Hi, I would like to purchase a UV sterilizer, can this equipment prevent diseases like marine velvet/ich? How long should I let it run per day? Or it should be run 24 hrs non stop? Is there any disadvantage from this equipment? I intent to buy a hang on back one.
UV sterilizer
- Thread starter mansiz
- Start date
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Biggen
Aquarium Advice Addict
We have a great article about UV in our article section:
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=31
Should answer all of your above questions.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=31
Should answer all of your above questions.
scuba_steve
Aquarium Advice Addict
imo i think ozone is better but my thoughts
Biggen
Aquarium Advice Addict
Better as in more efficient or better as in easier and safer to dose? If it is the later, than I would have to disagree. O3 is extremely toxic to anything it touches. Too much can easily be destructive to a reef tank. Some people even dose it without an ORP meter. Crazy I tell ya!!
I vote for UV all the way. Cheaper to setup and run and you can't overdose it.
scuba_steve
Aquarium Advice Addict
i feel its alot more efficient by far !! keeps water super clear !! also the skimmers pulls out alot more with ozone than with out imo !! i also added a fish once(coral beauty) with out qt like a dummy and had ick develop on her with in a few weeks it was gone and no other fish caught it !! there was no way to catch unless i pulled out all the rock !!
i agree if ya dose with out an orp ya can be in alot of trouble if ya using to much !! i dont use one but with around 200 gallon volume i only dose 50 mg/h and have not had any issues with any fish !! i feel that using lesser amounts is safer than going the full amount they say ya can add to a tank with or with out an orp controller !! just my experience with it mabe ill get bit in the rear but so far i love it and will stay with it !! just my thoughts though !
i agree if ya dose with out an orp ya can be in alot of trouble if ya using to much !! i dont use one but with around 200 gallon volume i only dose 50 mg/h and have not had any issues with any fish !! i feel that using lesser amounts is safer than going the full amount they say ya can add to a tank with or with out an orp controller !! just my experience with it mabe ill get bit in the rear but so far i love it and will stay with it !! just my thoughts though !
Ya O3!!!! The LFS owner introduce me this stuff, but I did'nt buy cas I'm afraid it will harm nitrifying bacteria and tube worms/feather duster ect. So I intent to get one and use it accordingly, can I add directly into the tank water if I don't have a sump or canister filter ect? BTW why is the O3 container printing a FW discus fish? Can it be use in marine?
pecan2phat
Aquarium Advice Freak
One of the problems with ozone is rubber gasket deterioration even if you flow the skimmer output over carbon and cap the cup with carbon. Over a period of about 5 yrs of using ozone, I had to replace my bulkheads on the sump and overflow box. you will notice that airline hoses and suction cups start to get very brittle. I swapped from ozone to UV about 8 yrs ago.
WarOrks15
Aquarium Advice Addict
and what one works better or do you think they work about the same.
pecan2phat
Aquarium Advice Freak
24/7 is fine. You just need to know how many hours the uv bulb is good for. For example, my CSL Double Helix UV Sterilizer is effective for 8000 hours which translates to 333 days if I use it 24/7.
G
Guest
Guest
The life of the bulb is really not a good way to rate the bulbs and most manufacturers recommend replacement every 6 to 9 months. This is because the bulb, while still producing light, loses the UV quality and becomes useless.. I personally recommend no more than 6 months between changes... This rates to about $80 a year in replacement costs though... UV sterilizers are not a "Solution to Parasite Problems" They are simply a deterant or preventative. The only thing that will be killed is that which passes through the sterilizer and that depends on the flow rate and wattage of the unit. I think they are a great addidtion to an aquarium, FW or SW. They are good for killing algae cells that cause blooms, and also can kill any living organism such as PODS if they were to pass through it.. Keep in mind this would be a minute amount, but it does happen.. Remember that if you implement any type of preventative for parasites, you have to take the bad with the good and hope that the bad does not out weigh the good. As with UV, Ozone has been proven to be a good source of preventing parasites. The cost is up to 4x the amount that it takes to implement UV, and it has it's down sides to it also, as was explained earlier.. If you plan to get a UV, remember to get the next size up from the minimum requirement, and you should have no troubles.... Good Luck
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