Habitat - Indoor :: there is something wrong with the water!

[akerc758]

I have a couple of turtles in a 40 gallon aquarium. I have the right amount of water in the tank for the size of their shells, but the water is a yellowish cloudy color and I don't know what is wrong. Does anyone have any idea what I am doing wrong or what the water needs?

[Muirner]

Water change, i'd suggest at least 30%. Make sure the water your adding is close to the same temp

Also how many turts do you have in the aquarium? And how big are they?

[akerc758]

I have four turtles in the tank...they range in sizes. One is about the size of a tennis ball and the others are a lot smaller than him.

[mkoby]

Do you have a filter? Turtles are very messy.

[akerc758]

I have 2 smaller filters in the tank right now, but I am not sure that they are working due to the fact that the water is so yellow. I have to change the water so often just to get it clear again...is that normal or do I need stronger filters to clear up the yellow water problem?

[cam722]

I can tell you what a large majority of your problem is... 4 turtles in a 40 gallon tank is going to get dirty VERY quickly, regardless of the filtration. Turtles are super messy. I strongly suggest you think about upgrading their tank. You can get rubbermaid containers for them which aren't as expensive as a glass tank. The tank you have may be adequate for 2 small turtles for a bit of time but by a year old each turtle should be around 3" each which would require 30 gallons of water PER turtle. That's 120 gallons.

Btw, have you read up on any of the basic care information? If not, you may want to read up on the needs of your turtles

You can start here..

http://www.redearslider.com/res-guide.pdf

http://www.redearslider.com/res-feeding%20list.pdf

Here is the index for the website..

http://www.redearslider.com/index_topics.html

[Pizza]

Yeah, when I first got my turtles and before I had my filter set up, they made the water real stinky, and nasty in 1-2 days after a full water change. It was all clouded and yellow, with floating skin all over the place, .

[daredevilgirl013]

Go to a farm store, like tractor supply and get a stock tank. They are really cheap and light, and soo easy to use!

You can get a rather large one for under 50.00 (I got my 50 gallon one for like 20.00) and the bigger ones, have valves on them that you can undo to let the water drain so water changes are a breeze!! Go that way. So much cheaper than a tank, and you don't have to worry about anything cracking and breaking like you have to with glass aquariums.

[marisa]

Stock tanks are good!