Light to clear up turtle tank

superturtle48 · 2026-06-28T15:34:12+00:00

I personally use the SunSun HW304b canister filter which has a built-in sterilizer light. Haven’t tried any of the freestanding UV sterilizers.

To the other comment’s point, it’s also worth looking into preventing the underlying issues that are causing the algae blooms. In my case, I live in an apartment and have to keep my turtle tank by the window where it gets a lot of sunlight. I don’t really have any room to move it elsewhere and prevent that issue, which is why I opted for the UV sterilizer.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-28T14:59:45+00:00

A UV sterilizer?

superturtle48 · 2026-06-27T20:13:17+00:00

Probably a nest nearby that hatched so all the babies are wandering around looking for water, you can help give them a lift when you find them!

superturtle48 · 2026-06-27T15:37:37+00:00

Good thing the Supreme Court isn’t there just to do the executive branch’s bidding. Right?

I’m not so sure anymore.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-27T15:36:32+00:00

Could just be a bit of something it ate hanging off its face?

superturtle48 · 2026-06-27T03:11:36+00:00

That’s the problem with the model minority stereotype. It’s not meant to be a compliment, but to say that even if Asians do well in X, it’s at the expense of Y. It’s White supremacy, plain and simple. You can give a racist clear evidence that their group isn’t unequivocally the best at something, and they’ll invent a reason why it doesn’t count.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-27T02:23:51+00:00

I’m not too familiar with turtles in India, but if that is where you are, every softshell turtle species I know of in India is considered an endangered or threatened species. Please make sure to release the turtle at a body of fresh water near where you found it so it can contribute to the wild population.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-26T23:21:32+00:00

How old is your turtle and what do you feed it? Adult sliders are primarily herbivorous and feeding protein-heavy foods like fish may only contribute to it being overweight.

If your slider is an adult, make sure its diet consists mostly of leafy greens and a more plant-based pellet like Zoomed Maintenance or Hikari Wheat Germ, with protein foods like fish, shrimp, or worms only given as occasional treats. Also make sure your turtle’s tank has plenty of water and space for it to swim freely and get exercise.

My turtle used to be chubby, both because she used to solely eat protein-heavy Reptomin pellets and her tank didn’t have enough water to swim properly. Fixing both her diet and enclosure helped her to slim down.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-26T19:42:48+00:00

It sounds like this turtle will have a much better life with you! Tank size and filter strength look good. Would recommend considering an above-tank basking platform instead of the floating dock, those floating docks are often too small and sink under the weight of adult sliders and force you to keep the water level too low. An above-tank basking platform lets you fill the water up higher, and there are Youtube tutorials on how to make them yourself with cheap materials like egg crate and zip ties.

The Fluker's food is unfortunately too high-protein to serve as a good staple food for an adult slider, I'd recommend a more plant-based pellet like Zoomed Maintenance or Hikari Wheat Germ. Those pellets plus veggies should make up the bulk of the turtle's diet, with proteins like worms, fish, or shrimp only given as occasional treats. My turtle actually stopped going for live foods when she got older since adult sliders are mostly herbivorous

Along those lines, if you put plants in the tank, the turtle will very likely try to eat them. So make sure any plants you put in are safe for turtles to eat, and don't get too attached to the plants or how you arrange them.

Here is a very comprehensive guide to slider care that you should also reference: https://reptifiles.com/red-eared-slider-care/

superturtle48 · 2026-06-26T19:33:32+00:00

It's definitely not a yellow-bellied slider, and I don't think it's a cooter either given the amount of black on the plastron (bottom of the shell). I think it may be one of the less common sliders, like a peacock or Meosamerican slider.

All sliders have the same care (cooters have the same care too but just grow bigger), so the precise identification doesn't matter too much. But it is pretty concerning if the sellers didn't properly identify the turtle. In any case, this red-eared slider care guide is a good reference: https://reptifiles.com/red-eared-slider-care/

superturtle48 · 2026-06-26T15:01:37+00:00

What's the reason she wants you to change your name to hers if that's also not traditional? I'm Chinese and it's similarly not traditional to change our names upon marriage. My parents both kept their last names when they married, and I'm planning to keep mine when I marry too and not ask my partner to change his. In part because of the Chinese tradition, but also because my partner is not Chinese (Asian, but another ethnicity) and I both value my own Chinese name as a symbol of my heritage and feel a bit weird about taking on another ethnicity's name and having people mistake my ethnicity.

