# LIGHTING & TEMPERATURE for TURTLES



## bc_buddah (Dec 18, 2005)

babies about 1 inch shell in diamiter, in 20 gallon, w/ heater for water, at bout 80F, and one of those desk lamps with a plain old 60w bulb in it . .. hovering about 6 inches above the basking area. Big stones on bottom, no filtration, doing daily water changes, also have 2 tadpoles in there aswell . . . drift wood etc OYA!! lol ONE BIG AIRSTONE connected to small air pump for some water movement . . .

here's pics and vids . . .

i just wanted feed back on how well or obviously how BAD i'm doing as to my care with these turtles, got them on pellets . . . uhm .. . ya .. .

n e thoughts are welcome,. plz n thx

lol p.s. i've named them SAM & ELLA after ofcourse the flesh eating virus that these lil buggers carry right??

can sumone plz inform me bout that?!!? cuz . . i handle them lol


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## CrocKeeper (Dec 26, 2003)

Personally I wooould ditch the water heater and get a bigger basking lamp. Also get some reptisun 5.0's over the tank. Daily water changes will get old fast....invest in a good cannister filter or three.....of course at their current size that will be a little while before you are seriously bumming out about water changes......

Salmonella is not a virus. It is a bacteria...

some links for you:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/salment_g.htm

http://www.salmonella.org/

I personally am over the salmonella hype and its association with turtles/reptiles in general. What about the people that get it from their eggs, their unclean bathrooms, kitchens...or their salds...lettuces, spinachs, tomatoes, etc....I don't see a ban on spinach!


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## bc_buddah (Dec 18, 2005)

CrocKeeper said:


> Personally I wooould ditch the water heater and get a bigger basking lamp. Also get some reptisun 5.0's over the tank. Daily water changes will get old fast....invest in a good cannister filter or three.....of course at their current size that will be a little while before you are seriously bumming out about water changes......
> 
> Salmonella is not a virus. It is a bacteria...
> 
> ...


thx for all the nfo . . . i would like to ditch the heater but then the water would b way too cold wouldnt it? i live in canada and it's cold in the winter, i wanted the heater to stabalize and create warmer temps . . .

DID I MENTION MY TANK IS NOT COVERED?!?! it's wide open with the desk lamp leaning into it . . .

whta's REPTISUN 5.0? how much does it cost in canada?
i'll get a filter, depending on . . .

HOW LONG CAN I KEEP THEM IN THE 20 gallon!?


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## DiscusMel (Jul 21, 2004)

For young un's like yours i've always kept them at
80, as they start to grow slowly bring the temp down
to 75.Like you we get very cold here in scotland.The
heater broke in my big turtle tank and the temp was 
down to 55 by morning









A UV lamp is important especially for young ones.

Tank looks great but be prepared to ugrade soon
as sliders and cooters grow big.The rule of thumb 
most folks use is 10 gallons per inch of turtle.
Feed them daily for now only once a day, always 
have some lettuce like romaine floating about and 
they'll soon learn to munch on that.My 4in cooter 
and 9in slider would eat lettuce all day every day 
if they could.Reptomin is good as it has loads of 
the vitamins they need.They looooove earthworms!!

Good luck with them


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## redbellyman21 (Jun 27, 2004)

agreed u r doing well by the sounds of it! I believe he is refferring to a uv light! not sure but google it


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## bc_buddah (Dec 18, 2005)

DiscusMel said:


> For young un's like yours i've always kept them at
> 80, as they start to grow slowly bring the temp down
> to 75.Like you we get very cold here in scotland.The
> heater broke in my big turtle tank and the temp was
> ...


ty so much for all ur info . . do i need to prepare that lettuce in any way? and i'm scared leaving it in the tank will become messy . . . ur thoughts? . . . .

i thought a UV lamp was important too , but I HAVE A CALCIUM STONE in there, u know those ones they sell that's white and shaped like a turtle? is that going to be enough calcium?> isnt the UV just for calcium anyway? people said i dont need special lighting, just a heat lamp . . but i greatly value ur opinion

earthworms? just from outside? catch them?> rinse them/> feed them?


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## DiscusMel (Jul 21, 2004)

Earthworms from the garden if you can guarantee
theres no pesticides been used, if not try your local
fish bait shop.Cut them up as small turtles can choke.

Lettuce won't go messy it seems to live for days in the tank.
Pick out the stalks when they've finished the leaves.Remember
to always rinse the lettuce for any nasties first.

Its up to you on the calcium stones but i've never used them
i prefer to use cuttle bone, its cheap and the turtles seem to
enjoy eating them.Take the backing off and cut into small
pieces for yours and as they grow you can just chuck a whole
one in.I give them cuttle bone about twice a month.Getting them
onto proper turtle pellets will help with calcium too.

The way i see it for UV is a turtle would naturally be getting UV
from the sun, using a UV lamp replicates this and helps the turtle
naturally convert its vitamins.They intake the calcium and convert
it to D3 if i remember right which keeps the shell healthy.


