Turtle tank filters

Turtle tank filters have to work hard to keep the water clean because aquatic turtles are so messy. To be a little gross about it, turtles poop and pee more than fish do, which makes the water dirtier and can lead to lots of bad bacteria that can make your turtle tank smelly and make your turtles sick.

That's why there are special filters made for turtle tanks. They're made specifically with turtles in mind. The biggest difference is that they have more filtration media, which is the stuff that goes inside the filter to keep the water clean. They also pass more water through the filter every hour than fish tank filters for the same size tanks do.

You don't have to use a special turtle tank filter, however. In fact, most aquatic turtle keepers use filters made for fish tanks. That's perfectly okay as long as you make sure to buy a bigger filter than you would for the same size tank if it had fish in it instead of turtles.

In general, if you're going to use a fish tank filter for a turtle tank, get one rated for three or four times as much water as you actually have in the tank. So if you have 40 gallons of water in the tank, get a fish tank filter that's rated for 120 to 160 gallons. That will give you enough filtration for your messy turtles.

Kinds of Filtration

There are three kinds of filtration that a filter provides:

Mechanical filtration means straining out solid stuff like dirt and uneaten food. It's usually provided by a sponge, aquarium filter floss, or other media inside the filter that traps particles by straining them out.

I personally like filter floss better than sponges, but some turtle keepers disagree. The reason is because cleaning turtle poop out of a filter sponge is a yucky, messy job. Filter floss is cheap and I just throw it out instead. If you have a big filter that needs a lot of floss, you can just buy polyfill stuffingin a big bag. It's a lot cheaper that way, and it's the exact same thing as aquarium filter floss.
Biological filtration is provided by friendly bacteria who live and grow on the filter media. A lot of times they use the same media as the mechanical filter (a sponge or filter floss); or you can use Bio Balls,lava rock, ceramic rings, beads, or gravel, or other things that friendly bacteria can grow on. These friendly bacteria help keep the tank clean by "eating" the turtle poop, ammonia, and nitrites.
Chemical filtration is usually provided by activated charcoal and ammonia filtering media. A lot of times you don't really need it once your tank is set up and the friendly bacteria are established and start doing their job. But if your tank has odors, then you can use aquarium charcoal in your filter to help remove the things that are making the water smell. If your water has too much ammonia in it, then you can use Ammo Carb or a similar product to quickly remove it.

Types of Turtle Tank Filters

There are four basic styles of filters used for fish and turtle tanks:

"Internal" or "submersible" filters are popular with beginners using small tanks. They usually attached to the glass inside the tank using suction cups. These filters are okay for small habitats (up to 20 gallons), but are too small for larger ones. But if you're planning to start with a small tank and raise your turtles from hatchlings, then a submersible pump is probably a good choice because they're inexpensive and easy to install in a nursery tank. Then when your turtles grow you need a larger tank, you'll need a larger filter, but you can use the internal one as a circulating pump to help keep the water moving

One submersible filter that I like is the Marineland DJ100 Duetto Internal Multi-Filter (like the one pictured on the right), which I've found to be a good filter solution for smaller tanks. The Exo Terra Flo 350 Complete Internal Filter is another internal filter that I like. I use one as a circulation pump in the 75-gallon tank on this site's video feed.

Be very careful when installing any electrical device inside the tank. You have to be especially careful when running the wire, that it doesn't run over any sharp surfaces that may damage the insulation. (And if you're a youngster, always have an adult helper whenever you're working with electrical parts of your habitat!)
Canister filters are considered the best kind of filters for a turtle tank. They usually mount under the tank in the cabinet or stand, so they don't take up space inside the tank. Canister filters for aquariumsprovide excellent filtration, but they're also pretty expensive for the larger-capacity ones.
There is one company that makes very good, inexpensive canister filters for fish and turtle tanks, however. SunSun external canister filters are as good as any other canister filters I've used, and they're much less expensive. A lot of them also include a UV sterilizer, which helps kill bad bacteria and floating algae. As the filters for all of my turtle tanks wear out, I'm replacing them with SunSun filters. I like them a lot.

For smaller turtle tanks, another inexpensive canister filter that I've used and have been happy with is the ZooMed 501 Canister Filter. I say "basically happy" because although the filter is very well made, I don't think it's really up to filtering the 30 gallons of water it's rated for. I used two of them for my 40-breeder (which had about 30 gallons of water in it), and I had to service the media once every two weeks or so. But on the other hand, the water was crystal-clear.

The thing I like about the Zoo-Med 501 is that it's one of the easiest filters I've ever used to clean and maintain. It only takes a few minutes to do, so it's good for a beginning turtle hobbyist with a small turtle tank. But again, it's only good for smaller tanks, like a tank with only a hatchling or two. You're going to be needing a bigger tank as your turtles grow, so maybe you should just start with a bigger filter right from the beginning.
Hang-On-Back (HOB) filters hang on the back of the tank and are commonly used for fish tanks. This kind of filter usually won't work for a turtle tank unless the tank has a filter cutout. This is because the water level in a turtle tank is usually kept several inches below the top of the tank so the turtles can't escape, and the filter's pump will have to work too hard to draw the water up the siphon. The "AquaClear" line of filters, like the one pictured on the right, are very popular HOB filters if you do have a turtle tank with a filter cutout.

