Well I ended up getting a baby RES

[tallenskinny]

15 gallon tank
Lamp/UVA
Floating Log
and Sand at the bottom

after more research i need to purchase a UVB bulb? Do they make UVA/UVB in one that are not too exspensive?

I researched petsmart, but i only saw UVB or either UVA


Thanks

[Northernguy]

Cool! Got any pics yet?thumbs2:

[Rue]

Congrats! Turtles are adorable! One of my favourite reptiles...maybe even moreso than snakes...:1luvu:

...but you do know he should be in a 75g?

[tallenskinny]

Congrats! Turtles are adorable! One of my favourite reptiles...maybe even moreso than snakes...:1luvu:

...but you do know he should be in a 75g?

ya i know, Im in a college dorm, right now and upgraded to a 30 Gallon
but when i go home im going to a HUGE tank for my basement and stuff, so its only temp

[tallenskinny]

Cool! Got any pics yet?thumbs2:

i dont have a camera and my phone sucks

[Rue]

ya i know, Im in a college dorm, right now and upgraded to a 30 Gallon
but when i go home im going to a HUGE tank for my basement and stuff, so its only temp


Excellent!thumbs2:

[jay2487]

RESs are the coolest ever! That is one thing I can tell you about. As for the light, Just buy a Full Spectrum bulb, I would suggest a normal bulb not phlourescent with a metal or ceramic reflector/shade(whatever you call it). It will make your turtles colors vibrant. Just make sure you get it far enough away from the basking area or it will turn your turtles dark stripes on skin black and blend them together. That type of light is great for plants too, which RES's love, Anacharis is a great plant because it can take a beating(which the turtle WILL deliver) and he will eat it without making too much of a mess. If you plan on putting fish in there too, I have had luck with catfish and plecos not getting eat, and the smallest feeders seem to fast or too small to hold his attention. I also have one wild speckled perch who does okay but his partner has already been eaten. People will tell you that if it's bigger than the turtles head your okay, NOT TRUE! My turtle has eaten fish 3x his size with ease carrying them around the tank like a dog with a new bone. Oh and night time bulbs just make heat so your turtle can get out at night and it not be colder than the heated water, it's not really necessary. As for the tank size, I'm guessing your's is over 4 inches if you bought it, mine lived in a 20g for a while and was perfectly fine so a 30g should be more than enough for a long while as it will take years for him to grow. Just get a floating platform to give him more swimming room. If you feed him live food you will see he has a much easier time catching them in a small tank, when you move him to something bigger it will be a lot harder for him. There not Bass that just suck a whole fish down before you even see it. They are awesome to watch trying to catch food! I know you'll love your's but if your wife's anything like mine, you'll have to keep her from trying to play with it and pet itthumbs2:

[rich311k]

Congrats. I have two of them. They are great pets.

[tallenskinny]

RESs are the coolest ever! That is one thing I can tell you about. As for the light, Just buy a Full Spectrum bulb, I would suggest a normal bulb not phlourescent with a metal or ceramic reflector/shade(whatever you call it). It will make your turtles colors vibrant. Just make sure you get it far enough away from the basking area or it will turn your turtles dark stripes on skin black and blend them together. That type of light is great for plants too, which RES's love, Anacharis is a great plant because it can take a beating(which the turtle WILL deliver) and he will eat it without making too much of a mess. If you plan on putting fish in there too, I have had luck with catfish and plecos not getting eat, and the smallest feeders seem to fast or too small to hold his attention. I also have one wild speckled perch who does okay but his partner has already been eaten. People will tell you that if it's bigger than the turtles head your okay, NOT TRUE! My turtle has eaten fish 3x his size with ease carrying them around the tank like a dog with a new bone. Oh and night time bulbs just make heat so your turtle can get out at night and it not be colder than the heated water, it's not really necessary. As for the tank size, I'm guessing your's is over 4 inches if you bought it, mine lived in a 20g for a while and was perfectly fine so a 30g should be more than enough for a long while as it will take years for him to grow. Just get a floating platform to give him more swimming room. If you feed him live food you will see he has a much easier time catching them in a small tank, when you move him to something bigger it will be a lot harder for him. There not Bass that just suck a whole fish down before you even see it. They are awesome to watch trying to catch food! I know you'll love your's but if your wife's anything like mine, you'll have to keep her from trying to play with it and pet itthumbs2:

ok ill get a Full Spectrum bulb, and no my turtle is a little bigger than a quarter..i think illegal

[jay2487]

Oh yes illegal to BUY mine was a little bigger than that but I found him wandering across the yard. As far as I've read it's not illegal to have but is illegal to BUY under 4 inches, something about little kids putting in their mouths and getting salmonella, another communist law. That is so cool, have you been able to put feeders in? Does he try to hunt yet?

[jay2487]

http://www.google.com/products?rlz=1C1CHNU_enUS341US341&sourceid=chrome&q=full+spectrum+daylight+bulb+for+aquatic+reptiles&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=G90WS77oL9S0lAfmyKi_BQ&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=3&ved=0CCcQrQQwAg
Try this link just make sure it says full spectrum. Any local pet store should have them, I believe it is the same thing you would use for a non-aquatic reptile but I'm not sure, if you don't use a submersible heater then you really don't need the night time one that they will try to sell you