Equipment Review and Discussion :: Aqua Clear a good brand?? What kind of Water plants can I...

[CrossKnight]

Hi I was wondering if Aqua Clear is a good brand for a filter or is BioWheel better?

Also can you guys name some underwater plants I could put into my tank for my turtles or plants that help the water in some way, also will my turtles eat the plants.

Are there any toys I can buy for my turtles also??

Thanks for the help!!

[steve]

Both are good, though I've only had first hand expereince with the AquaClear. I think I've heard that the BioWheel might need abit more cleaning.

[cam722]

I personally love the Aquaclear filters. Many can't handle the noise of the waterfall due to the lower water levels you have with turtles.

As for water plants you can use for your turtle.. there is a list under Feeding and Nutrition, in the what to feed your turtle. Basically any plant you can use in an aquarium should be safe for your turtle. There may be a few exceptions, although I'm not aware of any .. but I'm sure someone else will fill you in

[CrossKnight]

Ok, Thanks guys

[Muirner]

Does anyone have any advice on how to keep those plants alive? I have an acanchris plant and an amazon sward, and the anachris seems to be a bit iffy

[marisa]

If you put them in with your turtle, they probably won't last that long. My RES never liked Amazon swords, but he'd still rip them up and make a mess. He likes anachris to eat. You could buy a quantity of the plants and put only some some in the tank. I have a separate tank where I keep plants in clean water for future use. I'm not sure about Amazon swords, but anachris likes light, water that's not too warm and good filtration.

[CrossKnight]

Hey, I have another question. How deep must the water be for the Aqua Clear filter? Can some one give me measurements in inches please, thank you.

[marisa]

It doesn't have to be that deep, but the noise it makes is much louder when the depth is lower.

[CrossKnight]

I just bought it today, I have a 20 gallon tank so I bought a Aqua Clear 50 gallon tank, the noise is loud but I love that it is like a waterfall. I'll wait a couple of days to see if it filters really well.

[CrossKnight]

hmmmm. I was reading somethings about benificial bacteria colonies using the Aqua Clear Filter but I do not understand it. Something to do with nitrates too.

Also is says to clean the filter media with existing tank water to perserve the colony growth but what is the filter media?? the with foam, black bag, or the white chaky thingy??

Can someone give me detailed instructions on how to clean the Aqua Clear filter and the tank please?

[cam722]

The filter media is the sponge and whatever else you decide to use.. like carbon or biomedia. It's all of the ones you mentioned

It's really not as difficult to clean as you're making it seem to be. You just rinse the media in water taken from the tank when you're cleaning it. Save some in a bucket or something like that.. if you clean the whole tank, you can just rinse the media in the tank before you empty it completely. You should try not to do a complete cleaning at the same time you change to new media either. Simple as that

[CrossKnight]

ok, thanks. Phew, I thought it would be more complicated.

[marisa]

I used the Aquaclear 50 on a 10-gallon tank.

[Muirner]

Has anyone tried to put a banana plant in their tank? I just went out today and picked up some new plants (1 bunch of anachris, 1 banana plant, and 1 Green fern.) I figure the banana is just because it's cool, and the green fern is to "hide" behind.

Anyways, there are mini bananas on it... these wont hurt my turtle will they? And be watching i'll have new pics, i got a background too tonight. more to come.

[marisa]

Bananas are really high in phosphorus and sugar. They should only be a rare treat. When/if I give my turts any banana, I give only a sliver or two. I can't remember the last time I fed them any.