Habitat - Indoor :: HELP.....................'~'

[yomama]

Few questions about tanks. I have like a 30 gallon-40 gallon tank for my hatchling RES and a few fishes. The fishes are
4swordtails
3 tetras
2 plecostamous
3 zebra [?] fish

and we have all of the decor, and temps are corect, and basking area okay and everything AWESOME EXCEPT FOR THESE FEW QUESTIONS
1. ARE UVB light harmful to fish?
2. Do they cause anything to them? Such as what?
3. Is turtle shell/mineral/body harmful for freshwater fishes ? [points to fish above]
4. If so, how and what should i do and what can I do?

MY BROTHA [18 YR OLD] THINKS THE TANK IS HIS AND HE IS STARTING TO ADD ALL SORTS OF FISH AND NEGLECTING MY POOR TURTLE WHEN THE TANK IS ACTUALLY FOR THE TURTLE SO NOW MY TURTLE IS HOMELESS UNTIL YOU GUYS help me wiff the answers. Prolly more questions to come after these are answered so stay toon!
ThankyouL:]

[megcornell]

So where are you keeping the turtle?
It needs to be in water.
Turtles are not dangerous to fish, but they will eat the fish, so your brother shouldn't get too attached.
You need to figure out who's tank it is and what purpose the tank will be used for. If it isn't for your turtle, then you need to find an appropriate set up for your turtle or think about finding a better home for it.

[Nettle]

I couldn't tell you what the answers to your 4 questions are, but as for the brother thing, kill the fish until he stops doing it. It sounds evil, but an over-crowded tank is very unhealthy for turtles and all that extra waste leads to bad water conditions.

[yomama]

hey megcornell, yes I do keep the turtle in the water! of course, it's gottttt like REALLY deep water. and okay, it seems to like the fish but doesnt attack it, it leaves it alone but instead goes for the water snails on the ground. it ate one, ive heard that it's safe on another website [live prey] and i was like cool! so, is it healthy??

[TheComputerGremlin]

Anything in the tank WILL become food, maybe not yet, but eventually. If your brother is attached to any of the fish (or paid a good price for them), he needs to get them out quickly. I think any feeder food in moderation is okay, such as snails, just don't overdo it. As for your earlier questions, most of the UVB rays will be canceled out by the water, so the fish should be fine. Fish are more sensitive to water and environment changes, though, and the extra waste could end up killing some of them, not to mention your filter. I'd recommend that either you or your brother start looking for an additional tank, like on Craigslist, so you're both happy.

[Tenodera]

No, UVB isn't harmful to fish, at least not those ones you mentioned above.

and no, turtles aren't harmful to fish except in the way they love to EAT fish.

and about the turtle/fish home thing, I agree with the above posts.

[yomama]

actually, turtle isnt actually homeless xD like.......50%homeless...

[megcornell]

What do you mean 50% homeless?
Your turtle needs a stable environment with constant temps to keep it healthy. Moving it around a lot and changing it's environment will stress it out and can lead to it getting sick.

[clc4912]

I think he means that the fish are using 50% of the tank as his brother is encroaching. Not to worry, as stated above the turtle will resolve the fish problem in good time. Just make sure that the filter stays clean. The fish will die due to bad water quality before it harms the turtle.

[industrial_girl_2000]

I think your brother needs to stop spending money on more fish, and instead spend the money on a new tank for his fish. That way you can keep the fish & turtle separate.

Sorry to tell you this, but turtles will eat anything in the tank that isn't bolted down.

[yomama]

but mines only a hatchling 1in. how long will it last not eating the fish?

[TheComputerGremlin]

Whether he eats one whole yet or not is to be seen, but he'll likely start eating the fish, fins and small bits by bits, until they die from damage. You'd be surprised how quick turtles can be and how nasty their bites are. The first feeder fish I got my turtle, I swear it was bigger than his head, it took him four hours to eat the fish, and I felt awful for the poor thing because he kept nabbing him, and the fish was bleeding internally before the turtle got him.

[yomama]

awwwww jax that was so sad!