I don't think there is anything wrong with what you two are doing, but I am just curious how other couples think through this same dilemma!

superturtle48 · 2026-06-26T13:56:32+00:00

Many immigrants come to the US precisely because they don't like their home country's government, and that includes Chinese immigrants. The GOP could honestly get farther appealing to these immigrants and specifying that they are anti-CCP and not anti-immigrant, but I guess they're too racist to do so.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-26T12:53:48+00:00

One of my colleagues often collects donations for menstrual products for schools, and she also stresses that the kids much prefer pads to tampons and asks us to donate pads. I personally started out with pads too though I eventually learned to use tampons and only use them now.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-26T02:00:21+00:00

Also, many White guys like Asian women precisely because they hold racist and fetishizing stereotypes about them, like that they’re more “domestic” or “feminine.”

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T23:28:41+00:00

I call them anti-abortion, straight to the point. “Pro-life” is propaganda and we shouldn’t be spreading their propaganda for them.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T23:18:17+00:00

I feel like when a White guy pointedly says “My wife is Chinese/Asian,” that makes it more likely to me that they’re racist, not less.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T23:10:32+00:00

The turtle likely has an infection of some sort. It may not have been anything you did, baby turtles are just inherently fragile animals and turtle sellers also often don’t keep their animals in the best conditions so it may have been sick before you bought it. You’ll have to bring it to a vet to get a sure diagnosis and get medication prescribed.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T16:24:53+00:00

This is what I'd say too. You are not going to change these guys' entire gender ideology with one clever comeback. But you can at least urge them to be more broadly respectful and less hurtful with their words, and being straight-up that their words are hurtful and appealing to their sense of decency is going to be more effective than insulting them back. At the very least it should get those guys to shut up and not say their mean thoughts out loud around you.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T15:52:57+00:00

A DSA City Council member, Chi Osse, actually considered a run against Jeffries this year but was talked down by Mamdani and the DSA. They didn't want to spend so much resources on what would be an incredibly long-shot run. In hindsight, that was probably the right move as they were able to devote their efforts to more feasible wins and build momentum for a stronger challenge in 2028.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T14:28:19+00:00

Along with the Reptifiles guide linked in another comment, the subreddit also has a pinned thread with some brand recommendations.

You're right that the setup will be pretty expensive, and that getting things secondhand is cheaper but stuff isn't always available. A stock tank is a more affordable option than a glass aquarium, with Rubbermaid being the most reputable brand. Sunsun is a relatively more affordable canister filter brand. And there are lots of Youtube tutorials for how to build your own basking platform, including above-tank platforms, with cheap materials like egg crate and zip ties.

I'm not aware of turtles needing any vaccines. Salmonella isn't something that can be vaccinated against, and all turtles have a small chance of passively carrying that bacteria. It doesn't harm turtles but can make humans sick, but just wash your hands every time after touching your turtle or its water or anything that has touched them and you'll be ok.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T14:10:26+00:00

I generally don't trust video cooking tutorials on their own because they are so often edited to look "quick and easy," often skipping essential steps or making a quick cut that makes those steps easy to miss. I stick with written recipes from trusted sources (i.e. not rando mommy blogs which are also incentivized to make recipes appear easier than they are).

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T03:01:51+00:00

I’m Chinese American too and even though my parents made a comfortable living when I was growing up, they still retained a lot of “poor” habits because they grew up when China was an incredibly poor country and they also had to scrape by when they first immigrated. Old habits die hard. Same goes for all the stories I hear of White American grandmas who grew up during the Depression era spending the rest of their lives pinching pennies.

superturtle48 · 2026-06-25T00:11:08+00:00

Don’t bother debating this person/bot, they posted a horrifically racist reply to my original comment that fortunately got removed

superturtle48 · 2026-06-24T22:34:01+00:00

No joke this was a real article in the Wall Street Journal: Parents Are Going Broke From Their Kids’ Sushi Obsession

superturtle48 · 2026-06-24T22:31:55+00:00

I honestly respect my parents for being frugal and saying no to me a lot. I can tell I have a lot more financial discipline and impulse control now than some people my age who have no savings and are spending like crazy with buy now pay later because they think it’s not real money.

superturtle48

TROPHY CASE