Habitat - Indoor :: Pebbles for new home

[the_orphaned]

As I told you guys, i'd make my turtle a better place. I got these white pebbles and i think they are the right size since i don't believe that even the big RES can swallow them.

here is a picture, tell me what you think. Oh yeah, i have big hands ok? The pebbles measure from 0.6" to 1.2" in diameter.



just got them today so Im still rinsing them. I also got a storage box. It holds around 50 liters which is around 13 gallons.

[missibsu]

It's hard to say! I've seen my RES open their mouths pretty big. Most people use river rock. The pieces that I have in my hand are flat, but about the size of my hand...or bigger. I have a few that are more round like your pebbles, but they are fist sized.

[the_orphaned]

Well, we are years away from that. He's just a little over an inch now.

[missibsu]

Having a few larger pieces of rock will be easier to clean than a bunch of pebbles that size.

[reptilegrrl]

Pebbles are still a bad idea. Large rocks good, pebbles or gravel bad.

Pebbles/gravel trap wastes and keep the tank from being as clean as it could be. There is also a risk that your turtles will eat them. You think your turts are too small now, but they will grow very fast.

[kneecole]

How big is your turtle? Honestly I think you'll be fine. While my turtles are still fairly small I've been using pebles of that size for the last 9 months or so.

[the_orphaned]

He's just a little over an inch. Also, I'll be using storage boxes which are way easier to clean that glass aquariums. I just plan to tip the box over (without the turtle of course) and just scrub everything. Maybe when I find bigger rocks. I wanted smooth ones and those light enough for my turtle to move around since he started rearranging his bigger rocks when I transferred him to his basin.

I'll try it later,observe it for a couple of days. Its pretty easy to remove anyway. I dont even think that the amount of pebbles that I have will cover the enitre floor surface of his new container.

[the_orphaned]

I just transferred him this morning to his new home. With the pebbles. Here is a picture of the box:



I will add a filter either today or tomorrow. He seems to prefer the "no rocks" area as of now but I believe because he's not used to them yet. When I put him in, he checked them out and then headed for the deeper end of the box. UBV light and other essentials will soon follow.

[kneecole]

So cute! He looks so tiny! And those "pebbles" look like they are almost bigger than him! haha i'm sure you'll be fine.

And of course he wants to be in the area that is deeper.... they love to swim and feel most sucure when they are as far below the surface as possible.

[missibsu]

I wouldn't call those pebbles, lol...small rocks works. Size wise I think they are fine for awile...just keep an eye on them compared to turtle growth. I think that you are going to find that you don't want them in there before they even become a problem. When I discovered that gravel was bad, I put it in the tank with my feeder fish and pleco. Well, I soon discovered that I didn't want it in there either. The smell from the waste build up was horrible. And since I breed snails, it too me forever to sift through the rocks.

[the_orphaned]

I just finished doing the setup for the cleanliness of his new home. Got a filter already and a bigger rock for his basking so I can make his water deeper. Here are the pics:

With the filter on



With the new rock:



Just resting after the setup:



I'm still a bit hesitant about the filter though, I fear that out of curiousity, he might get sucked in and drown...

What do you guys think? I'm thinking of turning on the filter at specific times of the day when I can monitor him and just switch it off when I leave him. So that would be around 6 hours that the filter is working. Would that be enough to help keep his home clean?

[sonyj]

To maintain a good water quality and living conditions for your turtle, you should really run the filter continually. Poor water quality can lead to a number of health related issues in your turtle.

I too was concerned about my little guy when I first got him getting pulled into the filter and not being able to swim away, but as long as the filter is hooked up correctly and is not too high of a power for the amount of water - everything should be fine. Your little guy should be strong enough to handle swimming away from the filter as long as he is healthy.

If you are still concerned turn it on and observe him for a while. I highly recommend keeping the filter on for his health.

[Spookster]

If you are concerned about him getting sucked into the intake pipe of the filter then you could always put something in front of it so he can't get too close to the intake pipe. Maybe a big rock or maybe put some kind of cage structure around it so the water flow is not restricted but also keeps the turtle away from it.

[the_orphaned]

Spookster

I actuallythought of that last night. But was already too tired to entertain it though. Haha.

Sonyj

How about if I put a micro filter on the intake tube to reduce suction at night?

[sonyj]

I think that should be fine if it gives you peace of mind. I know when I got my little guy, I'd watch him constantly for signs that he'd get stuck under something at night, that he'd burn himself on the heater etc... etc... I learned that he was pretty smart and as long as everything in the tank was functioning as it should he was always ok.