Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi everyone,
i been keeping herps since i can remember. i love them all and finally have the space and money to pursue a passion. my question to you is what would you put in a 90gal aqarium other than fish. i have to rule out monitors as well. i have this 90G that was given to me for free and i can not decide what to use it for. this would be for display purposes only, not into breeding, at least not yet. snakes? lizards? turtles? i hope someone out there can inspire me. thanks!

torts and box turtles make good pets and with a 90gal you have space for a nice indoor ecnclosure for them i like small torts EX. russian torts, greek torts, herman torts and other tesduo speicies. or box turtles if you want these you have to act fast because no more imported eastern box turtles are coming in!!! i got this news from my local pet shop, a law was recently passed, but you would want a CB anyway but finding eastern box turtles may be tuffer now. any of these coices make good pets. but torts have a good personality and in my expirience eastern box turtles are more skittish. you may have enogh space for a pair and you may be able to breed torts with out hibernation. i have never hibernated my torts but when i introduced a female to my male, mating behavior started immidietley. i hope you choose a good pet for yor tank and have fun with what ever you choose.

cool i always wanted torts. what species can i keep indoors year round i live in pgh pa? i am assuming they will need some source of lighting & heat correct? i hear they have personality too. sounds cool. ill check out the forums over there.

What's the tank's dimensions?

If its 18-inches or more wide, you might want to consider a Bearded Dragon or two.

Once you decide what you're going to get, the second thing I'd do if I were you would be to build, or have someone else build, a solid top for the tank. You'll need to determine how you're going to provide light & heat and make the top accordingly. Screen tops make it harder to maintain humidity levels.

Have a good one!
HH
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It is said that 1 out of every 4 people are mentally unbalanced. Think of your 3 closest friends, if they're normal, then it's you.

as far as a top, could i use mostly wood to keep the heat inside the enclosure and screen off a smaller portion of the top? say cover 60-70% with solid wood and screen the rest. what would be the best way to heat the enclosure, heat pads/mat & lights? thanks for your help.

"could i use mostly wood to keep the heat inside the enclosure and screen off a smaller portion of the top?"

Yeah, you can. The wood would need to be sealed (polyurethane or similar coating) in order to keep it from warping, getting damaged, from humidity.

"what would be the best way to heat the enclosure, heat pads/mat & lights?"

That's gonna depend on what you decide to put in there (type/species of animal). The top should be made after you decide what species you're gonna get, that way the top can be designed to work with the methods of heat & light. They'll go hand-in-hand.

Once you decide your critter type you can go to that specific forum and ask for advice from those with experience with those critters.

Here's a pic of a top I threw together in a hurry to get me out of a jam. I didn't have a top for a 55-gal. tank that I needed to temporarily house a Burm in so I made one out of wood, plexiglass & screen. The screen is under the dome light and the plexiglass has several small holes drilled in the opposite end for thermal regulation.

Take care!
HH
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It is said that 1 out of every 4 people are mentally unbalanced. Think of your 3 closest friends, if they're normal, then it's you.

EXCELLENT. THANKS. THE PICS HELP A LOT, I TRIED TO MAKE A TOP BEFORE, BUT LOOKED NOTHING LIKE YOURS LOL. I AM GONNA USE THAT FOR A BLUEPRINT THOUGH.

my bad the dims are 49Lx18.5Wx24H