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I recently replaced my Cascade 400 filter with a Cascade 600 filter. The new filter's GPH is three times that of the amount of water I typically put in the tank.

About a week ago, I needed to do one of those occasional big deal cleaning jobs on the turtle tank (the one that my pair, Hurricane and Typhoon share). I had to change about 80 to 85% of the water. Naturally, after I put the filter back in the tank it had to start working on the nitrogen cycle again after not really being able to complete a full cycle as well as it needs to. I have smelled the water, and it does not smell foul or like turtle pee.

My mother insists that there is something wrong with the filter because the water is cloudy. Over the years when we have had to to large water changes, she has complained about cloudy water, and then it clears up on it's own. I have read the directions, and the filter sounds and looks like it is working fine. I know, and you guys know that it is perfectly normal for the water to be cloudy after a large water change. If you could reinforce this, that would be a huge help, because it seems like just my explanation isn't working for her.

I don't think anything is wrong with the filter other than it's probably severely undersized. Those submersible filters don't hold nearly enough bio media to handle the bio load of a turtle. Cloudy is normal, but your ammonia / nitrite test kits will tell the complete story in a few weeks.

VeipaCray! Long time no see How have you been?

This filter is pretty powerful, it filters the water at almost as fast a rate as my Fluval 3 Plus, which has less media and has had the living crap beaten out of it by Sadie, has to be manually started, and STILL filters all her waste which is enormous in comparison to the other two...

I don't have test kits other than smelling the water every day, lol. I don't put any chemicals or cleaners in, I just let the filter do it's job and I do bi-weekly water changes.

Unfortunately, this morning, my mother picked up the Cascade 600 to clean it, because it was due for cleaning, and it spewed all of this black residue from the charcoal cartridge into the water. I practically freaked out and hustled Ty and Cane out of the tank and let them wander around the house while we removed the water until it was a couple inches deep. We put in fresh water and reinstalled the old Cascade 400 that we kept for just this type of event. On Monday we are going to pet store where we got the Cascade 600, and we will say the filter is too powerful and is upsetting the turtles, so we want to return it or exchange it for another Fluval 3 Plus. The way I maintain Ty and Cane's tank is only possible with a Cascade filter, because I like that charcoal thing and foam thing and I like it when the water smells like a healthy river and I like that algae never grows in the tank beyond little spots here and there, even with the UV light beaming on the water. Any river swelling animal could live in that tank, including a diamondback terrapin because it is just brackish enough, or was. With all these water changes it isn't anymore... It took three years to create this and I am about to lose it forever and I am very mad. ..

Can you return it for credit and pick up a canister online?