As a turtle owner, you know that turtles are pretty messy. They can transform a clean and dirt-free tank into a muddy mess quickly.
Table of Contents
As a turtle owner, you know that turtles are pretty messy. They can transform a clean and dirt-free tank into a muddy mess quickly.
But leaving your turtle inside a dirty and messy tank can lead to severe and unwanted health conditions. That’s why keep you should keep the tank of your pet turtle clean.
Now, you might be thinking, “How many times do I have to clean the tank”? Well, you should do it every day.
But for the “DEEP CLEAN,” you should do so every month. But the cleaning work will depend heavily on how well you maintain the turtle’s tank. Now, let’s learn more about the cleaning part from this writing in detail.
Cleaning the Turtle Tank: How Often Must You Do So?
Keeping your turtle’s tank clean means preventing them from experiencing any health problems from taking place. You should clean the tank every day, week, and every 2 weeks to 3 weeks. In this section, learn more about it in detail:
- Every Day: Take a small net and scoop out all the visible feces and uneaten gunk, and raw food that you come across. This can reduce the build-up of junk and gunk in the turtle’s tank and the water filter.
- Every Week: Replace around 25% of the water from the tank. Here, you’re replacing 2-fold of the old water with the new one. This can lessen the level of nitrites and ammonia found in the water. Yes, ammonia is colorless in your eyes, but it will irritate your turtle’s eyes.
- Every 2 Weeks to 3 Weeks: Conduct a spot clean. In this cleaning session, you have to look for all the dirty places in the tank and clean it up properly. Make sure to look out for molds, as they mostly occur in the corners of the tank. Also, wipe up the brown spots on the tank’s glass.
Cleaning the turtle’s tank is compulsory, and if you don’t do so, your turtle might develop a respiratory infection.
The Importance of Water Filters for Turtle Tanks
When the turtle’s tank has more water, it’s surely great for your pet. But not having something to clean the water might get it dirty for several weeks. That’s why you must add a water filter to your pet turtle’s tank.
Water filters can keep the tank clean for two weeks or three weeks. This can lessen your work of replacing the old water with fresh one every week.
But opting for a bad-quality water filter might be able to keep up with your pet, and within just several days, the tank will become a mess. But there is no surprise, as the majority of the turtle owners end up purchasing the wrong type of water filter for their turtle tanks.
The “WRONG” here doesn’t point toward the brand or the model of the water filter. It’s about all those water filters that do not have much power.
All water filters get rated according to the amount of water they can easily cycle. You will come across 20-gallon, 40-gallon, and 60-gallon of water filters.
Most of these water filters are created for the “FISH TANK,” not for the turtle tanks. The amount of mess made by the fish is not the same as the turtles.
So, for your turtle tank, you must opt for a water filter that has high power compared to the turtle tank’s needs. This means when you have a 60 gallons tank, you must opt for a 120 gallons water filter and not the 60-gallon one.
Similarly, individuals who have a 40-gallon tank should opt for an 80-gallon water filter for it. You can still go for a much high-power water filter as it will keep the turtle clean for a long time.
But if you opt for a lower one, you might have to clean the turtle tank often, and the water begins to smell pretty soon. When you have a tank, which is pretty big enough for the pet turtle, and a high-quality and powerful water filter, you just have to clean the tank once every two weeks or three weeks.
You can also try feeding your pet turtle at a different place instead of the tank if you wish to keep the tank cleaner for a long time.
Cleaning the Turtle Tank: Steps You Must Follow
When you’re planning to clean your pet turtle’s tank, there are several ways you can get that done:
- Unplug the water filter and get it removed from the turtle tank. This will make the tank cleaning work easier for you and prevent any type of damage.
- Take a sponge or brush and scrub away all the debris that has accumulated on the surface of the filter. Don’t try to scrub it way too roughly, as many water filters can be sensitive.
- Rise the filter with clean water and be sure that all the debris gets removed with a good cleaning solution. You can also leave the filter in warm water for around 20 minutes to 30 minutes.
- Once the cleaning work is completed, you can check out the media of the water filter. If it appears clogged or discolored, you should replace the filter media with the new ones.
- Reinstall the water filter into the tank and then plug it right in.
- Now, you must observe the performance of the water filter for several days to make sure that it’s functioning well and that the water present in the turtle tank is clear.
Remember one thing, the exact method of cleaning the water filter of the tank will depend heavily on the kind of filter you have. That’s why it will be an excellent idea to follow the instruction delivered by the manufacturer for specific advice.
Types of Turtle Tanking Tools Needed
To properly clean the turtle tank, you must have all the necessary tools that will help you with the cleaning. Some of these tools are:
Siphon
You will find many siphons available in the market, but many of them are pretty unreliable and might break or will get stuck quickly.
Check to see if it fits perfectly with big and medium-sized turtle tanks, and you don’t need to place the water bucket close to the tank.
Some of the siphons come with an attachment, which can help you connect with the faucets in your washroom. When you use a high-quality one, you will not experience any type of issues, such as loss in suction or leaks.
Magnetic Sponge
These items will help you with the tank cleaning work greatly. Magnetic sponges will make the cleaning work a lot easier. You can utilize these sponges to get rid of all the algae from the tank’s walls right before you take out the water.
After that, you can utilize the siphon to get rid of the algae from the water. You can occasionally utilize the sponge to get rid of the algae every week. That way, you don’t have to clean the wall all the time.
Algae Scrapers
Yes, sponges are the best option when it comes to removing algae. But they do not remove them completely. So, if you want to get rid of algae fully, utilize the algae scraper.
These scrapers are extremely useful and will help you eliminate all the stubborn algae from the corners of your pet turtle’s tank.
The scraper comes with a solid handle, and you can easily put a great amount of pressure to eliminate the presence of the algae. The scraper’s blade is extremely good and will surely get the lid off the majority of the algae with just one single scrape.
Clean the Turtle Tank Clean and Dirt-Free
Turtle tanks need proper cleaning so that your turtle doesn’t fall ill and lives in good condition. So, if you want the tank to be clean, you must get rid of all the uneaten food and feces.
You must also brush the tank’s glass with a brush or sponge and clean the water filter so that it can filter the tank water properly.
Make sure to properly clean the tank so that your turtle gets to stay healthy and prevents them from developing any type of health-related condition.
