Building a pond for my red eared slider in Arizona- I need advice please?

I live in the white mountains of Arizona (so we do have mild winter snow) I would like to build a pond for my red eared slider, but need to know how to keep it clean and keep him warm during the winters. I am not willing to spend 1000 dollars on a pond and I am willing to get my hands dirty and do it myself. Does anyone have any good resources or personal experience that may assist me in this process? (the reason for the pond is that he is getting bigger and is ready to not be in an aquarium, I care about him and think he deserves the best house I can give him)Building a pond for my red eared slider in Arizona- I need advice please?
it is important to give him a deep enough pond that the water will not freeze in the winter and make sure it has plants that will thrive in that area if you can make a small waterfall to keep the water moving filters are good but the plants will do the job if the pond is big enough make sure that you keep the feeders to a minimumuse rosies instead of goldfish they are not as messyBuilding a pond for my red eared slider in Arizona- I need advice please?
how bout letting him be in the pond in summer and putting him in a large aquarium when it snows????!!
we have had several members build outdoor ponds that could answer your questions at http://www.happyturtlespub.org good luck!
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no not really but you can call the animal shelter they can give you ideas
How nice! We have an 18 yr RES that we ';saved';. I would love to have a pond for him. Have you called a local reptile shop or maybe the Zoo? Ours is still in a large aquarium...half water then rock for him to sun on top of. Keeping him warm would be the issue. If he has been inside for a good length of time (like ours) I don't know how he would adapt. They are aggressive so being with other turtles isn't a problem, but climate is another story.
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