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I was wondering what I could do to decorate my RES new tank, it is kind of boring right now, all I have is a few fake plants but he just pushes them under his basking dock...any ideas would be great!

rocks, stones, bublbls live plants improve water quality and the turtles can snack on it. also get some small minnows

Make sure rocks and stones are larger than the head, so that your turtle can't eat them. RES love to push these around. If you have a male turt, he may even try to court his rocks, lol.

I also have a couple of larger aquarium decorations...a sunken bell and car. And, I have a pvc pipe elbow that they love to swim back and forth through.

Just remember that the more you put in the tank, the harder it is to keep clean.

Im glad that there is something I can do to give the tank some character! I also have a wood decoration, that I bought from a local pet store, but I was told that there are certain types of wood that you can't put into a tank????? Thanks so much for your help!

Drift or bog woods are the best wood to use in an aquarium because they won't rot. However, be advised that wood can change the ph levels in a tank.

I happened to be near the beach yesterday and picked up some very large rocks (about 3 & 4" each). Once I give them a good scrub, they'll go into the tank. If you can get to a lake or beach, that's one cheap way to get rocks to decorate your tank.

Another thing you can do is get some of the "wall paper" that you put behind the tank. It really adds interest to the tank. I put some across the back and around one end of the tand to provide privacy.

You can get it at pet stores.

I have noticed the decorations are more for us than the turtles, Zeke has totally pushed all his decorations to the back corner of his tank. Cause that's where he likes them best I guess!

A word to the wise - be SURE that your turtle can't get his shell or his head stuck in any of your decorations. Even if you think he/she would have better sense than to stick his/her head or body in a place so tight he/she couldn't get it out... believe me, he/she will. They are really curious and adventurous and will try anything. I nearly lost my beloved Spotty to drowning when he got his head stuck - really stuck - in the hole in the bottom of a little plaster alligator. It was his very favorite toy and I hated throwing it away

Is it OK to put a few pieces of Quartz in the tank? I have a few Kuhli Loaches in there and I want to provide them with a little corner to hide in. I want to be sure the Quartz won't give off anything funky...

I'd be afraid to put Quartz in because most of the time it has rough edges and I'd be afraid for it to hurt them.