2-6 weeks, depending on the water tests. You can buy these cheap test strips from Walmart or a pet store and use them for the weekly tests. Once your nitrate levels get too high, do a 25% water change, never more.

For your filter, just because it's not doing 5x doesn't mean it won't be effective. Give it a try, and see how it works first. I'd say that you should clean out your filter, and only your filter, every 2-6 weeks, depending on how quickly it gets messy (you'll need to judge this yourself). You want to make sure that your BioChemZorb is still fresh (I change mine every 3-6 months, depending on how smelly it becomes). If you haven't changed it in the last 6 months, I'd go out and buy a new pack! Each time you clean your filter, give it a good power spray sort of wash to knock out as much as you can. Also, you need to have biological filtration going, you can use either some form of bio spheres/stars or ceramic rings, your choice. When you clean your filter, set aside some tank water and pull out your bio filtration and immediately put it into the tank water. Wash everything else in your filter down as good as you can, but NEVER, EVER WASH THE BIO FILTRATION. You'll kill off your good bacteria, which you want around. It's the bacteria cycle that converts stinky ammonia into nitrite and then into nitrate, which we remove with a 25% water change.

Give that a good try and see if things have improved after about a month.

[jozzep]

Owh I see.. In my 'Dream List for my Turtles' is to get FX5.. but I'm worried I can't afford it.. It cost about RM1000. the cheapest I can get is around RM950. No less. But I'm still saving on it just dunno when can get RM1000.

If Fluval 404, here sell about RM600... but if you said that yours can handle 125 Gallon.. why not my 90 gallon

Well the thing is.....the more water is in a tank, the cleaner it stays believe it or not.
Example.....If you have 3 turtles defecating in a 55 gallon tank and in 125 gallon tank without any filter at all...Which one would stay cleaner?
The 125 gallon because there is more water for the feces to dissolve in.
What it comes down to, if you can't afford an FX5, a fluval 405 would do just fine....If anything you just have to clean it more often.

[dtarver]

You change your water every week? You shouldn't need to do that. I haven't needed to do a 100% water change on my 135 gallon since I set it up 8 months ago, I only compensate for evaporation by adding 3.5 gallons every week. I test the water biweekly and chemical levels are fine.

You should let your filter cycle to gain beneficial bacteria. The bacteria take 2-3 weeks to get established, so be patient.

You may also need a larger filter, one that does about 400GPH. I recommend the Fluval FX5.

1. Yes, I change the water weekly.
2. I just bough the Filtstar XP3 and do not need to buy a new filter

[dtarver]

dtar-ver -- The xp3 only puts out 350gph. You need at least 5 times per hour water exchange per hour. When the manufacturer says it is for a 175 gallon tank that means for fish. I would suggest that you consider a FX5 which is a larger filter. If you get your biological filter going you should not have to change your water that much. That is a lot of water! m.

My 120 gallon tank is only half full. the xp3 is enough. I bought it from a turtle expert (store).

[dtarver]

To reduce the smell of ammonia, add activated carbon to one of your filter baskets.
At this time i'm running a fluval 404 on my 125 gallon.To my surprise as well, it's keeping it crystal clear!I had the filter laying around so i tried it before purchasing an FX5,needless to say, i don't need one.

Activated carbon is inside the XP3. It is one of the many trays in that device.

[dtarver]

Dora - First, congrats on the 120 gallon tank! You make many of us jealous! As others have said, don't change the water weekly. As long as your tank is cycling well and your filter up and running, you should ideally change out about 25% of your water every 2-6 weeks, depending on the water tests. You can buy these cheap test strips from Walmart or a pet store and use them for the weekly tests. Once your nitrate levels get too high, do a 25% water change, never more.

For your filter, just because it's not doing 5x doesn't mean it won't be effective. Give it a try, and see how it works first. I'd say that you should clean out your filter, and only your filter, every 2-6 weeks, depending on how quickly it gets messy (you'll need to judge this yourself). You want to make sure that your BioChemZorb is still fresh (I change mine every 3-6 months, depending on how smelly it becomes). If you haven't changed it in the last 6 months, I'd go out and buy a new pack! Each time you clean your filter, give it a good power spray sort of wash to knock out as much as you can. Also, you need to have biological filtration going, you can use either some form of bio spheres/stars or ceramic rings, your choice. When you clean your filter, set aside some tank water and pull out your bio filtration and immediately put it into the tank water. Wash everything else in your filter down as good as you can, but NEVER, EVER WASH THE BIO FILTRATION. You'll kill off your good bacteria, which you want around. It's the bacteria cycle that converts stinky ammonia into nitrite and then into nitrate, which we remove with a 25% water change.

Give that a good try and see if things have improved after about a month.

Thank you! YOUR REPLY was very helpful!

[mackadocious]

i have an xp3 i use on my 135g tank and i've only done a nearly complete water change once in 2 years and that was only b/c i had a non-working filter for almost a month....my tank is only 1/2 to 2/3 way filled, maybe 70-80 gallons and i also only have one turtle in all that water....but i only clean out the filter every 6-8 weeks and that's because the water output has gone down, not because of any change in general water quality...my water is always crystal clear and smell free...i did have to clean the filter much more frequently though when i had 2 turtles in the tank.....that makes a HUGE difference....

[mikee]

dt-ver - If that works for you, great. I choose to use a larger water flow when dealing with turtles. I find that if you are a little short of water flow you are in trouble. When it is a little too much you are fine. I have a Marineland 350 gph on a 29 gallon and it does very well. m.