just bought a new turtle im not sure if its a map turtle but i think so its about 4cm big and is rarely using the basking lamp atleast i have not seen him use it yet. often floats beside the end of the filter. water temp is 28 degrees C basking lamp is a 40 Watt . i bought sand from the petsmart and it said on the bag it helps filtration but seems to be making the water slightly cloudy should i get rid of it?
It's normal for turtles not to bask when you get them, they feel most vulnerable while they're basking. Give him/her a little time. 28 degrees celsius is a little too warm (unless he's sick) so I'd reccomend you drop it down to 25-26 degrees celsius. Are you also using a UVB light in addition to the 40 watt bulb? I've never been a fan of sand, one of our members had a bad experience with it and there's a chance your turtle may eat it. Although it may say "safe to digest" I don't like the idea of my turtle's stomach full of sand and if it's clouding your water it'd be best to get rid of it. Sand is only for looks and your turtle won't care much. Perhaps a few river rocks would be better?
Sand is really hard to clean too when there's a turtle in the tank. turtles are super messy so you want to do what you can to minimize the cleaning up effort. I think sand is good with dainty little fish but not with RES.
Posted: Mon Feb 12, 2007 7:12 pm Basking questions and water worries
