Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I've been thinking about putting a pond in my basement (that would sound really weird to anyone without reptiles). I was thinking about using landscaping timbers and a pond liner. It will probably be 4' x 6' and 1.5 to 2' deep. I plan on keeping three turtles in it(RES, painted, and map). All three are only a couple inches right now, but I'm actually planning ahead. Was wondering if anyone has any advice, opinions, plans, or whatever. Also, any idea on the cost. What type of filter would be best, and how much $ for it. My basement is unfinished, so I'm not worried about ruining carpet or anything.

You have probably already thought about this, but...do you have a drain in your basement? (I live on the West Coast (CA) and we don't even have basements.) I was just thinking of the need to drain and clean the pond occasionally and with the size you described that's a lot of gallons.

Also, have you considered any of the preformed ponds. They come pretty large and would eliminate the need for all the lumber and liner. Just my 2 cents - for what its worth.

BTW, I was looking for waterfall pumps for my Tegu cage recently and found www.cheappumps.com to have very good prices and incredibly fast shipping (like 2 days after I ordered it was delived.) You might check them out.

This (pic) is a lot smaller than you have in mind, but Maggie likes it.
MAP

I was actually looking at the preformed ponds at home depot the other day. Thinking that might be a better way to go. I do have a drain in the basement. And I will check out the cheap pumps website, thanks for that.
BTW, I love the cage for your tegu! Very nice work.
Thanks again for the input.

what kind of pump do u have , very much impressed by the way, george bigkibbee@aol.com

first thing that comes to mind ... mold problems not in the pond but in the basement from the moisture the pond will provide most basements are usally a haven for molds and molds can be dangerous to us humans and other reptiles. now with that sais i agree with MAP on this but one thing id do is build the sides out of say like 4x4-4x6's and top it off with plywood ( marine grade or treated)then purchase a pre formed pond from a place like lowes / homedepot then you could make you own filter by using like a 5 gallon bucket /PVC connectors and proper charcoal or fiber pads im writing this outta my head right now but if i have the time and you are interested i can poss try to get ya some soret of design over the next couple a days let me know
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Buisnesses come and go everyday, what keeps you here is how you treated the customer the day before....

I was thinking about going with a preformed pond. As far as the mold, I have a dehumidifier in my basement, but actually hadn't thought of mold problems, so thanks for mentioning it. If you have the time, any plans you can come up with would be greatly appriciated. Thanks again!

I have a finished basement and I have turtles down there. There are a couple of larger tanks and I had mold problems right from the start (major pain). I had to scrub stuff down, and spray it with bleach. I now have a dehumidifier in the same room running 24/7 and it seemed to solve the problem. Also the room I have them in is a smaller room. Something like 15ft x 10ft. So for a larger room you will need muiltiple dehumidifiers. Air movement also helps a lot. Mold likes damp, dark, humid conditions so if you have a fan moving the air, and a dehumidifier/s running you should not have any problems. If you want more info go to www.Austinsturtlepage.com and join the forums. They are very helpful and are sure to help you out.
Chris D.
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Hey mine name is Chris and I currently have 1.0 Midland Painted, 1.0 YBS, 1.1 Leopard geckos, 1.0 Bearded Dragon