Okay, Im going to get 2 Red Eared Slider turtles and I have no equipment so I will literally have to buy EVERYTHING and heres a little checklist ive come up with and I'd like anyone with turltes just to add anything and give me any tips... THX...

For 2 RES's:
1 20 gallon tank,
1 Basking platform,
1 100 Watt BAsking spot lamp (for basking area),
1 75 Watt Visi-Therm water heater,
1 Fluval Water filter,
1 Themometer.

I think thats is... can anyone tell me if sand or gravel is better used at the bottom?
Anyone give me a rough idea of how much $$$ this will set me back.. i expect it to be $400 zone...

You didn't mention a UVB light (ZooMed's Reptisun is one of the best on the market to date, or T-Rex brand for a mercury vapor bulb), water conditioner, and I'm not sure which thermometer you were talking about, but you should have one to measure the water temp and one to measure the basking area temp at the very least.

pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com

A waste degrader added to the water will help to break down organic waste, like poo and food stuffs faster and make your filter system more efficient.

I would also recommend you get just one RES, especially if this is your first time. A 20 gallon is not going to last very long for one RES, let alone two. RES grow to be fairly large (males get about 7 - 8 inches, and females often grow to the size of dinner plates, about 10 - 12 inches.) When keeping aquatic turtles, a general rule of thumb is 10 gallons per inch of turtle length. They need the space to help dilute all the waste they make, and not to mention RES are very active swimmers and should have as much space as possible.

When buying your filter I would get one that is meant to filter 2 or 3 times the size of your tank. I would also wait and get a really good canister filter system until your RES is close to adult size, as you will be moving up in tank size until the turtle is done growing. Getting a smaller filter that is very accessible (able to take it apart and clean really well) will go a long way until you get the good one. A 40i Tetra Whisper filter is a decent model and it's able to be taken apart to a certain extent.

I highly recommend that you do not use any substrate on the bottom; the turtle won't miss it and it will help you to keep the tank cleaner. Substrate, like gravel, will hold poo and food stuffs which will decay and cause poor water quality and make your filter system work less efficiently.

I really depends on what you finally end up buying, brands and such, as to how much stuff will cost. Although, your guess is acceptable.

reptile keeper for 12 years

Well you don't need gravel. It just makes the tank harder to clean :P.

You also will need about a 15 watt UVB light bulb and light fixtures. Turtles need them to make vitamin D3 to process their calcium they receive from their diet.

But when they are older they will need about a 120+ gallon tank. :)

You will also need a good filtration system if you don't want to have to clean your tank every couple of days. And little water changes are advised.

Good luck! You've got the basics. $400 dollar zone is correct. xD

Turtle Owner
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my advise you pebbels at the bottem i ahve one red eard slider and it loves it and make suse to get the nice ones not the ones that hiss