What can I do to keep my turtles water clean?

Question

I have 2 turtles(a 4 inch painted and a 5 inch red ear slider). they are in a 29 gallon tank and the filter I have is for a 20-40 gallon tank. I feed them a bunch of different foods but they eat all of it so I know its not extra food, but the water gets really dirty really fast. Its annoying to change the water a lot because the tank is so big.

Answer 1

The key is a decent filter.  Maybe the one you have isn't appropriate for turtles, since they require more quality filters than fish.  Also, you can throw some medicated sulfa blocks in there to help kill bacteria.  Scoop all extra food out after they've gotten a chance to eat it.  

Turtles are really dirty.  My water stays clear for a few weeks without having to do much, since I got a nicer filter.

Answer 2

I run a reverse flow bio filter for my turtles in a 40 gallon tank.   It stays clear 99% of the time with a 10 inch snapper in there.  She can really mess up a tank too.

I scoop the excess food religiously, and use turtle clean in the tank weekly to help..though I admit the tank is a bit cloudy today,  I added some real wooden limbs for her from the pet store yesterday and they've changed the biology.  It should be clear again in a day or so though.

For the two small guys I have  a 4 inch pained, and 4 inch red belly  I use a turle clean 315 filter, and wash the foam inserts weekly.

Answer 3

you could try feeding them in another place..ie. a different and or just a little water in a dish big enough for them to feel comfy.. or dual filtration..like an under-gravel and an out on the back one..good luck.

Answer 4

getting a filter cleans the water for like a week!! And it cleans out the disguise in the water.!

Answer 5

Getting a filter will help a lot and will take a lot of the dirty work out of cleaning

Answer 6

i have 4 turtles in a 55 gallon fish tank and i change my water every 2 weeks cause they go to the bath room in there tank and it burns there eyes.....just get a garden hose and put it in your tank and try to suck the water through the hose just make sure you don't swolle the water or take a big cup and get a bucket and take water out that way... im sorry but no filter will work on a turtle tank i already tried.... so in the spring and summer they spend most of there time outside in a kiddy pool and in the winter they stay in there tank with a heater

Answer 7

Your tank is to small, you should have 10 gallons of water per 1 inch of shell length. With the size of turtles you have you should have 90 gallons of water.

There is no such thing as too much filtration. When determining water kind of filter to get, think big. You can't overdo it, so rest assured. Turtles release more waste in one day than a fish does in over a week, so make sure you go with something that will accommodate your little friends' bathroom habits. A charcoal insert into any filter system will help fight the smell that comes with having our friends.

Rule of thumb is arrange filtration rated for a tank 2 - 3 times the size of what the turtles are in. Do NOT factor in only having the tank partially filled; a half-filled 20 gallon tank should get a filter rated for a 60 gallon tank, not a 30 gallon. This assumes a ‘turtle load’ of about 3 turtles up to a year old in a 20 gallon long, perhaps 3 adult male basking turtles in a 75 gallon tank, etc… If you have a 75 gallon tank with one basking turtle, a filter rated for a 75 gallon tank might do although I’d still aim for twice.

On large tanks (55 gallon & up) consider using 2 filters; this spreads out the intake and outflow a bit, and if one filter breaks, you don’t loose all your bacterial colonies. Put intake and outflow lines at opposite ends of the tank; this helps ensure your filter filters all the water, without ‘dead pockets.

Answer 8

I feed mine in a different container and it has made a world of a difference scine they usually defecate right after eating. Then most of the mess is in that other container that I dump out daily. Also the more filtration the better!

Answer 9

Change it often.