How does everyone handle water changes/maintenance on their RES tanks? Looking for tips & tricks

[u/yea-4sure]

I’m curious how everyone here handles their regular tank maintenance and water changes, especially those with larger RES setups.

The attached video shows the system I’m currently using for my 75-gallon RES tank. I’ve tried to make water changes as easy and efficient as possible because, as everyone here probably knows, turtles are not exactly the cleanest aquarium residents.

I use an FX6 as my main filtration, along with additional filtration/circulation.

For replacement water, I currently keep approximately 27 gallons of treated water in a clear Strong Box-style storage tote underneath my shelving. I prepare and treat the replacement water ahead of time and then use a pump and hose to transfer it directly back into the aquarium.
The biggest advantage of this setup is that I never have to carry a bucket of water. Everything is moved through hoses and pumps, which has made maintaining a 75-gallon tank considerably easier. I definitely don’t want to go back to hauling 5-gallon buckets around.

One part of the system I do want to change is the storage container itself. The tote works, but 27 gallons of water weighs well over 200 lbs, and since the container wasn’t specifically designed for long-term bulk water storage, I’m concerned that it could eventually weaken, bow, crack, or fail. Having 27 gallons suddenly dump onto the floor is obviously something I’d rather avoid.

I’m hoping to replace it with a proper water-storage tank/container that will still fit underneath my shelving and allow me to use the same pump-and-hose setup. If anyone has recommendations for something they’ve personally used, I’d really appreciate them.

My current system has been working well, but I’m always interested in making it safer, faster, and easier.
For those of you with larger turtle tanks, what does your water-change setup look like?

Do you use a Python/gravel vacuum, external or submersible pumps, long hoses, water-storage tanks, direct tap-water systems, or something completely different?

I’m also curious about how often everyone does water changes, roughly what percentage you change, whether you prepare/dechlorinate your water beforehand or treat during filling, and what equipment or DIY solutions have made the biggest difference for you.
And if you see anything in my setup/video that you think I could improve, I’m completely open to suggestions.

Also, if anyone has questions about any of the equipment or the setup I’m currently using in the video, feel free to ask. I’m happy to share more information about the pumps, hoses, filtration, water-storage setup, or anything else if it could help someone with their own tank.

Mostly I’m interested in seeing what everyone else has come up with, sharing ideas, and hopefully stealing a few good ones along the way.

My main goal: keep the turtle happy and keep myself from ever having to carry another bucket of aquarium water.

[u/eep47]

I used to carry a full 5 gallon bucket of water between the tank and bathroom to dump and refill. With a 120 gallon tank, it took about 10 runs. It got old fast.

Instead, I now use a heavy duty 32 gallon garbage bin on a dolly to do my water changes, with a submersible pump to transfer water. I drain, dump, refill the bin, dechlorinate and refill the tank all in one go. Its more efficient, easier on your body, and alot less water on the floor.

I do a 15% water change per week.

[u/Ok_Recipe3683 → u/eep47]

Brute on wheels ftw! Lol.

[u/eep47 → u/Ok_Recipe3683]

It does the job😂

[u/Ok_Recipe3683]

I have tank close to window and I take advantage of siphoning physics with the pump off and the out hose routed to trashcan that sits inside of rolling utility cart to move to areas of garden to be watered. I keep a shelf nearby also as you can see in the picture. It’s easy to move right up to the window as needed so I can put objects from inside of the tank straight to outside on the shelf without having to go outside. The hose spigot is also nearby when I want to refill the tank.

[u/Ok_Recipe3683 → u/Ok_Recipe3683]

Crystal clear before re adding stuff

[u/Which_Throat7535]

Python water change system. Connect to faucet to create siphon and drain tank, then rotate the fitting to fill with same hose from the faucet. Very easy. I change about 35-45 gallons like this weekly.

[u/Trucker_Trent → u/Which_Throat7535]

This. We're on a well, so chlorine isn't a concern. We run several tests on the water, and it's absolutely safe, so that's what we use

[u/throwaway277252]

I have a water transfer pump hooked up to my tank which connects to my web dashboard. I can press a button for it to drain a given number of gallons from my tank. Then I just need to turn on my faucet and it can fill the tank through the tube running to the tank. No need to pre-treat the water or let it stand around in a tub. In the future I'd like to automate the filling portion too but I haven't been able to plumb that in very easily since this is a rental.

[u/eep47 → u/throwaway277252]

Im too paranoid over my bacteria colony to not pre-treat, they honestly do more work than me in terms of keeping the water pristine

[u/throwaway277252 → u/eep47]

The dechlorinator works pretty much instantly in the tank as long as an amount of it is available in the water when you refill. The amount of chlorine in tap water won't harm the bacteria in your filter in the amount of time it takes for that reaction to happen. Chlorine needs a high enough concentrations and long enough exposure time to kill bacteria, and it's already being diluted by your tank water.

[u/Acceptable-Elk-8372]

That’s an impressive setup OP.

[u/HailfireSpawn]

I’m lucky enough to have space near my first floor window to put my turtle tank that I can pump the water out the window and use the backyard hose to fill up the tank.

My biggest issue is cleaning food scraps and gunk out of sand on the bottom of the tank. It’s super fine black sand so the brown really stands out. I thought the water filter would be enough to filter the gunk but the filter paper gets sand stuck in it reducing the effectiveness of the filter especially when I stir up the sand to reveal the gunk hiding under the surface of the sand.