UV Sterilizers and Reef tanks

[fishman]

I am thinking of buying a UV for my 100 setup. Its been up and running for almost 4 years now and for 3 of those I have had a slight algae problem. I have tried everything and nothing seems to work. Had a 125 setup some years ago with a UV and NEVER had an algae problem.
Any one care to chime in? Do you have one and if so do you have algae?

 

[melosu58]

Yes I have had one for 9 yrs now but dont forget here that the UV only kills algea spores that go through the lighted chamber. Those that are seated in the tank are not affected by the UV. I run mine for parasites and algea spores but they have to go through the UV. What we need to do is find out what is fueling this algea. Is it from overfeeding or water source. Whatever it is we need to find out.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Agree with melosu. What kind of algae are you seeing? Green, brown, hairy, slimy, etc?

 

[fishman]

Look in my gallery. I tend to think its slime. Its really thick and "flowy". Very hard to remove and is soft.