Building an Above Ground DIY Turtle Pond

[@kermit9409]

Has he ever climbed out of the pond before! My turtle would love this! 😊

[@mitzymouse9106]

We actually think that’s how we lost him! At first we thought he was stolen but it’s more probable he climbed a fallen plant up and over. We’re more careful with our new turtles 😅

[@kermit9409]

@@mitzymouse9106 how do you stop them from climbing out?

[@mitzymouse9106]

@@kermit9409 we keep the water level lower and keep the plants away from the edges

[@kermit9409]

@@mitzymouse9106 how low do you keep the water, I want to make one for my turtle!

[@mitzymouse9106]

@@kermit9409 about 5 to 8 inches below the lip of the pond give or take. We especially keep an eye on it when it rains. But the water usually seeps out from between the top plank and the wooden beam beneath it where the liner meets.

[@lr5927]

This is awesome, ive been wanting to do an outside enclosure for my turtle and this is a great idea

[@jeanuelmorillo2482]

I love the underwater shots!!

[@mitzymouse9106]

Jeanuel Morillo im so glad we managed to find the GoPro 😂 they really came out cool!

[@kartavyarana632]

You made an amazing pond ! Great job !

[@mitzymouse9106]

Thanks so much! It means a lot ❤️✌🏼

[@Burnsland]

While I voted for the other video lol, this was cool! Everything looks great, and it looks like the turtle and the fish really enjoy their new home! Great job!

[@mitzymouse9106]

Burnsland.com thanks so much! I will be posting the video of us at the keys too so keep an eye out for that next week 🏝

[@jc2091]

Very cool...thanks for posting

[@mitzymouse9106]

Thanks for commenting ❤️

[@kunalcshingate381]

Its so cool ...Why dont you guys try hydrophonics ..

[@mitzymouse9106]

That is such a great idea! We have definitely considered it and may try in the future.

[@kemir1751]

I love how this turned out! :D

[@mitzymouse9106]

Thank you!

[@sk8rat86]

Awesome video keep them up !

[@mitzymouse9106]

sk8rat86 thank you! ❤️

[@vtpets91]

I love turtles. So amazing 😍😍😘😘❤❤❤❤

[@mitzymouse9106]

We love them too!

[@chetanshanfilms9988]

Love ur video love from maharshtra 😍🥰

[@mitzymouse9106]

Thank you!!! ✌🏼🤩

[@kimmasterson9529]

Nice job❤️❤️

[@mitzymouse9106]

Thank you!

[@s.animal8530]

It is super

[@mitzymouse9106]

Thank you!

[@lisafonseca5102]

Do the pallets support the weight of the water after awhile? Do they warp or rot?

[@mitzymouse9106]

They do support the weight however due to the elements the wood has begun to rot but it is still holding. It may have lasted longer had it been treated.

[@rahulcw854]

😍❤️⚡Love this, literally i will make same as it is to my village ❤️ , Respect ma'am and sir ❤️

[@mitzymouse9106]

That sounds wonderful! Good luck and enjoy your pond! ❤️ my respects to you as well

[@ameykhebade4601]

Wonderful

[@mitzymouse9106]

Thank you!

[@BellumAngelus]

this is awesome, im looking at options in order to move my turtle to something with more room, a question though. turtles can be very messy creatures lol how do you clean this setup? or do the fish and plants keep it clean?

[@mitzymouse9106]

Great question! The plants and fish tend to keep it clean enough but every few months or so we will clean out the filter and take out any debris in order to maintain it

[@BellumAngelus]

@@mitzymouse9106 ah I see, that's pretty awesome, again nice job, looks great 😁

[@JamieNotLamie]

Would you do an above ground one again? If so, what would you do differently? Or would you do an in-ground pond? I'm deciding which one to do for our turts.

[@mitzymouse9106]

Since this is a home we rent and do not own we went with the above ground pond but if we owned the home we would definitely do in ground. There are pros and cons to both for sure!

