Hi guys, i am new to turtles and tortoise, i am planning to set up a turtle tank (1.5ft) with basking area, a basic and simple setup for a turtle but i cannot decide which type of turtle i should get. I saw some long tail turtle at the aqua store nearby my house, they are selling it at rm10/pc so i'm wondering if this type of turtle is easier to maintain for a beginner like me? Or if you know any other type of turtle hatchling that i should get? I have a pretty low budget at rm50 a turtle. Please advise, thank you.

Yea, it was something like the turtle picture you posted. Will it get very big? I'm just afraid it might get too big later then i would have to find place for a bigger tank. but anyway thank you so much for your advice. So glad to have you in this thread.

Which type of turtle you were talking about? I'm curious.

Ohhhhhhh....... So it is called Chinese Thread Turtle? Hmm... that kind of increased my interest in having it already but gosh i'm so noob haha.

Ya, true. Now the world of knowledge in on the internet, you can learn whatever you want as long as you have the will.

Ok, I have roughly made up my mind on setting up the tank already but being a noob i still need your advice.
First, I am planning to get ONE Chinese Thread Turtle, hopefully it is a male because it wont get too big later on. Secondly, i plan to get a 2.5ft tank with measurement of 30x15x10 inch. Then i will set a basking area for the turtle, and a filter for the water area.
Now, here are the questions:
1) Is the tank too big? If not then is it big enough after the turtle became adult?
2) I saw people setting up UVA and UVB light at the basking area, is it necessary?
3) I saw some spot light with halogen bulb in IKEA, about rm40+, is it ok for the basking area? I choose that because of the heat it can generates.
4) If the spotlight is not suitable for the turtle, how can i set it up using the lowest budget?
5) The man at the LFS told me that i only need a small pump that cost around rm20 to get the filter runninig. Is it sufficient?
6) Now that i know the turtle will cost me rm10, is it possible that i get all these setup within a budget of no more than rm120?

That is all the questions for now. For other experienced ones, please comment as well, would love to collect more info on this. Thanks!

Question. How many hours should I have the UVB light on? The light needs to cover both the water and dry area or just the basking area only?

I don't plan to have shading place but anyway my tank size is 36x13x18 (inches). Just wondering if the UVB light will kill the aqua plants if i do plant some in the tank.

yorrrr..... how many thousand here already???

Oh wow, now i wish i'm from Borneo. Do you have any turtle that is smaller in size? I heard the red ear slider can get abit too big.

Really? Can you name me a few that dont cost more than rm200 and wont grow half as big as a RES? I really like that PNT but i heard it gets VERY big as well. My maximum is a 3ft tank which i am getting tonight, it's 36Lx13Wx18H and i hope the turtle can grow to adult in the tank without having to change to a bigger one.

Cool! Would appreciate if you could help bring back from our Sifu and also take some pictured from his turtle and tortoise farm.

Sifu i did my homework, i know the female RES can get up to 14inches big, i also know a few not so big sized ones, i just dont know how much it cost. Anyway i would be happy to be able to have a musk turtle, dont care whether its razor back or not, just want it because of its size. But one thing Sifu, how can you tell the gender when the turtle is so small? check the nails, check the tummy then no other ways already right?

I think you need a lab la sifu. Have you tried contacting some organisations and see if they can sponsor your work?

LOL i'm sure you meant "treat" there right?