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| Red Eared Slider TurtleEnclosure Selection Health Feeding Water BreedingOverveiw Filters Water Changes Nitrogen Cycle Ph Overview Water quality is an important factor in the health of your turtles. They will eat, swim, and defecate in the water and it is imperative that it is clean and fresh at all times. Any animal kept in unclean conditions will become highly stressed, which quickly leads to other problems. The Salmonella risk strongly associated with turtles (although it is greatly exaggerated) will be reduced considerably with regular cleaning. It is also recommended that you move the turtles to a smaller tank for feeding. This need not have any decor, but it eliminates a lot of the waste that would normally be left in the main tank. Since turtles often defecate when they eat, you avoid getting this in the enclosure. Any uneaten food can also be easily disposed of. Filters Filtration is a vital aspect of your set up, and is responsible for making sure the water in the aquarium is safe for its inhabitants. A filter works in two ways; firstly it works mechanically, acting like a sieve to pick up large waste particles and floating debris such as food and fish waste. Secondly it works biologically. Tiny microbes live and breed in the filter and these help to neutralise harmful bacteria that grow in the tank. It is important to clean filters very carefully to ensure that the bacteria are not destroyed and the benefits lost. It will take some time for these bacteria to establish in a new aquarium and you should monitor the water levels carefully. It is possible to buy filter start chemicals that introduce these bacteria to a filter and these can help greatly. Whenever new animals are added to a tank, the colonies in the filter will need time to adjust to the new load (about a week) and during this time turtles should be monitored closely for signs of illness and regular checks should be done on water quality. TYPES OF FILTER Under-gravel Filters Under-gravel filters, as the name suggests, are hidden under the substrate and require very little maintenance. They work by sucking water down through the gravel and using the gravel as a filter media. (Cleaning is simply achieved by using a gravel hoover to suck some of the waste out of the gravel.) Water is drawn up a pipe in one corner of the tank by using an "air lift" system, and this creates a suction that pulls water down. The uplift pipe would normally be disguised by plants and other decor and will quickly become green with algae, which will help to disguise it. The uplift pipe clips into a plate, which is fitted over the bottom of the tank to create a space for water movement. An air pump is also needed for this type of filter however but these are relatively cheap, and you may require a small power head to help create water movement. Internal filters (powered) These are the most popular choice for a small habitat, as they provide both adequate filtration, and provide water movement as well. They are usually very easy to remove and clean and can be partially hidden by plants and other decor, even hidden in a rock formation. This type of filter is both smaller and cheaper but will require more regular cleaning, and the cleaning itself is more time consuming since it involves disturbing the tank. They also have the advantage of being slightly quieter, since the water will absorb the faint hum. External Canister Filter External canister filters are the more professional choice, but they have become affordable for the small-scale hobbyist. They have many advantages over the internal powered filters, the main one being the ease of cleaning. As the canister filter is located outside the tank, access for cleaning is much easier and is usually a case of closing valves from the tank and unclipping supply pipes. Then the entire unit can be moved to a sink or can be taken outside to be cleaned without disturbing the aquarium at all. The canister filter return outlet will also normally provide adequate water circulation if the intake is set at the other end of the tank from the outlet. However they do generate slightly more noise and will require a space under the tank for them to be installed. They are considered the best choice for turtle keepers. Water Changes Regular cleaning is vital to your aquariums health and you should change out 25% of the water in the tank every 2 weeks. Use a specially designed aquarium vacuum to suck up the loose debris on the tank floor, and siphon off the water into a bucket. When you have taken out the last bucket of water, keep this to the side and use it to wash out your filters. Disconnect the filter from the power supply and move it out of the way. You need to clean either the carbon (if you have any) or the foam pads, but never both at once since doing this will damage the bacteria living in the filter. To clean the media, gently squeeze the foam in a bucket of old aquarium water until little or no more dirt is coming out of it. Then re-insert the media into the filter and replace it. It is best not to restart the filter until the inlet is resubmersed in water so leave it till the tank is full again. Take out any plastic plants and give them a good scrub to remove algae, then rinse them off and replace them into the tank. You can also give items such as air-stones a good clean to help keep them at their most efficient. Next clean the inside of the glass, either using a soft clean sponge and lightly rubbing the glass on the inside, or else using a special tool for cleaning the inside, available from most stockists. These use a magnet to hold the scrubber on the inside of the pane while you move a counter part around on the outside. Start to refill the tank, slowly adding water to avoid disturbing the substrate. All chemicals and additives (dechlorinator, filter aid, etc) should be added with the first bucket of water. Once it is nearly full, start everything up again and make sure it is all running perfectly then continue to fill the tank to the top. Let it settle and admire your clean and fresh enclosure! YEARLY MAINTENANCE Once a year you should overhaul the tank to get to all the grime and debris you miss during a weekly water change. Move all the turtles into a holding tank and then carry out the rest of the maintenance as quickly as possible. Turn off the heater, lights, and filters and clean the filter as per weekly maintenance. Remove the heater now that it has had a chance to cool down. Drain all of the water out of the tank, and remove all plants a decor into a suitable container to keep them damp. If you are replacing the substrate, discard the old stuff and replace with newly washed substrate. Otherwise, you will need to remove it and scrub it, ensuring it is thoroughly rinsed. Get a good sponge and scrub the inside of the tank, preferably outside, running a constant supply of fresh water over it to remove the waste. Now you need to put it all back together. Much of the same applies to this as is in the setting up guide, so read that before continuing. Replace the substrate, filter, and decor, and fill the tank up to the 3 quarter mark. Replace all your plants, giving them a good check to make sure there are no snails lurking under the leaves. Transfer the heater back into the enclosure and switch it back on, fill the tank to the top and power up your filters and lights. At this stage, you can add all your dechlorinator, filter aids, adjust your ph, and make sure everything is moving as it should. I also suggest you add a decent dose of "filter start" or Flora boost" or similar product since most of the beneficial bacteria in your tank will have been destroyed by the clean. Replace your turtles, and monitor the water levels and fish activity very carefully over the next few weeks. If your ammonia and nitrite levels get dangerously high, you can do partial water changes to bring them down until the bacteria stabilises enough to fight it. Nitrogen Cycle Understanding the Nitrogen cycle will help you monitor water quality and plan corrections more effectively. When turtles produce waste, this begins to break down and forms ammonia. Ammonia is irritating to fish and toxic even and low/moderate levels. When the ammonia is drawn into the filter, bilogical processes break it down and convert it into Nitrites, also highly toxic. Further biological actions within the filter then break the nitrites down to nitrates, which are far less harmful. These nitrates are removed with the water changes, as well as being absorbed partially by living plants. Ph Ph, or Percent Hydrogen, is a scale measuring the acidity of the water. The linear scale runs from 0 to 14, where 7 is "neutral", the Ph of pure water. Your Red Eared Sliders will need a Ph of between 6 and 8, essentially the same as most good quality tap water. Ph can be measured with, you guessed it, a Ph meter! They are easily found in any aquarium shop, and cost only a few pounds. The digital ones are best, as they are accurate and can be used over and over again. Ph measuring strips can also be used but they require you to judge the result against a chart and this can lead to error as they are often unclear. Measure your Ph regularly, preferably at each water change and correct it if it is off. Corrections are easy to make with commercial Ph adjusters, as long as they state they are suitable for use in aquariums. Once you achieve the correct Ph, a buffer can be added to resist changes. Any comments or feedback can be sent to webmaster@reptileguides.com. Check back often for updates
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