[@JamieNotLamie]

@@mitzymouse9106 Ah, got it! The only thing stopping us from digging in our preferred spot is some underground stuff like wires, but I think I'll have the "call before you dig" people come out and tell me where we can fit a little pond. I think we'll do a combo in -ground pond/above-ground basking area. I will make sure we treat the wood we use because I saw you mention that in another comment, so thank you so much for sharing that! I know so many times we have done the same thing, we build something, then keep telling ourselves "we'll stain/seal it soon" but life always seems to get in the way and then we're on to the next project. 🤷‍♀️ 😅

[@livingcleverley4110]

Do you have to clean this pond or do the fish and plants keep it clean.

[@mitzymouse9106]

We would clean it every once in a while but for the most part it was pretty self sustainable

[@user-fm1zo9gl4t]

Looks good , do the turtles have a dry area they can sit on to get out of the water ?

[@mitzymouse9106]

Yes, we’ve added more wood and rocks for them to climb up on and bask. I love when they stick their back legs out and stretch in the sun ☀️

[@user-fm1zo9gl4t]

Super cool

[@kimmasterson9529]

Yes I see a rock for them to climb up on

[@MH-wz1yh]

Love the pond! But you should be careful if your turtle eats those goldfish, eating a lot of them is bad for their health

[@mitzymouse9106]

M H oh yes! We give them a variety of foods. Thank you for looking out! ❤️ we just filmed a video about how and what we feed them! So check in on Thursday to see 😍

[@MH-wz1yh]

@@mitzymouse9106 Brilliant!! Looking forward to it!

[@AydenR417]

@@mitzymouse9106 yes but if red eared sliders or any turtles eat excess gold fish which have thaiminaise which can be deadly

[@mitzymouse9106]

@@AydenR417 yup! Thanks for looking out. So far, they’re still alive 😅 they enjoy the food we give them rather than chasing after the goldfish, who’ve gotten quite big now. 🧡

[@AydenR417]

@@mitzymouse9106 thats awesome i was just making sure

[@reggiebaiju2871]

What filter/ fountain did you guys use?

[@mitzymouse9106]

it’s the All in One UV sterilizer filter, it pumps over 600 gph, and our pond is about 300 gallons, so it's turning the water over 2 times per hour.

[@DavidJHarrisonEssex]

I live in the UK, I have a Turtle pond, does anyone think it would be a good idea to build a shelter with heat bulbs in? I know they get their heat from the sun but I was thinking it will be ok for my Turtle to.use if it wishes & when it's not such a hot day. Also, if I do build it shall I take it out of the pond & put it in the shelter so it knows where it is if he wants to use it?

[@mitzymouse9106]

This is a great question! We don’t use heat bulbs because Florida is sunny and hot year round but I would definitely recommend heat bulbs added to the shelter if you have cloudy cold days. No need to take it out and show it, turtles usually look for warmth to bask in and should find the lamp on its own. But it doesn’t hurt if you want to show where it is! You sound like a great and caring pet owner! Cheers to you 🎉

[@kenediburrell2939]

Do you guys have any problems with frogs getting in the pond? If so how can you keep them out?

[@mitzymouse9106]

Sorry I'm just getting to your comment now! Thankfully, we haven't had any frogs get into our pond.

[@sizzlinsenior]

How were you able to add turtle and fish so fast or on the same day as adding water?

[@jeanuelmorillo2482]

The water was treated with Reptisafe 2 hours before the turtle was introduced into the enclosure. Due to the size and the quantity of water, the nitrates & ammonia levels were non-existent, allowing the plants to cycle the water. Another way of controlling the water chemistry is reducing the amount of food the turtle & fish receive. I don't recommend this method with anything less than 200 gallons of water .

[@evanwakano6127]

Awesome set up!! How do you guys do water changes?

[@mitzymouse9106]

Our pond has a lip near the top where water flows out from so it doesn’t overflow or reach the top. During the rainy season the pond fills with new clean water and spills out from the lip so most of the time we don’t have to do much. During the dry season we will manually take out about half of the water with a hose and we refill it with new water, treated with reptisafe.

[@YTamazingspongegood]

What's the size of the pond underlay?

