Habitat - Indoor :: Filters

[sorry!]

I think i'm going to buy my g/f a turtle for her bday. i have a 30 gal. tank i'm no longer using just sitting around.

I was looking at filters and came across a website that specifically had 'turtle' supplies (the other filters were more like for fish and cost alot more...)

they have filters they and i noticed one i could use in my tank called fluval 4 it cost $CAD 60. Would this be good enough for a turtle? Ive read it should rated for 5 times what your aquarium can hold it says its rated at 260 gph so thats well above the 150 gph needed for my tank.

i also hear turtles are really messy so would this still be ok? i also saw some cheap internal filters (tetrawhisper) would it be cool to get this AS well as the fluval?

[TheComputerGremlin]

For filtration, you want to really buy the best you can possibly afford to avoid needing to upgrade. You can even easily go with something like a Rena XP3 canister filter on a 30 gallon tank. It may seem like overkill, but trust me, you'll need it.

Aquatic turtles are more like fish, so you want a fish filter. Basically anything for your turtle (minus turtle food and turtle dock), you'll want fish equipment. If you want your tank to last longer (as per your other post), you don't want any internal stuff because it will take away from space your turtle can use.

Get ready because turtles aren't cheap. My $10 1.5" turtle ended up costing me around $500 for the first set up, and my tank will need to be upgraded at some point in the future. The next tank will likely set me back $200-400 more.

[seanwb]

I would not go for a Fluval 4+ despite owning one myself. I used a Fluval 4 because I had one spare when I rescued Squirtle, and when it packed up whilst I was on holiday my friend quickly replaced it with a new 4+.

The key issue with the Fluval 4 is the small foam area within it. This means the biological area filtration area is small, it may blast the water around quickly, but it is blasting it through very little filtration. It also means it clogs quickly. As it starts to clog, the flow rate plummets dramatically, leaving you with a lot, lot, lot less than 1000 l/h. This means you need to clean it out more often.

Also you have no flexibility with media. There are fine filter pads, but if you put one in it will clog even quicker. There are carbon pads, but they are minute and very expensive compared to what you could put in a canister filter.

My advice is to spend the extra money on a canister. You will not regret it.

[Rubicon]

I've got a Fluval 4+ w/ carbon pads and a Zoomed 501 w/ biomax running a full 75gallon tank. Water is crystal clear right now. But then again it's only been going for a day

I'd go for a Rena XP2 or a Fluval 304. You should be able to get a 304 for a very decent price!!!

http://cgi.ebay.com/Hagen-Fluval-304-Ca ... 240%3A1318

Or if you can swing $85 get the Fluval 404. Also on ebay with free shipping but these are buy it now.

[sorry!]

ok thanks guys