Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was just wondering how warm is too warm for the water to be. My house has been getting really hot lately and even though I only have the water heater set to 79 the water was 84 today. I have a 50 gal tank that's almost filled all the way so there isn't much I can do to bring the temp down. So what would be considered "danger zone" temps?

My other question is about my turtles shells. They like to rub their shells up against parts of the filter. I was wondering if this was because they are itchy. One of my turtles lets me scratch his shell all the time and he even rubs up against my nails. Is this normal? Do growing shells cause itchy discomfort? Just wondering.

Thanks

With warmer water, your turtles might not have as much of an impulse to bask to get warm, because the water itself is pretty warm. I just kicked my heater back since it's summer, and that is alone keeping the water warmer. Bump your heater back 3-4 degrees and see if that helps cool things off a bit. There are times when the tank is warm and I have to do a smaller partial change, that I will just put in straight cold water to help cool it down also. And I am sure that some others around here might have other ideas too!

As for scratching, that's pretty normal. Others have written about how their turtle likes a little scratch. Mine stands up in the water against the intake tube of the filter, and scratches his shell against the bottom of his basking ramp. Kind of like a grizzly bear and tree trunk.

Why not just turn the heater off all together? I have never used one in my 55 gallon tank. My house doesn't get that cold, so the water stays plenty warm enough.
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