Hi! Introduce yourselves here. :: My first post

[Nepkire]

Hello I am new to this forum. I dont have turtles I have rare desert toads. I found myself here after doing some research about water filtration because my toads are messy and so far turtles sound like they have similarities in how dirty their water gets. My toads have limited information on keeping them so I have to look at similar situations in other animals. I am seeking info about submergible pumps but will find the correct thread to ask questions within the forum and not ask here in the intro area.

[steve]

Welcome to the forum. How much water do these toads need? Do they need calm waters?

[Nepkire]

The area inside the tank I am building will hold at most 20 gallons. The water can have some movement I dont think it will scare them much. I should draw a diagram to show the idea.

[steve]

You might want to consult with a forum that deals with your toads. There are many in-tank filters and undergravel filters out there. They all should be with-in your requirements. Will the tank be filled with water to the top?

[Nepkire]

I have looked at reptile forums before but most reptiles don't need as much water change/filtration as the toads need and they are desert toads and all other toads environments are tropical. I am dividing the tank into wet and dry areas with a trickle/wetdry filtration set up. The water area would need similar filtration as turtles. so I came here to ask about water pumps that can handle really dirty water. But if you think I should look elsewhere I will. Thanks.

[steve]

What do these tanks normally look like?

[n3hihz]

I have looked at reptile forums before but most reptiles don't need as much water change/filtration as the toads need and they are desert toads and all other toads environments are tropical. I am dividing the tank into wet and dry areas with a trickle/wetdry filtration set up. The water area would need similar filtration as turtles. so I came here to ask about water pumps that can handle really dirty water. But if you think I should look elsewhere I will. Thanks.

Welcome to the forum.
I'm just not sure how your plans to get the water to flow into your wet dry if the tank isnt filled to the top. Is the pump going to be in your wet/dry for return?

I personally would recommend a DC pump, you can change the flow rate of them to fit your needs, which might be helpful for you to figure out the right amount of flow.

If you can give a bit more information, I can probably offer some suggestions. I've ran many pumps in my fresh water setups and have been attempting to get into reef as well.

[Nepkire]

this is a quick diagram to give you an idea.

[steve]

So when you say 20 gallons, there will be 20 gallons of water? The water is pulled from the bottom?

[Nepkire]

Yes no more than 20 gallons of water closer to 16 gallons. And yes pump from below.

[steve]

Sounds good, looking forward to seeing more of this.

[n3hihz]

I see, so you want to build an AIO (All-in-one) use a pump to push water out of the tank into the back filtration area and have it overflow back into the main tank.

The only problem with this is any pump inside the main tank as you already know with suck up dirt, poop etc, most pump will handle this only up to a certain point and die. It'll require a lot of cleaning to be sure the pump doesn't die.

I would recommend having the water overflow into filtration area then pumped back out, but you'll have the issue of having to raise the water level pass the baffles.

However if you have to do it this way then I would, make a rack where the heater and pump will sit. Make an eggcrate sandwiched with poret foam to sit on top of the pump as first filtration to help protect the pump. then continue through your plans and overflow back.

[Nepkire]

Hmmm....I have a new idea I will draw up, I think should fix the problem. Thanks for the input, it helps me dial in the design.

[Nepkire]

Here is the modified idea.

[steve]

Looks like it can work. It all really depends on the water receiving enough contact time for the media to do its job.