General Care Discussion :: General Questions

[g29w]

So, I have 2 hatchlings...

I just got a filter, and the water current seems to have surprised them. Do I need to turn the water output down or will it be okay? They are clinging on to my water plants (fluval3plus)

Also, I put some river rocks, but they don't really seem to play with the rocks...is that case for your baby turtles?

Is there anything else besides some plants+rocks for me to put in the aquarium for them to play with?

Usually when they eat lettuce, there is a mess, can the filter handle it? I think pellets should be okay. Also, I heard about turtle getting trapped by the filter and drowning, do I have to worry about that? (I doubt it right?)

Thanks.

[adam85491]

I have a fake plant filled with large pebbles and a stone frog to push around, but they don't seem to move it around too much. I added a larger dragon because it seems like they could chase each other around it and there is no way to get stuck in it. I would also like to ask a related question. When I feed my turtles, the food that sinks to the bottom while they are eating it, like when it breaks off, just floats to the bottom. I have a strong enough filter and it is submersible, but I am only expecting it to clean the turtle treats and other small and floating things. Should I expect my filter to suck up the left-overs?

[industrial_girl_2000]

How big is your tank? How much water is in the tank? You can turn down the strength of the filter. Underneath where the water comes out, there is a small blue lever that slides back and forth. Turn it to the "minus" sign and the water will go slower thru the filter. I had to do this recently with my turtle tank because the water was shooting out of the filter too fast, causing a lot of turbulence. Also, I didn't want any of the fish I had in there to get sucked into the filter.

I moved my fluval 2 away from the wall so that there is no way for my turtle to get stuck between the fluval & the glass tank wall. I stuck the filter to the floor of the tank, but just allowed space all around.

[g29w]

I have ~25 gal tank. Maybe I should just stick it on to the bottom of the tank.
I didn't notice that I had to rinse the foam pads before installing it, and it seems the water is getting cloudy. Should I rinse it ASAP?

Does putting it on min affect the amount of water filtered?

[lisajonathan00]

I know I read that you need to bake or boil your river rocks. Your filter being stron may have been pulling some things off of your rocks as well. Maybe clean them and rinse the foam pads.

[g29w]

O, I bleached the rocks, and then boiled them and rinsed them. They are pretty clean.

[cam722]

How big are the rocks? Are they too big for the turtle to move around? maybe they just aren't bored enough to want to play.. or they like where they are Mine would move them to redecorate or when they were searching for food.

Turning the filter down will affect the gph it filters along with the suction and return flow. What kind of filter do you have?

[lisajonathan00]

Ok I was just wandering.

[g29w]

I have the fluval3plus. I didn't get the aquaclear only bc I needed it to be quiet - couldn't have a waterfall in the room. Hmm, maybe if I can turn the output nozzle toward the aquarium wall, it might help?

The river rocks are between half their size to their head size. I tried to make sure they weren't too big so they didn't eat it.

Also, I was wondering if I could put in a calcium pill into the tank and that would help them? The type you get from costco. Just curious, cause I have a whole bunch that I haven't touched in a while.

[marisa]

You should rinse all the media before you put it in a filter. I wouldn't turn the flow down completely---experiment a little to see how little you really have to turn it down (if you do). Turning the nozzle toward the tank will will break the current. Do you have the nozzle under water?

By calcium pill, do you mean an actual calcium supplement meant for humans? What form of calcium is it and what added ingredients does it have in it? Why not just get some cuttlebone and let a few head-sized pieces float in the tank for them to nibble on (and you take the calcium supplement)?

[industrial_girl_2000]

You don't need calcium pills, just go to the store & get something called "cuttlebone" which is what birds have in their cages (big flat white bony looking thing). Take the metal bracket off the cuttle & carefully peel the hard backing off the cuttle with a sharp knife. The hard backing is the side of the cuttle that you can't push your fingernail into. You have to peel it off because your turtle won't be able to eat that. Don't worry if you break the cuttlebone when you peel the hard backing off....you prolly just want to put maybe a 1 inch or 1/2 inch chunk of it in the tank since they don't eat it that fast. You can always add more if they start eating it fast.

Just put the pieces of cuttlebone in the bottom of the tank (or sometimes it floats) & the turtle can nibble on it. Leave it in there till it's gone. No need to take it out.

[Turtle Love]

I got this Dr. Turtle Calcium Supplement. From what I understand it’s supposed to dissolve in the tank. Does that work the same way? Would it be better to get a cuttlebone? Are they supposed to eat the product I purchased? I put it somewhere they couldn’t get to because I didn’t think they were supposed to. Should I move it?

[marisa]

I'd just get the cuttlebone. It's cheaper and is probably a better form of calcium than the kind used in the Dr. Turtle. I've heard of some keepers' turtles eating the block and I've never heard of them having ill effects from it---but, if the directions say it's supposed to dissolve, then that's what it's meant to do. Next time, try the cuttlebone.