Equipment Review and Discussion :: ok ok give it to me straight!!!!!

[bro616]

i got my res winslow thanksgiving weekend(06)...10 bucks off a corner.since then he has survived a trip from pheonix AZ to san bernardino CA..with no heat...and a couple months with no heat....ive slowly been adding things and now ive got it all setup..basking,filter,food,heat,plants...in a 20 gallon tank (i know...to small)

soooooo now ive ran into some extra bucks and im ready to upgrade.theres this aquaclear setup from wal-mart thats 55 gallon tank,filter and heater for $160. is it worth it???
i can get a 60 gallon tank for 90 dollars. but if i do that id like to know what the best filter would be??

could you compare the best ones or give me a detailed list of the different ones... because reading all the post is very confusing..

thank you so so much!!!

[Turtle addict]

For a res I go with the fluval 4 plus, less noise...they sit in the water all the way. and they seem to work well with mine getting all the mess. The fluval 4 plus runs about $30-$40. Cheaper to get the tank and a seperate filter.

[kinetic]

dont bother with the setup from walmart in my experience with their setups... it comes with a filter (which works but isnt very ideal for turtles cause it doesnt get the waste or food crumbs from the bottom of the tank very often) the hood/lamp that comes with it fits the tank and is a good idea but depending on where you have your water level and what kind of basking dock you have it will most likely be useless

you will have better luck looking for a tank from ebay.com or craigslist.com they usually come with stands, and some extra accessories... sometimes even filters

look into getting what turtle addict suggested, a couple other filters to look at that ive seen others suggest are the Rena Filstar Xp3 or Xp4 and the Fluval 305 or 405 they are canister filters so they run a bit higher in $$ but people here seem to really endorse them

[SpotsMama]

One of my turtle's many different habitats was the walmart setup. The tank, heater etc were fine but the filter didn't do anything and I ditched it.

I'd strongly recommend a Rena Filstar XP3 for a 55 or 60 gallon tank. They're quiet, easy to run, do a good job, and they sit outside the tank so they don't take up any of the swimming room inside. I'm currently using one for my 100 gallon tank and am completely happy with it.

[DavidY]

bro616 - A 60 gal tank for $90 is a pretty good deal. Just make sure you avoid those fish tanks that are long and tall but really narrow. Turtles like to have a big area to swim around in.

Turtle addict - holy moly! You got a lot of turtles! I would love to see your setups! That must be really cool!

[bro616]

ohh man thanks to everyone!! i didnt expect a response!! your great..ill keep yall posted!! are the rena filstar xp3s really complicated?? they seem like it.....

[SpotsMama]

The XP3 (and I believe the others in the series) are not complicated. I am mechanically a dunce but set it up by myself and run it without any trouble. It takes maybe 20 minutes to clean.