General Care Discussion :: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

Taking care of your turtle's overall health.

Post Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 11:48 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

Oh good. I used to think gravel was a good way to make the tank look more enjoyable to see. I never used any gravel nor tiny pebbles for Scooter, just some pretty big river rocks scattered across the bottom. Good thing I haven't actually done that now. Also, less to clean turtle and food stuff out of.
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Kamoodle
 
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Post Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 12:06 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

I had gravel in my tank when i got it. I was doing some readig and spoke to a friend who is also a turtle owner and he saidnto ditch the gravel. I scooped out a the gravel was surprised at home much junk was left on the bottom. I kept the turtles out of the tank for about an hour to try to cycle the water filtration. But the junk was still at the bottom. I put the turtles back in and within an hour the tank was crsytal clear again. I dont have any rocks in the tank and almost no decorations. What do you gus recommend i put in there? Is it 100% necessary to have decorations in there?
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thekev1042
 
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Post Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 5:01 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

i don't think its 100% necessary to have decorations in a tank, but it gives the turtles some stimulation and a place to hide.
for the substrate... sand is good. you can experiment with a lot of stuff with it. (ie plants, river rocks, etc)
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Post Posted: Sat Apr 07, 2012 1:59 am   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

Depends on the tank I guess. A bare bottom indoor tank can be beautiful with nothing in it - the bottom acts as a mirror where they can admire themselves :)
I don't have anything except a hokey looking log, and that is to give her a place to perch and chill while she sleeps rather than decoration.

The point about putting something in as a place to hide makes sense for little ones, though it doesn't have to be anything fancy.

I used to use big river rocks until I was cleaning one day, got slippery hands and "PLUNK" huge rock hits bottom of tank!
Completely User Error!
But...since i can't trust myself, now i have nothing and still like it.
"I know up on the top you are seeing great sights, but down at the bottom we, too, should have rights"
~ "Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories" by Dr. Seuss ~
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penelope
 
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Post Posted: Sat Apr 07, 2012 2:23 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

doo the turts see themselves on the bottom? i dont know... i think they see whatevers supporting the tank.
someone looking from the side of the tank might see a reflection, but thats that.
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Post Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2012 1:25 am   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

On my new tank setup I put a green towel down under the tank. It gives the tank a nice look. I also put it there because the tank was used and I wanted to make sure there were no leaks. I figured I'd see the leak with a towel under there. I have the tank on a long dresser, a friend of mine was telling me to be careful because of the weight but I don't see it causing any problems with the dresser. What do you guys have your tanks on?
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thekev1042
 
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Post Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2012 1:57 am   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

You may want to move that question to the Indoor Habitat forum. Since this is a sticky (static), traffic is fairly light.
Just glad to hear you don't have gravel :)
"I know up on the top you are seeing great sights, but down at the bottom we, too, should have rights"
~ "Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories" by Dr. Seuss ~
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penelope
 
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Post Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 12:50 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

As a new turtle owner, I keep finding out new things every day on this forum. Thank you so much for posting this. I too have gravel in my tank, but after reading this, I am removing it as soon as I get home tonight.

Edit: Here is a picture of one of my turtles and the size of the gravel. Do you guys think they can eat this gravel?
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Rafa2k
 
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Post Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 10:04 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

It doesn't look like they can eat most of that yet, although I see a few small pieces that they probably could. It will, however, trap lots of waste, making it much more difficult to keep your water clean.
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Post Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 11:22 am   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

Thank you PridgNYC. The water is extremely clean because I did follow the 3x the requirement on the filtration :) Currently using a Fluval 306 rated for 70gal and only have my 45gal tank filled 1/2 way. I do plan on removing all the gravel when I clean out the tank tomorrow anyway. Better safe than sorry.
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Rafa2k
 
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Post Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2012 4:30 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

I removed my gravel over a month ago and still I see gravel being pooped out every day (im using only sand now). So it hsa been in their system for over a month. Im going to stick with sand from now on, easier to clean and looks a heck of a lot nicer too (and quietre when they dig!)
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Post Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 11:12 am   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

They will likely eat it again if they go after their poop. Glad they're passing it though.
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Post Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 2:25 am   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

I 100% agree. We did gravel with our last turtle, but our new guys we are gravel free and it's a BLESSING! The tank is gorgeously clean almost all week and our turtle is so healthy, alert, and active! Get rid of gravel!!
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JimmyLo
 
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Post Posted: Thu Dec 27, 2012 10:19 pm   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

What is everyone's thoughts on having sand on the bottom? I personally do not like it. I feel it clogs up the filter very quickly. I have a Rena XP3 filstar filter.

Larger already polished rocks at Petco in a 10lb bag run around $15 a bag.... quite a bit of money for some rocks if you ask me. I think as soon as winter is over, my turtles will be finding new rocks from what i pick uip at lakes and ponds when we go fishing.
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Post Posted: Fri Dec 28, 2012 12:21 am   Re: Get Rid Of the Gravel!!!!! ~ Really

tecngame wrote:What is everyone's thoughts on having sand on the bottom? I personally do not like it. I feel it clogs up the filter very quickly. I have a Rena XP3 filstar filter.

Larger already polished rocks at Petco in a 10lb bag run around $15 a bag.... quite a bit of money for some rocks if you ask me. I think as soon as winter is over, my turtles will be finding new rocks from what i pick uip at lakes and ponds when we go fishing.



I can understand your issues with sand. I haven't made the leap to sand because my turtle digs too much and I don't want to mess with the hassle. As far as rock from around the lakes and ponds.... I would really recommend against it.

Those rocks can have parasites, bacteria and a host of other organisms living in them that could cultivate in your tank and harm your turtle. Additionally those stones are usually pretty porous and would allow for debris, food and other waste from your tank to build up in the rocks which can create toxic levels in your tank. I read somewhere that someone had tried to boil the rocks and because of something that was in the rocks themselves they can explode under the heat if the right elements exist in the makeup of the stones.

The stones you see in the bags are sterilized, polished and sealed and that's why they tend to be better to use. HOWEVER. I had those things in my tank when I first inherited my turtle and all he did was dig through them all day and push them out of his way... it was a hassle and it also made cleaning the tank harder because I had to remove all of the rocks each time I needed to clean the tank because so much waste would get trapped under the layer of rock.

I ended up going with large stacking stones I got at Petsmart and i just lined the bottom of the tank with them. they are large enough that when I need to clean it only takes a minute to remove the stones. They are actually made of a chemically inert resin that wont bleed chemicals into the tank. When algae grows on them I can scrub them pretty easily or just throw them into the dishwasher (no soap of course)

If you want to see what they look like just look at my build thread in my signature.
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