DIY UV sterilizer

[Jen]

Has anyone done this? It's too expensive to buy, and I'm wondering if it can be made at home.

Thanks

 

[andywg]

Not easily. You need to be able to shield all the electrics of the tube from the flow of water and know the flow rate necessary depending on the ditance from the tube to the water.

Dr Andywg recommends:

Ebay! The saviour of many tight-fisted aquarists (yours truly included).

 

[kamel_007]

i think no imposible...

u need UV lamp that came with RO system, and water pump,,

and the cost will too much..

so i prefere to get UV system for aquarims ...

and UV must used one or two days in week only,,,

 

[jimboliana]

for what it costs, dont bother, as everyone says you have to shield eveything, even the intake and outlet so that the light does not eat into the pipes which i have seen b4 and then you have water everywhere

Leave it to the experts

 

[Lateral Line]

Presumably you have a good reason for wanting a UV in the first place. They have very limited use.

If it is possible for a pro to build one, then it should be possible for a suitably handy homer to build one. What I would doubt is that a unit could be home built for less then the cost of a professionally built one.

 

[Jen]

I asked on another site about them, and I got an email saying this one guy built a UV light for 20 bucks. He just bought a ballast, and a germicidal (sp?) bulb, and it did the trick. I'm not too sure about it though.

I've got a massive green water problem that isn't going away with water changes and propler lights/ co2 levels.

 

[Lateral Line]

The problem is going to be getting the UV into the water without it getting out onto everything else, (UV is dangerous). UV units are made of a special quartz glass which allows UV through. If you try to use glass or plastic it will not work because these materials either absorb, or at best, reduce the wavelength of the UV rendering it useless.

Treating green water with a UV is treating the symptom, not the cause. If you have adequate lighting and CO2 levels, and sufficient plants, then you have a nutrient excess which should be corrected.

Have you read gf's article?

 

[Jen]

I know the cause... I had lights of an improper k rating, and way to low co2. I have corrected both of these issues now, but there is no improvement in the water.

 

[Lateral Line]

Do you have enough plants to use the light/CO2/nutrient levels?

 

[Jen]

I'm not sure how to tell if I do or not. I have a good deal in there.

1 monster amazon sword - almost 2 feet tall, and a good 8 inches wide.
a good clump of jumbo val - probably 20 plants about 2 feet tall
3 ludwigia repens, just under 10 inches
2 tiger lotus
2 good chunks of java fern - one cut to about 4 inches, and another thats probably 8 or 9, all curled up and tied to a rock
some crypt wendii, undulata
4 echindorus angustifolius with too many runners and baby plants to count.
2 ludwiga arcuata - under 7 inches
and an anubias lanceolota

They are all pearling and look to be doing much better since upping the co2.

What do you think?

 

[Rivermud76]

You may still be seeing the effects of rot or some other bio load that your tank cannot deal with correctly with your current filtration. Green water is often a sign of cycling. I won't go into it as i am sure you know. You may want to add some sort of bio filtration other than plants and make sure to keep up on the pruning.

What do you use for bio and mechanical filtration atm? Plants help but do not cover the whole spectrum.

 

[Jen]

I have a fluval 403 with the ceramic ring things, and some thick foam.

I've pretty much chaulked the green to having the wrong type of light, and not enough CO2. The algae has just taken it all in since the plants couldnt.