Reptile & Amphibian Forums

but its not as big as i want it to be. i'm a little short on cash, and i already had a $100 gift certificate for petsmart...so i bought a 46 gallon aquarium. it's glass and its not a rectangle...it curves a little in the front. and it cost like $170. and then i was like "i need a filter, but i dont want to wait" cuz i hate waiting so i bought a fluval 304. and i set it up yesterday, but i dont think my heater is good enough for this larger tank. so the water is at like 60 degrees, i think. and i feel bad for the turtle because its really cold, you know. so today i'm going to get a second heater and see if that will help. and all night i left the heater (for my house) on and i left her light on...so she's been on top of her rock all night.

the light is only a zoomed basking spot lamp and i think its like 100 watt. is that ok??

do i need a ceramic heat lamp too? and everyone is talking about uvb and everything....where do i get that if i need it?

thanks
cathy

ps.. do i need a protein skimmer?
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0.0.1 Red Eared Slider

If you want to ease the load on your existing aquarium heater, put a lid on the tank, or cover it with something. The majority of the heat lost in your tank is through the top. Also your water wont evaporate as fast. Also if you do get a new heater, get a metal one instead of glass. I got a 300 W titatnium at fishsupply.com you can get [Pro-Heat TITANIUM Heater... 300 W Sale Price : $24.99] Also the dial thermostat is outside the tank and the temp indicator is separate from the heater. Its a really great deal, and although I dont recommend it, you can abuse it in ways that a glass one would break like turning on high in cold water.
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