How To Clean a Turtle Tank in 30 Minutes! (Step by Step)

This video gives you a step by step guide on how to clean a turtle tank. Below are the instructions:

How Do I Clean a Turtle Tank?

1) The first step to cleaning a turtle tank is to remove your turtle from the tank and put them in a container with water. Make sure they have enough room to be comfortable.
2) Next, you will want to unplug your heater and filters from the outlet. This is because we will soon be lowering the water level, and they can get damaged when they are turned on out of water.
3) Now, grab your turtle's basking platform and any decorations you have in their tank. Take a bucket of the tank water, and was the objects in the bucket. You want to use tank water because it will help conserve beneficial bacteria on the surface.
4) Once everything is removed from your tank, you will want to start draining the tank. The easiest way to do this is with a syphon. However, you can use a bucket if you don't have one. If you are doing a deep clean, I suggest removing about 75% of the tank water.
5) Next, you will want to use a net to clean the substrate in your turtle tank. While it will be impossible to get every last piece of waste, try your best to get the large pieces.
6) You will also want to scrub the sides of your tank with a sponge to remove any algae or mineral deposits that might be attached to the glass. It's important to do this thoroughly, because both algae and mineral deposits will be harder to remove the longer they sit on the glass.
7) Next, you should clean your turtle tank filter. This can be done by removing the sponges and washing them either in a bucket or in a sink. You should also rinse off the shell of the filter if there is any build up on it, as this will help improve your filter's efficiency. Once the filter is clean, you can put it back together and place it back in your tank.
8) Now you will want to fill up the tank with fresh water. The easiest way to do this is to attach a hose or siphon to your sink and run it all the way to your tank. If that isn't an option, you can just refill the tank using a bucket. Once you have filled up the tank, you should add water conditioner to the tank if you used tap water.
10) Now put everything back into the tank and turn on your filters.
11) The last step is to return your turtle to the tank.

I hope these steps will make it easy for you to clean your turtle tank. For me, it only took around 35 minutes to clean my red eared sliders tank. In terms of frequency, I recommend that you clean your turtle tank at least once a month. You should also perform water changes every week or two.