Favorite filters?

[Moozillion]

I plan to have a 45 or 55 gal tank for a single mud turtle and several fish; maybe some ghost shrimp. Since it'll be a mud turtle, the water will only be 4-6 inches deep until he's grown a good bit; when he's adult sized the water may be 8-12 inches deep. I plan lots of plants, mopani wood, rocks and shallow water platforms.

I'm in the research stage, so I have tons of questions.

What filter do people like?
How hard or expensive is it to make and maintain your own filters?

Thanks!

 

[Momof4]

Bea, I wish I could help you. MUDs are semi aquatic right? So how about a rubber made stock tank?
They are cheap and huge. It has a drain plug. You could set it up half water half land.
I think. I have Laguna Pressurized canister. It has been outside for 5 years with no problems. Easy to clean. 150g may work or the 300.
I love it. I can move it when needed.

 

[mikeylazer]

Hmmm well i am going to turn you away from a 55gal. They are to thin to make a comfortable tank for any turtle IMO. Now i know most muds do not get very large, but I have a 4.5 inch eastern painted in a 55 and i feel like he only swims back and forth. I have to imagine that a 40gallon breeder (standard "40gal" you would see at petco: AKA the fat rectangle ones) would fit a mud quite nicely. Its late so correct me if I am wrong here, but mud and musks are not avid baskers and like to hang out on the floor, so floor space would be my main concern. A 40gal offers the floor space and isnt too high that it would look empty with 4-6 inches of water. If you plan on keeping ghost shrimp, plan on buying plenty more. Ghost shrimp are easy food for any turtle and I cannot imagine any living long in a mud turtle tank. I personally would set it up as an african cichlid tank, but I am biased due to my terrapins in a 75gal african cichlid setup. Anticipate fish losses when you keep a turtle of any kind. 3 of my cichlids have "magically" dissapeared and slow fish will become prey when they are hungry. If I were you, I would start with just the turtle because of the low water level, and then add fish when you raise the water. I have not started any of my babies in that shallow of water, and I would reccomend starting it at 8-10 especially if you want to keep fish right away. For a filter I am running a marineland something or other big old canister filter. Look at it this way, you cant have too much filtration, so if funds allow, go all the way with your filter. I have looked into make my own before, but all else aside, for most people it is not logical and aesthetically pleasing depending on which kind you build. Good luck and post some pictures when you get him!

 

[Moozillion]

Thanks so much for all the feedback!!!

 

[harris]

Is this a hatchling mud turtle you're getting?

 

[Moozillion]

It's about 3 months old, so I THINK it's considered a baby but not exactly a hatchling any more.

 

[Moozillion]

I have kept freshwater aquariums all my life: my favorite was a 75 gal tank that was heavily planted and had fish in all 3 levels. So I'm comfortable in being able to handle a semi aquatic turtle once I've done all my homework!

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

I love my Fluval's. Problem is, mud turtles like a bit of substrate, so a submerged canister would get clogged easily.
A waterfall filter would create a nice current, I loved my Whisper filter.
Sounds like it's going to be a great setup

 

[christinaland128]

Fluvals are great I agree. I had a fluval canister filter for 10 years with no problems. Well worth the money.

 

[harris]

It's about 3 months old, so I THINK it's considered a baby but not exactly a hatchling any more.

I sent you a pm.

 

[Moozillion]

I sent you a pm.

Yep- got it! THANKS!

 

[Moozillion]

Well, I STILL plan for a larger planted aquarium once my little guy is grown, but since he's SO teeny, I'm probably going to keep things real simple with a 10 gallon tank, an inch or so of water and just change it a court times a week.

THANKS, everybody!!!!

 

[Moozillion]

Well, I STILL plan for a larger planted aquarium once my little guy is grown more- say, next year. But since he's SO teeny, I'm probably going to keep things real simple with a 10 gallon tank, an inch or so of water and just change it a court times a week.

THANKS, everybody!!!!

 

[Moozillion]

I meant to edit that- don't know why it posted twice...

 

[junebugsmom]

I've used a zoo med turtle clean external canister filter for my 2 musk turtles and have had good luck with that.

 

[Ladylikepunk]

When my musk was tiny and still in 4 inches of water, I found the exo-terra turtle filter did an ok job. For water below that, I used an interpet filter that could deal with being laid on its side and produced a much gentler current - as anything else produced a current stronger than he could deal with!

He's now in his "adult" tank, with 14 inches or so of water, and I use a tetratec external that does the job just fine.

A lot of the advice I was given about filtration for turtles focused on a filter calibrated for a tank 2-3 times the size of what you're actually using - so my tank is 120 litres, and the filter is for 300 litres.

 

[Moozillion]

When my musk was tiny and still in 4 inches of water, I found the exo-terra turtle filter did an ok job. For water below that, I used an interpet filter that could deal with being laid on its side and produced a much gentler current - as anything else produced a current stronger than he could deal with!

He's now in his "adult" tank, with 14 inches or so of water, and I use a tetratec external that does the job just fine.

A lot of the advice I was given about filtration for turtles focused on a filter calibrated for a tank 2-3 times the size of what you're actually using - so my tank is 120 litres, and the filter is for 300 litres.

Thanks!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

As you may know, I've got a zillion fish tanks and for the money, Aqua Top is the way to go.
They're Chinese, but I've had very good luck with them.

 

[Moozillion]

I did NOT know you have a zillion fish tanks!!!! Good to know- I will check them out!
THANKS!!!!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I did NOT know you have a zillion fish tanks!!!! Good to know- I will check them out!
THANKS!!!!

For the money. About $50 they are a good value. For picking up water in a shallow tank, you'll need to silicone the pipe sections together to
Keep them from sucking in air at the joints. Otherwise these come with long pipes and multiple options including a spray bar for the return.
I also have a couple of used filters of different brands if you're interested.