Anyone use waterland tubs without filters

[Washingtonpost77]

Hi. I just wanted to know if you can use a small waterland tub without filtration. I plan to house three spotted turtles and plan to just dump the water out and add new water often.

 

[Berkeley]

How often is 'often'? You can do that, but that method gets old, quick- at least for me. I would change it at least every other day if you weren't going to have a filter on it.

--Berkeley

 

[ZEROPILOT]

To keep the water from getting funky real fast, you'll at least need to circulate it.
This can be done with an inexpensive aquarium powerhead dropped into the tub or you could get even fancier with a sponge filter attached.
Is it for lack of money or lack of electrical outlets? There are a few solar powered water moving options as well as cheap pond filter kits around.

 

[Berkeley]

I would be cautious with a powerhead if it is for spotted turtles- particularly if they are juveniles, like I think was mentioned in your other thread about how many the WL tub could house. Spotteds are not strong swimmers, especially babies, and too much water movement (from a powerhead) could be detrimental.

--Berkeley

 

[Anthony P]

Indoors or outdoors?

 

[mike taylor]

If you plan on not running a filter system you can do this . Drill a hole in the bottom of tub then install a bulk head fitting and a valve . Run the drain outside . You could even run an overflow system and run a slow steady water to it and it will change itself daily .

 

[Anthony P]

If you plan on not running a filter system you can do this . Drill a hole in the bottom of tub then install a bulk head fitting and a valve . Run the drain outside . You could even run an overflow system and run a slow steady water to it and it will change itself daily .

Exactly.. This is why I was wondering if it would be kept inside or out

 

[juli11]

I keep all my turtles without a filtration system.. My tip is to put dead leaves in the tank.. When they fall down to the bottom and degrade you have a very good substrate which filtrate the water. I do that with most of my aquariums.
To guttata a friend of mine who breed ca.30-50 guttata hatchlings per year keep them without filtration too.. But he has to change the water every second week..

 

[enchilada]

i dont have a filter. i use aquatic PLANTS . this is the big potting barrel from Costco, probably 50 g
you can see how clear the water is , and the plants also provide spots they can sit and relax.

 

[juli11]

Yes ok that looks like it works!

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

A constant small change that would be equal to a 100% water change every two weeks or so would make this work, and some way to have the water move gently, an airstone in a tube to bring bottom water to the surface would go a long way to helping as well. The leaf detritus is a good idea to further the water's life. The very small continual water change would do best than a 100% every so often. A drip into the tank and an overflow at the opposite side.
This makes the water change NOT destroy any bio-active component to the system even if you have chlorinated water going in.

But if you can have an airstone, an overflow and a trickle-in water source, you could probably have a filter just as well?

Dump and fill is used by many many aquatic turtle keepers, successful breeders, some zoo's and some major collections do it. I have found the best closed system does so much better with just a small turnover of water. 100% water turnover every few weeks is the least best way I can think of, it is very disruptive of the system. The compromise I have seen that works are tanks with two bottom drains and a divider between (high enough to keep some water for the inhabitants of the tank) them, so the animals in the tank are herded to the side that won't get drained during a cycle that cycle. Then some of the water is retained to make the disruption less disruptive. Or even one bottom drain and always herd to the same side, but then sludge buildup can be bad.

What is the greater goal, why not just filter?