[@mitzymouse9106]

Great question! It’s a Beckett pond pvc pond liner 10 feet by 12 feet

[@Dynasty636]

How much did this cost

[@mitzymouse9106]

The pallets were free, the cnz all in one pond filter we bought online for $64.99 but since then has gone up in price. All in all, we spent about roughly $300 for materials. (Wood, liner, filter, screws, nails, reptisafe, fish, etc.)

[@kellenpeeler2425]

What are the dementions in feet

[@mitzymouse9106]

Kellen Peel Peeler ~ 7X4X3 feet LWH

[@ethanngo8615]

where do you buy this wood?

[@mitzymouse9106]

Home Depot

[@two9s649]

What the hell

[@00chilli00]

Love the vid! I was looking at making one of these for my two turtles, but just wanted to know if you installed a drain, or if not was there any issues when it rained?

[@mitzymouse9106]

This is SUCH a good question! Looking back, I wish I would have installed a drain of some sort, kind of how a bathtub has the overflow plate. Thankfully, we placed the liner just below the top seating board so water does seep out when it rains and the water rises. We haven't had any overflow from the very top but it does get a little too close for my liking. I hope this helps!

[@mariamartin5674]

Do you use a light at all for your turtle? I just got one and I want to keep him outside, but I wasn’t sure if I should still get a light.

[@mitzymouse9106]

Nope! Just made sure the pond was in a place that got enough sunlight ☀️

[@szudy76]

My sliders eat fish like that

[@angelvillegas3243]

How thick was your liner?

[@mitzymouse9106]

angel villegas great question, the thickness is 14.5 mil pvc pond liner. We bought the liner at Home Depot, it’s 10ft by 13ft. Hope that helps!

[@angelvillegas3243]

Mitzy Mouse thank you 🙏🏾

[@poke_red4492]

How much did you invest to build this pond? Where did you get the filter

[@mitzymouse9106]

Carlos Jimenez cnz all in one pond filter we bought online for $64.99 but since then has gone up in price. All in all we spent about roughly $300 for materials. (Wood, liner, filter, screws, nails, reptisafe, fish, etc.)

[@josephsilverman2383]

Did you use 2x4 or are they 4x4s.

[@mitzymouse9106]

They are 4X4 and the sitting plank on top where the plants sit are 2X6

[@jonathonboehm2141]

I've been wanting to do something like this for our turtle, did you add a filter to the pond to keep it clean? It seems like the perfect maintainable size.

[@mitzymouse9106]

Jonathon Boehm we do have a filter, it’s the All in One UV sterilizer filter, it pumps over 600 gph, and our pond is about 300 gallons, so its turning the water over 2times per hours. The plants also keep the water chemistry in check by using its nitrates to grow ❤️✌🏼

[@rickyblake816]

Hi I read through the comments and I'm sorry to hear about your turtle and I like your pond build but I do want to caution you about that underwater netting. It can be very dangerous to your new turtles if they are trying to hunt the fish and go for a grab as the fish swims through they can get their head/neck caught in it and drown. Unfortunately I know this from personal experience so you may want to try and figure out a more natural alternative like drift wood clusters or maybe pond plants that cluster where the fry/baby fish can hide and be safe.

[@mitzymouse9106]

I definitely had this same thought! Thank you for looking out. Right now they can fit their head through but can’t really get much of the shell in enough to get stuck (yet!). So we have plans in mind to change this set up soon as they grow so that it can closer resemble a more natural environment ❤️

[@mitzymouse9106]

Also I’m so sorry to hear you had a terrible experience like that. It’s always so hard to lose a pet.

[@truthfactreality6814]

Overstocked

[@AZ-gw8un]

Those are 4x4 not 2x4

[@mitzymouse9106]

Oh! Thanks 👍🏼

[@muhammadtaufik345]

Your neet to put a basking sport

[@mitzymouse9106]

They thanks for the feedback! We’ve added more basking spots since this build. Thank you!

[@muhammadtaufik345]

@@mitzymouse9106 your welcome

[@michellemacagba2606]

He will eat all the fish. I guarantee

[@mitzymouse9106]

We expected this 😂 but to our surprise he didn’t eat them all! Some fish got quite big.

[@athulrk6305]

This is turtle is dangerous for the envirounment and humans