Habitat - Indoor :: Filter Media

Turtle tank setups and other indoor configurations.

Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:31 am   Filter Media

What media should i put the most?Is the sponge or ceramic rings?

If i put a lot of sponge,i could filter a lot of turtle poop.What if i put a lot of ceramic rings?Also which one is better?A fluval canister 306 filter or Seachem Tide 75?

And what do you guys think of seachem fluorite black sand for bedding?Just to make my tank look prettier.
Aurelia
 
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 5:31 am   Re: Filter Media

I'm an old timer and believe in cycling a tank and "maintaining" it cycled. So a majority of my media is bio rings. A well cycled tank will break down solid waste to dissolved waste for a filter to be able to do it's job better instead of getting clogged up with solid waste. Even the best filter on the market will not pick up all solid waste in every square inch of a tank. That's why we vac and scoop out poop with our maintenance. A cycled tank will dissolve it place it in the water column and circulate to the filter to be removed.

Also look at top header on this page for links to forums main page and also info stickies at each topic for placements of media for other ideas.

The "Fluorite" sand you will find some like it and some don't , inert or not , that's just me . Nature polished pool type sand or a play sand type for people I know like that better. Not any rough , sharp construction type. Flourite base and fluorite top cover sand helps more for a planted tank than for a turtle , other than just for the look. Read up lots info out there on fluorite use some good and some not so. Then any plants in a turtle tank won't be for looks but as a food source.

Any sand to be used you must be careful on inlet placement , any get in impeller will harm it.
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 8:52 am   Re: Filter Media

Ah thanks for the help! Also is canister filter always better than any other type of filter despite having slightly lower flow rate?
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 11:18 am   Re: Filter Media

Which models are you comparing?
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 11:30 am   Re: Filter Media

To me a canister filter is better for a turtle. Most canister's flow rate are equal to or much better than other filter unless comparing undersized type . Its allows for more swimming room and can have more media in some . Also most allows you to use any media setup that you like , not like those pre-made media inserts that cost an arm and a leg. Filters are sold with media for fish not turtles so one must adjust for a turtle . Also a turtle depending on size needs 2-5x's flow rate of fish. What amount of water you have for your turtle not tank size and what size is the turtle ?

Do your homework if you are looking at one some rate them at pump output and some rate at filter circulation (gph) . Also you want at least three trays so you can do mechanical , chemical and biological. One with the largest media area will only help you with the maintenance ! Some sound great but have very small media areas. Don't go to low end think about future upgrades. Use several price trackers once you know what your turtle needs. If you can wait holiday sales are coming up.


My setup is an FX6 of 125 gallons water , which being old school and love having a cycled and maintaining a cycle , it has over 5 gallons of filtration volume . Most all biological with a good amout of course foam as a pre filter for it. Keep's tank cycled always with the proper percentage of water changes every two weeks and filter cleaning once a month . Piggley has some pic's and videos in the photo gallery you can see my water.
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 12:33 pm   Re: Filter Media

steve wrote:Which models are you comparing?


A fluval canister 306 filter and Seachem Tide 75..
Last edited by Aurelia on Thu Sep 20, 2018 12:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Aurelia
 
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 12:35 pm   Re: Filter Media

litefoot wrote:To me a canister filter is better for a turtle. Most canister's flow rate are equal to or much better than other filter unless comparing undersized type . Its allows for more swimming room and can have more media in some . Also most allows you to use any media setup that you like , not like those pre-made media inserts that cost an arm and a leg. Filters are sold with media for fish not turtles so one must adjust for a turtle . Also a turtle depending on size needs 2-5x's flow rate of fish. What amount of water you have for your turtle not tank size and what size is the turtle ?

Do your homework if you are looking at one some rate them at pump output and some rate at filter circulation (gph) . Also you want at least three trays so you can do mechanical , chemical and biological. One with the largest media area will only help you with the maintenance ! Some sound great but have very small media areas. Don't go to low end think about future upgrades. Use several price trackers once you know what your turtle needs. If you can wait holiday sales are coming up.


My setup is an FX6 of 125 gallons water , which being old school and love having a cycled and maintaining a cycle , it has over 5 gallons of filtration volume . Most all biological with a good amout of course foam as a pre filter for it. Keep's tank cycled always with the proper percentage of water changes every two weeks and filter cleaning once a month . Piggley has some pic's and videos in the photo gallery you can see my water.



size of turtle is 4.5 inch..the amount of water is around 40 gal.
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 1:40 pm   Re: Filter Media

For the sizes you state both those filters can work today if given consistent maintenance and water changes. About same flow rates too. Let's face it any filter has some bugs with them mainly the design for the flow. The "HOT" tide will clog up faster and is from what I hear loud but can work. Seen one used for fish and it's to me was just fair. I recommended a 306 for his 55 gallon fish tank and they love it. Other problem I hear is it (tide) slows down a lot (flow rate) when it "starts" to get dirty so maybe more maintenance . The 306 is used a lot and you can configure it more to you liking and maintains a more consistent flow rate. Also allows you to control placement of inlet and outlet for better control for the flow. But then those small fluval filters have bugs with them too , really any filter. If you can wait some for a good sale Fluval's FX series are a beast for a turtle and one highly recommended for it's flow and media volume. If you maintain a good weekly maintenance program either filter you mentioned can work. If you don't like weekly maintenance and want it to be say monthly you will need a filter with a little more flow and much larger media volume.


