What Fish, Snails, or Water Plants can help clean the tank?

[C.H.D Exotics]

I have a 90 gal. with a African sideneck turtle and a common musk turtle. What fish could help clean the tank? Any water plants I can add to help clean water? Can I add mollusks or aquatic snails to help filter? can I add algae eaters to the tank to help clean, if so what types?

 

[enchilada]

water hyacinth.
thats the only pant my turtles wont eat
snails will become turtle's dinner instantly

 

[ZEROPILOT]

All other animals will become food.
Maybe a large apple snail?
Also, ghost shrimp eat debris and hide very well untill they get eaten and are usually 10 cents each.

 

[Markw84]

I use pothos ivy. Get some and just stick the clean roots in the water, or a basket of clean gravel, or even the filter. It will grow like crazy, does well in lower light and the plants eat up nitrates. You can actually use almost any house plant. Water hyacinth are probably the best nitrate eaters, but the won't grow well indoors at all. My turtles and fish also love to eat the roots of those, so I have to keep them inaccessible.

I like plecostomas. They do really well if your water quality is good, and are amongst the best of algae eaters. Haven't seen a turtle that will mess with one, even a small one.

 

[C.H.D Exotics]

I use pothos ivy. Get some and just stick the clean roots in the water, or a basket of clean gravel, or even the filter. It will grow like crazy, does well in lower light and the plants eat up nitrates. You can actually use almost any house plant. Water hyacinth are probably the best nitrate eaters, but the won't grow well indoors at all. My turtles and fish also love to eat the roots of those, so I have to keep them inaccessible.

I like plecostomas. They do really well if your water quality is good, and are amongst the best of algae eaters. Haven't seen a turtle that will mess with one, even a small one.

isn't pothos poisonous to reptiles?

 

[Markw84]

isn't pothos poisonous to reptiles?

NO. Pothos does have some oxalic acid in it, but not a real concern. It also gets a bad rap for having raphides (calcium oxalate) that does irritate the mouths of dogs and cats, so listed as a no no for them. But chelonians are not affected by that.

 

[Moozillion]

I use pothos ivy. Get some and just stick the clean roots in the water, or a basket of clean gravel, or even the filter. It will grow like crazy, does well in lower light and the plants eat up nitrates. You can actually use almost any house plant. Water hyacinth are probably the best nitrate eaters, but the won't grow well indoors at all. My turtles and fish also love to eat the roots of those, so I have to keep them inaccessible.

I like plecostomas. They do really well if your water quality is good, and are amongst the best of algae eaters. Haven't seen a turtle that will mess with one, even a small one.

Glad to know the water hyacinth doesn't grow well indoors- I won't waste my time with it!
Also glad to know that plecostomas may be safe in a tank with my mud turtle!!!!!!!
I may try and plant some pothos in Jacques' tank now!

 

[Moozillion]

@Mark84, how does Duck Weed do in low light indoors?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I forgot about Pothos
My pond is surrounded by it

 

[Markw84]

@Mark84, how does Duck Weed do in low light indoors?

Does ok but won't get as thick. If you have good lighting with a good uva/ uvb it will help.

 

[C.H.D Exotics]

Thanks I will put some pothos in there, and a plecostomus.

 

[Markw84]

@Mark84, how does Duck Weed do in low light indoors?

Duckweed likes light and grows in full sun to partial shade the best. So growing it indoors is a problem. It can be done with good grow lights. The UVB tubes we use for our chelonians are a good start to a good grow light setup. Add a well color balanced LED and you probably could do it. Be careful of incandescents around the basking area. That will cook the stuff that gets too close. Too much IR!

 

[Yelloweyed]

I've started to give away duckweed for free on Craigslist! Turtle tank has a 4ft 6500K LED with a basking light bulb.