Reptile & Amphibian Forums

alright after i change my water...my turtles often close their eyes even though they arent sleeping...im sure they are doing it cause the chlorine is hurting their eyes...is this really bad for them?...is it something i shoudl be concerned about? (by the way i attached a pic of my tank)

another pic...this is Mionk

and this is Spyder

You might try a product called Amquel which removes nitrate, ammonia and chlorine from the water. This way your turtle would not feel discomfort from the chlorine. There are many products available at pet stores for this purpose. Just squirt a couple of teaspoons into the tank as you are adding fresh water. Give it a try.

I use Aqua-Safe. I put it in as I fill the tank after water changes. I've never noticed my RES or map turtles having any discomfort. They don't seem to like the hose being in there though

Another piece of advice: your tank looks nice and clean, but put more water in it. You're wasting about 1/3 of the tank which not only means lower water quality than if you had more water, but less room for the turtles to play. These turtles love deep water. My water is about 12" deep and I'd have more in there if I could keep them from climbing out from the basking area.

Your RES has some nice color.

thanks for the compliments, i do want to raise the water, i just need to find some better rocks, ones that will make my basking area go up higher...and one that will have a good amount of size for both my babies to get on, right now only one of them can bask comfortably....anyways, i just dont know what i should use to make a better basking area....one reason i also dont want to add more big rocks...is because then i will have to clean more...its a lot work...especially w/ the damn algea...i have to take them out and scrub them...its annoying....anyways any suggestions on making a better basking area without using big heavy rocks...??

Here's a link to see pics of my basking area.

I have very little problems with algae. You might try some different methods to do away with the algae so you won't have to clean so much. I havn't cleaned my rock since I put it in the tank. I wipe down the walls of the tank about once a month or less.

The thing I don't like about using rocks for basking is that you have to build them up high and it takes a lot of water space. I wanted something that would hang from the top, so I made mine. It will be plenty strong enough for any turtle that isn't too big to fit on it....and when they get too big, I'll make one bigger.
My Basking area

Hi there,
I bought a Turtle Ramp from http://www.drsfostersmith.com/
I think they are on sale now. It has 3 suction cups and are rather sturdy. You can raise it as high as you would need it, but just be sure the lil ones can't climb out. My turtles love it!

Good luck!

hi! i recently bought a turtle dock. i have the turtle ramp...but i got a small---and it seems to small for the turtle. and the Turtle Dock looks awesome because it seems it would be easier for the turtle to climb. here's a pic:

http://www.petdiscounters.com/small_animal/reptile/turtle/zm_turtle_dock.html

and i'm trying to think of a way to make something for when my turtle gets big. and i also hate putting rocks into the tank. my family is pretty creative...so once i'll figure something out...then i'll post it. lol.
bye
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