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## CrocKeeper (Dec 26, 2003)

The calcium as Discus Mel said is worthless without the UV light. The calcium is only metabolized when the animal can synthesize vitamin D3 to actively be able to metabolize(put it to use in the body) the calcium, without the UV it eats, and passes the calcium.

Cuttlefish bone is a great source...and a commercial pellet diet is also a good way to ensure a balanced appropriate diet.


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## bc_buddah (Dec 18, 2005)

ok . . well i got a new bulb for the desk lamp that hovers about 4 inches above basking area . . .

i know it's a 50w that ups heat and it says sumthing about UV on the back JUST " UV " not UVB or UVA . . .

i'll re-type the specs of my new bulb when i get home to the box . .

OYA!! WHATS CUTTLE BONE!?!? and will cuttle bone solve my problems? can i skip getting a floro tube (repto sun) if i feed it cuttle bone???

wanna post a pic of it for me too plz?

so that calcium stone is useless huh?? grrrr... i was thinking . . take a florecent fixture from my piranha tank and just rest it on the 20 gallon turtle tank . . .

get a repto glow 5.0 or wutever . . . one with uv, uvb, and uva?

whats the diff. b.tween the UV's?


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## CrocKeeper (Dec 26, 2003)

CrocKeeper said:


> *The calcium as Discus Mel said is worthless without the UV light. The calcium is only metabolized when the animal can synthesize vitamin D3 to actively be able to metabolize(put it to use in the body) the calcium, without the UV it eats, and passes the calcium.*
> 
> Cuttlefish bone is a great source...and a commercial pellet diet is also a good way to ensure a balanced appropriate diet.


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

You babies are SO cute! I'm in the midst of cleaning the tanks for my two right now... Big chore when it comes down to it, heh. But that's okay. They're so stupid they're loveable.


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

in my red ear slider tank i use a water heater, uv light and 50wat spot light


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## bc_buddah (Dec 18, 2005)

here's the specs on the bulb i got . . .

i think it's called SUN GLO 50w tight beam

-35% increase of light and heat in the beam
-Creates a basking area for thermo-regulation
-Increases ambient air temperature
-Stimulates natural behaviour through UVA rays
-Can be combied with Night Glo or Heat Glo for 24h cycle . . .

so is there no way i can get away with NOT getting a new floro tube for my turtles? it's a must? i know it's not a 100% must , but seeing is how they're young, better safe than sorry? there's no e z way out?

where do i get cuttle bone? and what is it?

sorry for all the nooby questions, especialy when i ask them more than once lol . . . thx fo all ur continual support and help


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

There are bulbs on the market that emit UVB but they tend to be high wattage and very expensive. I use one for my beardie, made by T-Rex. It's a 160w light that measures really well for uvb. I'm pleased with its performance... This however would be overkill for a turtle.

So you really do need to get a strip light and some good uvb going.

Cheers.


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## CrocKeeper (Dec 26, 2003)

CrocKeeper said:


> Personally I wooould ditch the water heater and get a bigger basking lamp. Also get some *reptisun 5.0's* over the tank. Daily water changes will get old fast....invest in a good cannister filter or three.....of course at their current size that will be a little while before you are seriously bumming out about water changes......
> 
> Salmonella is not a virus. It is a bacteria...
> 
> ...


This is the lamp I recomend for you...it is a flourescent light....so you will still need your basking light...as flourescents are not good heat producers......the links below cover some of your questions also....The powersun is definately an overkill for these little guys (but is a good bulb) ...it would cook them...and with the flourescent strip you have the ability to cover the enitire tank so they are getting beneficial exposure even when not basking.....

http://www.zoomed.com/html/fluorescent_lamps.php

http://www.zoomed.com/html/boston_univ_test.php


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## DiscusMel (Jul 21, 2004)

bc_buddah said:


> *so is there no way i can get away with NOT getting a new floro tube for my turtles? it's a must? i know it's not a 100% must , but seeing is how they're young, better safe than sorry? there's no e z way out?
> *
> where do i get cuttle bone? and what is it?
> 
> sorry for all the nooby questions, especialy when i ask them more than once lol . . . thx fo all ur continual support and help


The way i see it is why bother getting the turtles in the first place
if you don't want to provide them with what they need.In the wild
turtles get UV from the sun so why wouldn't you feel its not essential??

Cutttle bone is usually for birds and can be bought at most petstores

and its very cheap....scuse the pun









and its better to ask questions now rather than later on down the line
when your turtles start having problems...i started off with 1 and now
have 6 turtles


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## bc_buddah (Dec 18, 2005)

thx guys sorry for being sucha pest . . . hope my store carries that repti sun 5.0 . . . otherwise i can just use another tube from another company right?? all i'm lookin for is UV and UVB right? i got uva in the basking lamp . . .

thx again guys sorry for being sucha noobie at this

p.s. my turtles thank u aswell


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## CrocKeeper (Dec 26, 2003)

No need to apalogize my friend....that is what you are supposed to be able to do when you don't know....find help and ask questions of those that do know......welcome aboard the best site on the net.

Your only responsibility as a newb is to seriously strive to care correctly for your captives, and when you ask questions, to listen to the answers, AND to continue doing homework and learning on your captives.

You can probably order anything you need on-line....


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