African sideneck with res

Question
I have an african sideneck who is roughly 4" in diameter and have someone who wants to give me two res baby turtles about 4 weeks old  can I pit them in a tank together or will their size difference hurt and my tank is staying dirty and I can filters about twice a week is there anything that can help this

Answer
Hi Cory,

I wouldn't try keeping them together.  For one thing, you need to consider their needs when they grow bigger (and RES grow pretty quickly).  Two RES alone will need a very large tank--100 gallons or more.  Add in a sideneck, and you'll need an even bigger tank, with a correspondingly heavy-duty filter.  Also, a 4" sideneck could easily harass (and injure) hatchling RES.  Hatchlings of any species should only be housed with hatchlings, just to be safe.  

If your tank is continually dirty, the filter isn't nearly big enough.  For turtle tanks, it's best to use an external canister filter (such as a Magnum or Fluval) rated for a much larger tank.  You need a lot of filtration power to keep the water clean.  Getting a really good filter isn't cheap, but it will save you money in the long run by keeping your turtles healthy and making less work for you.