Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok i just got a 40 long for my 2.5 inch turtle. i have it filled about 3 inches from the top. i used all bottled water to fill it so i know the water is clean and purified, i have a whisper 60 filter on it and a 200 watt heater. now the problem. since the second day i hooked it up it smells terrible. i dont have anything as far as rocks or plants in it yet and i was wondering if it will cure the smell? it smells compairable to urine. any suggestions?

bottled water for turts. Do not use distilled water, spring
water is OK but I would recommend regular old tap water. You
can use a dechlorinater if necessary. Tap water has some
chemicals that actually kills some bacteria but are harmless
to your turtles. I am willing to bet that the smell is due
to feces/bacteria. Try switching to tap water with a
dechlorinater to see if the smell goes away. It will be
much cheaper in the long run too.

Hope this helps
Linda

The smell is do to waste given off by the turtle and since there is no nitrifying bacteria in your water yet their is nothing to convert the smell of the waste. I recommend doing 1/3-1/2 water changes once a week for the next few weeks and give your tank a chance to cycle. If you don't leave some of the "smelly" water in there won't be any anything for the bacteria to feed on and your culture will never grow and tank never cycle.

Put some dechlorinator in the new tap water when you add it to the tank too. If you are doing these heavy water changes you don't want chlorine affecting your tank's cycle time.

Does your turtle have anything in the tank to bask on?

Steve

he has a basking ramp and light and all of that. the reason i use bottled water is that we have well water and it is VERY high in salt so much so that it is undrinkable by even us. when i use the tap water it leaves mineral deposits on the glass that i cant seem to get off. but ill try to use it and see what happens.

dude,

feed your turtle in a separate bucket. the smell is probably from uneaten food and waste too.

get a good filter with carbon pellts too

dude, notice i said i have a whisper 60 filter. it has carbon pellets. i do feed my turtle in a separate container. i have since figured out the smell is ammonia and have cured my problem.