Most HOB filters are designed for fish tanks, and turtles are much messier than fish. If you use a HOB filter, get one rated for three or four times the amount of water in your turtle tank.
Under gravel filtersUnder gravel filters ("UGF's") cause a lot of disagreement in the turtle and fish hobbies. Some people love them, and some people hate them!
Traditional UGF's worked by drawing water down through the gravel by drawing it up through the vertical tubes using aquarium power heads. The idea was to use the gravel as a medium for friendly bacteria to live in, and then drawing water through it. It seemed like a great idea! The problem was that sometimes, some of the poo and leftovers would get drawn down really deep down into the gravel. That would clog things up, and the decaying poo and leftovers would increase the levels of bad bacteria, ammonia and nitrites.
Then someone said, "Hey! Let's try pumping the water the other way," meaning down through the vertical tubes and up through the gravel, and the reverse-flow UGF was invented. they figured that doing it that way, the nasty stuff wouldn't settle down into the gravel. Many people still use reverse-flow UGF's and think that they're great.
Me, not so much. I used to use reverse-flow under-gravel filters, but I don't anymore. The problem is that as time goes on, the filters still get clogged. The pumps pump bits of floating debris (like uneaten food) under the UGF, where it can't be cleaned. It's also hard to find power heads strong enough to pump the water under the UGF.
So the long and short of it is that I no longer use under-gravel filters. I know that a lot of people who are much smarter than me still believe in them, so feel free to listen to the expert of your choice and make your own decision. But I don't use them anymore.

http://turtlesetup.com/the-best-external-filter-reviews/

Turtle Tank Filter Media

"Filter media" means the stuff inside the filter that's doing the filtering. Turtle tank filters usually use aquarium filter media just like fish tank filters.

Common filter media include special sponges, polyfill or fiberfill floss, activated charcoal, plastic balls called "Bio Balls" that are specially designed for aquatic tank filters, ceramic rings, and lava rock. Those are the most common kinds of media, but there are others, too.

Some filtration media, like filter floss and charcoal, get thrown out when they're no good any more. You can't clean filter floss, and the charcoal will be filled up with whatever it was filtering out, so it has to be thrown away and replaced. Some people believe that you can "recharge" activated charcoal, but doing so requires very hot temperatures -- much hotter than most home ovens can generate. Also, it's such cheap stuff if you shop around that it's not worth bothering to try to clean it.

Other media, like sponges, can be washed and re-used several times. Filter sponges usually will last for several cleanings before they need to be replaced, but a lot of people just throw them out and replace them because they can get pretty gross and yucky.

Lava rock or ceramic rings, beads, or gravel can be cleaned and re-used until they wear away. Bio Balls can be re-used pretty much forever.

Never use soap or detergent to clean reusable media like sponges! Just rinse the media in water drawn from the tank itself to retain the friendly bacteria in the media. You can also rinse them with warm tap water if they're very dirty, but this will probably wash the friendly bacteria down the drain; so if you do this, try not to clean all the media in the filter at the same time.

If your tank has a substrate like gravel or Flourite, that will work as a medium for friendly bacteria, too. But you have to keep it clean with an aquarium vacuum cleaner or else bad bacteria can also start living in it.

Turtle Tank Cleaning Safety Notes

There are some dangerous things about aquarium filters and keeping turtle tanks clean. One is that water and electricity don't mix, so you have to be very careful. Make sure you always observe these rules:

Always have adult supervision when working on your filter or cleaning your tank.
Always unplug any kind of filter before working on it (including when changing the media). In addition to the electrical hazards, there are also moving parts that can bite your fingers!
Always make sure that your hands are dry and that you're not standing in a puddle when plugging or unplugging a filter's electrical connectors.
Never, ever, ever use a regular vacuum cleaner to clean a turtle or fish tank. You could be electrocuted and die! You have to use a special vacuum cleaner made for aquarium tanks.

Another dangerous thing about working on turtle tank filters is that they get filled with turtle poop, germs, and other nasty stuff. That's their job, after all, to remove the yucky stuff from the water. But some of these things can make you sick; so make sure you observe these safety rules when changing or cleaning the media in your turtle tank filter:

Always have adult supervision.
Always work on your filter away from food, places where food is prepared, plates, dishes, pots, pans, utensils, or anything else that ever touches food.
Don't clean your turtle filter if you have cuts or scrapes on your hands. (Germs can sneak in and infect the wound or make you sick.)
You may want to wear rubber or plastic gloves if you have them.
Clean your hands and arms very thoroughly after working on your turtle tank filter. Dish-washing detergent is good for this, but ordinary soap works well, too.
If you accidentally splash any turtle filter water on your clothes or your body, then take a bath or shower after you're done working on your filter and put the clothes you were wearing in the laundry.

Using Two or More Filters in a Turtle Tank

Earlier in the page I mentioned that you should try not to change all the filter media in your turtle habitat at the same time. The reason for this is to make sure that you always have enough good bacteria to keep your turtle tank water clean. One good way to do this is to use two (or more) filters and to only clean or change the media in one filter at a time.

For example, if you have two filters, you can change or clean the media in one filter this month, and in the other filter next month. This way you're never removing all the friendly bacteria at the same time.

If you use two (or more) filters, the total capacity of all the filters added up should be at least the amount of water in your tank if you're using filters made for turtle tanks, or three to four times the amount of water if you are using filters made for fish tanks.

Safety Reminder

Whatever kind of filter you use, remember that one of the purposes of a turtle tank filter is to remove all the icky stuff from the water; so when you open the filter to clean it or change the media, all the icky stuff will be inside -- and that icky stuff could make you sick! So always follow the safety rules we talked about earlier in this page.