Best temporary setup for a painted turtle

[JTred]

I've got a 6 m.o. (ish) painted turtle with a shell about 2.5 inches long. Currently he's in my 15g community dorm tank, but he's really got to go. The corys don't seem to mind him very much, but my one remaining adult platy is very stressed. I am going home in two weeks, and I plan on bringing back something to move him into. Here are my options, neither is ideal, but let me know which would be better:

--Spare 10g--
Setup
no substrate, floating dock, heat/UV lamp (only on when in room), mesh lid, heavily filtered
Pros
Looks nice, fits more places, makes the turtle easy to see and fun to watch

Cons
Less water, less swimming space

-Rubbermaid-- (I have both of these styles, not sure which would be better)
[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

Setup
No substrate, floating dock, heat/UV lamp (only on when in room), no lid, heavily filtered

Pros
More water, doubles as a storage container for end of the year move-out

Cons
Less ambient light for the turtle (likely to be very dark most of the time), ugly, no fun, makes watching the turtle less practical/enjoyable

In both cases I would probably something for him to play with or explore. If he really started to look bored I would consider adding feeder fish for him to chase and eat. This setup would only be until May at the soonest, or next September at the absolute latest.

[korith]

For the long term the plastic bins may not hold up that well to the UV light. For short term I'd probably go with one, more space to work with. You can get a cheap bin at walmart for under $10. How about one of those under the bed storage containers? Those are fairly large in area. You could even go bigger with a kids pool. It's fall time so many stores will be clearancing them out cheap.

[WaMiss]

I'd go with the Rubbermaid too. Bigger is better for a turtle. Make sure you don't fill close to the top since you don't have a lid.

[JTred]

Ok, I've decided that bigger is better. Total gallons being equal, should I go for length and width, or depth? If I have the choice between longer and wider (like the under bed containers), but less total gallons, or a tall narrow bin with more volume (like the big one pictured above), which one should I choose? I've decided to move him tomorrow, because he took a chunk out of the platy's tail today. I'll be visiting Wal-Mart and the lfs tomorrow as it is somewhat of a day off for me. Thanks again.

-JT

[WaMiss]

Ok, I've decided that bigger is better. Total gallons being equal, should I go for length and width, or depth? If I have the choice between longer and wider (like the under bed containers), but less total gallons, or a tall narrow bin with more volume (like the big one pictured above), which one should I choose? I've decided to move him tomorrow, because he took a chunk out of the platy's tail today. I'll be visiting Wal-Mart and the lfs tomorrow as it is somewhat of a day off for me. Thanks again.

-JT
IMO........
Aquatic Turtles are swimmers!!! I'd go for as deep and wide and long as you can. An under the bed container isn't going to give him much depth to swim in. I say the taller bin with more volume. Look at all that swimming room he will have! thumbs2: Keep in mind as you fill it the sides will most likely bow out. You don't need to fill it full!!!

[JTred]

Just thought I would update everyone. I went to Wal-Mart and got a 22g sterilite bin. It's about 18 inches high, 24 inches wide, and about 3 feet long. The turtle is still getting acclimated, but there's a lot more swimming room and I only lost about 6-8in of depth. The major plus is I can now use my basking lamp.

The fish are doing much better. My platy fry have been moved over to the 15g and my once solo female has perked up. She is still shoaling with the corys though. I had previously thought that my BN pleco was a recluse, but apparently he was living in terror all this time. He's taken up his role as king of the tank.

Thank you to everyone who helped.

-JT

[Fisharefriends27]

A BN pleco in a 15 gallon?
That's too small for a Potential 6 inch fish.

[JTred]

Just as the turtle setup is only temporary, the 15 gallon is for the dorm only. By May I will know where I will end up for grad school, at which point I hope to get a bigger tank. Over the summer the BN and all the other fish will be in a 29g.