At 4.5" you should be able to tell sex . What's the sex ? You if you can may want to think of it's final adult tank and filter , will save you money on several smaller upgrades. At 4.5" with 40 gallons today that upgrade is coming soon especially if a female.
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 10:49 pm   Re: Filter Media

A "HOT" filter also needs to have the tank filled up a lot more, almost to the top and most turtle keepers don't do that. The filter will lose it's prime if it loses power and the water level is too low. I had the older generation model of 306 and I hated it... I would go with the FX as litefoot recommends. Even though the 306 is a canister, it's a pretty small one with limited space inside.
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 11:24 pm   Re: Filter Media

Thanks both of you!I would definitely consider using the 306..Don't worry i'm going to move her to my pond soon.
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Post Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 11:32 pm   Re: Filter Media

How soon will she go into the pond? And how big is her tank now, with what kind of filtration? It's possible you won't need to purchase any of that stuff.
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Post Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2018 10:13 am   Re: Filter Media

It depends..maybe i'll put her in a pond when she's around 5.5-6 inch...Her tank is around 50+ gallon ..I have a canister filter kinda like the fluval but it's a "no-brand" one..And yeah don't worry the pond has its huge filter and everything..
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Post Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2018 10:31 am   Re: Filter Media

You probably don't need to change much, maybe a different arrangement for your filter media until she can go into the pond.
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Post Posted: Fri Sep 21, 2018 11:45 am   Re: Filter Media

If you plan to keep what you have up and running as a quarantine tank or over winter your turtle inside , depending on the climate zone . I assume because he's grown much larger that the filter you have can't handle the messy load , maybe experiment with the media instead of a new filter . Sometimes you can get more out of an older filter. Did you see the media thread as suggested in my first post ? Play with what you have to see different results. Something like // first a course pad then a medium pad directly under it at least 1/2" of each if you can fit that in or even little more ) , then some bio media and at the last stage of cleaning use some carbon for any toxin's and about 100 milliliters of purigem for organic removal for your 50 gallon tank. You can get pre-made bags of that purigen for $8 and that size can treat up to 100 gallons water or buy in bulk and place in a media bag . It will last about 4-6 months until it turns black. Do not trash it purigen can easily be regenerated several time's making it so very cheap to use. Will help to give you crystal clear water. This setup along with proper percentage of water change's for your 40 gallons of water may help. If it gives you what you want will save you some money on a new filter. Above is just one setup of many // experiment and may find a setup that works even better for your setup. Being all setups are a little different and you have a heavy bio load for that amount of water with the size turtle you have may tweak above some for a better media setup.

Then if the "no name brand" still can't help with different media setup , then go with a better filter. A lot depends if you will keep tank after he goes to the pond for how much of an filter upgrade you truly need now if any ?

If you use carbon you do not need any water conditioner's. I don't use any. They say safe for reptiles but not all are safe for all types of reptiles just read some of the "MSDS's" on conditioner's.
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Post Posted: Sat Sep 22, 2018 12:33 am   Re: Filter Media

litefoot wrote:If you plan to keep what you have up and running as a quarantine tank or over winter your turtle inside , depending on the climate zone . I assume because he's grown much larger that the filter you have can't handle the messy load , maybe experiment with the media instead of a new filter . Sometimes you can get more out of an older filter. Did you see the media thread as suggested in my first post ? Play with what you have to see different results. Something like // first a course pad then a medium pad directly under it at least 1/2" of each if you can fit that in or even little more ) , then some bio media and at the last stage of cleaning use some carbon for any toxin's and about 100 milliliters of purigem for organic removal for your 50 gallon tank. You can get pre-made bags of that purigen for $8 and that size can treat up to 100 gallons water or buy in bulk and place in a media bag . It will last about 4-6 months until it turns black. Do not trash it purigen can easily be regenerated several time's making it so very cheap to use. Will help to give you crystal clear water. This setup along with proper percentage of water change's for your 40 gallons of water may help. If it gives you what you want will save you some money on a new filter. Above is just one setup of many // experiment and may find a setup that works even better for your setup. Being all setups are a little different and you have a heavy bio load for that amount of water with the size turtle you have may tweak above some for a better media setup.

Then if the "no name brand" still can't help with different media setup , then go with a better filter. A lot depends if you will keep tank after he goes to the pond for how much of an filter upgrade you truly need now if any ?

If you use carbon you do not need any water conditioner's. I don't use any. They say safe for reptiles but not all are safe for all types of reptiles just read some of the "MSDS's" on conditioner's.


Yeah i'm still experimenting with the media especially with the bio media..I'm thinking of buying some biohome ultimate since that's the best bio media out there I suppose.
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