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I have one RES that is aprox 4.5 inches...I received him from a buddy while at college and could only keep him in a 10 gallon tank. He hated the size and constantly tried to get out, very understandably so. Now that I am back home, I have upgraded to a 55 gallon fish tank that I use to have. I got rid of all of the gravel (I know now not use it mostly because it is a pain to clean...never really tried eating them). I have a store bought log untop of a slate of rock that was in his old tank. This is on one side with zoo med turtle dock.

I have the proper bulb over his basking area and a smaller water heater (which I will upgrade soon).

2 part question.

1: What you recommend for a filtration center? Currently running zoo med 501 canister which worked great for the 10 gallon tank but gets dirty rather quick in the new setup. I have been looking into the fluval but was curious as to what everyone suggests. I have the water at approx 25-27 gallons mostly because I do not have an out of tank basking area and he enjoys trying to escape in his free time.

2. What can I put on the zoo med turtle dock to make it easier for him to climb on? He gets up there but it isn't very quick like his old way.

My turtle is loving the new swimming room and set up and I have noticed he spends more time basking and swimming then he does trying to escape

And before I am criticized for the 10 gallon tank, I knew when I got him that it would be too small but my school would not allow any tank larger then 10 gallons without being in trouble. It was enough of a hassle having to hide him on inspection days!

For a 55 gallon, I'd go for the XP3. For a larger tank I'd go with the FX5. These are the most recommended canister filters on this forum, so you'd get a lot of help if you need it. Is he not using the ramp on the dock? You can find cork bark easily for your tank, I would consider switching to it.

Thanks for the response, and that is the filstar canister filter? And can I just cover my current dock with the cork bark? He gets up the ramp side fine but is a little slow to do so

I agree with Steve. If the 55 is going to be home for a while.. the Filstar XP3 is a good choice. It's less expensive and a better filter than the fluval 04/05/06 canisters.

If you're going to upgrade tanks in the future, get the XP4 or better yet the FX5. The FX5 online is like $230 but it's really hard to beat in terms of filtration for the price.

You can just wedge a piece of cork bark between the sides of your tank and use that by itself for a basking area / ramp.

VeipaCray wrote:I agree with Steve. If the 55 is going to be home for a while.. the Filstar XP3 is a good choice. It's less expensive and a better filter than the fluval 04/05/06 canisters.

If you're going to upgrade tanks in the future, get the XP4 or better yet the FX5. The FX5 online is like $230 but it's really hard to beat in terms of filtration for the price.

You can just wedge a piece of cork bark between the sides of your tank and use that by itself for a basking area / ramp.

Thanks for your reply. I am glad you guys said something because I was looking into the fluval systems and almost bought one...it will be home for a while and indeed the price for the xp4 is much better...As long as everyone has good success with this filter I will look into it.

In terms of basking area/ramp, I am just not wanting to trade out completely since I spent (wasted) my money on this dock...any ideas on what to cover the surface with to give him better traction?

Not only is the price of the xp4 better, it runs circles around the fluval 05/06. They are both silent. The XP4 holds more media and has a better pump. The XP4 is also a no-bypass design so it's more efficient. The fluval 05/06 can be a pain to restart the siphon if you do something out of order. The Rena is easy to restart. Both have baskets that will take generic media. The fluval is a bit more intuitive to assemble. The Rena has the option of a special heater that doubles as an intake....neat idea.

I have / had many many filters. I do like the fluval 05 ( never had the updated 06). I just don't like it for use with a turtle tank.

I currently have a fluval fx5 and the xp4 on my turtle tank. Fx5 > XP4 > 05/06