New Member with a Challenge

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mabrother

Registered Member
May 26, 2013
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Hello All;

I have what I would consider an unorthodox freshwater set up. This of course opens the door to unorthodox problems and solutions. Some of you might say its not unorthodox, its idiotic. Thats fine, I halfway think it is too. I did a little research on the problem but just came up with the default answers that assume I have a normal setup. So I'm expecting to get responses like "you can't do that". However, if any of you have any recommendations, I'm open to try them. I have a freshwater turtle my son pulled from the local creek. He (I think) measures about 5-6 inches in diameter. I put him into a 50 gallon aquarium outside. I was using a Tetra Whisper filter (left over from a previous aquarium) up until a few days ago. As you can imagine, by the end of the week, the glass was coated with algae and the water was full of algae and the filter was choked with algae. Turtle feces were also a problem. The filter really wasn't cleaning anything up because it was underrsized. So I decided to set up an under-gravel filter to address the feces (at least it works with fish, not sure if it will work with a turtle). I finished setting up the undergravel filter with a few live plants added today. Then I got the bright idea that I could put one of those algae eaters in to control the algae growth. Problem is, most of the information I gleaned on algae eaters suggests that they have very narrow tolerances in their environment. So here is the challenge. How do I control the algae under outdoor conditions? Are there any algae eaters that can tolerate the wide temperature range for a typical spring or summer day. (I'm in Houston, Texas and we don't have a spring to speak of. Its summer from about May to October.) If not, are there any chemicals or natural substances I can use that won't make the water toxic in the quantities I would need to control the algae. I really don't want to bring the aquarium in-doors because I'm not sure where I would put it without investing a few hundred $ on a stand. I've half a mind to take him back to the creek but my wife likes him and he only has two claws, so he's operating at a disadvantage in the wild.

Thanks
 

Rbishop

Administrator
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Dec 30, 2005
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Welcome to AC!
 

verbal

AC Members
May 4, 2010
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Jesse
Welcome to AC.

If you are getting algae that excessive, the tank is getting too much light. Plants might help but need to be protected from the turtle eating them. Are 100% water changes a possibility? That might be the best way to keep the nitrate levels down.
 

ktrom13

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Feb 4, 2013
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Put the tank somewhere where it will as little sun as possible. This would help control the algae as it needs sunlight for photosynthesis

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kissofcrimson

AC Members
Aug 14, 2012
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North Carolina, USA
Welcome to AC.

Honestly I would return him to his natural habitat. Turtles require far more then a tank with a filter and if he gets sick its possible he can make you sick as well from handling him as reptiles easily develop salmonella from being cared for unproperly. As for adding fish, it won't solve the problem of why the tank is dirty and will only be adding to the bioload and plus turtles usually eat any fish put in with them.

Also putting the turtles tank somewhere that doesn't get much sunlight is damaging to the turtle as they need a certain amount of sunlight a day for the health of their shell.

Not trying to be negative, just looking out for the turtle. If you plan to keep the turtle, I would look put the types of turtles in your area and research the best habitat to keep it in.

Good luck and let us know what happens. ;]


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OrionGirl

No freelancing!
Aug 14, 2001
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Honestly? Contact a local turtle rescue society. It's hard to say without knowing what species you have, but in general collection of turtles from the wild is not legal as most are considered endangered--11 species just within Texas. If you can't provide for the animal, and have put it in contact with non-native plants or animals, returning it to the creek could introduce pathogens or plants to the wild.
 

mabrother

Registered Member
May 26, 2013
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Thanks to all who replied. You've given me a lot of food for thought. Will let you know what I do.
 

mabrother

Registered Member
May 26, 2013
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If, after all this time, there is any of you still there, here is how things panned out. I tried the endangered species ploy but it didn't work. My wife vetoed that immediately. As it turns out, the turtle is not endangered according to our staff biologist at work. Its a red-eared slider. So it looks like we are keeping him. In my first post, I mentioned that I put plants in the aquarium; they never took root. The undergravel filter did improve things considerably. It took a lot longer for the algea to build up, but it did build up. To address the conflict between too much sun light causing algea growth and not enough sun light to maintain the turtles health, I built a sun screen with an adjustable roof (see attached photos). I can raise or lower the roof to adjust how much sun the turtle gets. At the time of the photos, I had just finished a complete tank cleaning:100% water change, washed the gravel, etc. I may try plants later, but it's not a priority. I have all the standard water treatment products to maintain water quality; so I suspect it will be about the same as fish tank maintenance with partial water changes occasionally and major cleaning as needed. Again, thanks for all the counsel.
 

mabrother

Registered Member
May 26, 2013
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Forgot the photos. The sun screen is not opaque and lets through considerable light. Whether it filters any wavelengths the turtle needs, I don't know.

20130707_132230.jpg 20130707_132214.jpg
 

leshrimp

AC Members
Jul 6, 2013
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Welcome to AC.

Honestly I would return him to his natural habitat. Turtles require far more then a tank with a filter and if he gets sick its possible he can make you sick as well from handling him as reptiles easily develop salmonella from being cared for unproperly. As for adding fish, it won't solve the problem of why the tank is dirty and will only be adding to the bioload and plus turtles usually eat any fish put in with them.

Also putting the turtles tank somewhere that doesn't get much sunlight is damaging to the turtle as they need a certain amount of sunlight a day for the health of their shell.

Not trying to be negative, just looking out for the turtle. If you plan to keep the turtle, I would look put the types of turtles in your area and research the best habitat to keep it in.

Good luck and let us know what happens. ;]


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I completely agree. Although it is probably to late to return him to the wild.
 
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