UV sterilizers

[Olive]

Okay Ostrow and other UV sterlizer experts, here is the new thread mentioned in my marine ick thread...........wanna know all about the sterlizers........... Let'er rip!!!!

I mean let's get really into it, up to our elbows in it.................................I am ready if you are!

 

[RamJet]

Ok, UV is simply a very bright light that you don't want to look at for any amount of time. This light is soo bright that it basically sunburns to death anything that passes around it. The reason why you would put it on a Salt Tank is only if your fish are sick from a water born type parasite. This will kill any free floating ick in your tank. Do this with meds., and your combating the ick in two ways. Remember that along with the ick, you are killing off any small corals, arthopods, and other friendly organisms that pass through it.

 

[Olive]

killing off any small corals, arthopods, and other friendly organisms that pass through it.

really?

 

[Adrinal]

yep its a mini microwave essentially.

 

[ostrow]

Olive: really not, if I read that correctly. A number of points:
One, if you get a UV there is no reason not to run it 24/7. It will only benefit the tank. You should have an adjustable flow powerhead to it, so you can slow flow to kill parasites if they appear, then speed up flow to kill algae and only algae, but not bacteria, not parasites, not larger organisms.

As for the larger organisms. There is no way you are going to affect any coral, small or otherwise. Why? Because they will never get through to the UV. You will have a powerhead with some sort of sponge or foam filter over the intake. You want NO sediment, no particulate matter, no debris of any sort entering the UV chamber. There is no way in the world a properly set up UV, or anything short of a woefully inadequate setup, is going to have a coral pass through the unit.

Indeed, I am not sure how a coral would ever get into and through a powerhead. That is simply not a worry.

You don't have to worry about pods in your UV either, for the same reason. I addressed the plankton issue in another thread. Some turn off UV for about 8hrs daily (by way of a timer) to protect plankton populations. There are hefty discussions about this on Reef Central and on Wet Web Media. But if you are worried about ick, you want it on 24/7 for a good 3 weeks straight. I, personally, don't think plankton would be affected.

When running UV you MAY NOT USE MEDS. At least, not generally. In F/W I do add Aquarisol when running UV, but only after doing loads of research including talking to techs at the manufacturer of each (the med and the UV). In general, you must turn off UV when using meds.


And now a qualifier: I run UV 24/7 on my freshwater tank and love it. I don't have one on the marine tank because I have not had a need (disaster-induced as with my f/w). If it happens I stand ready to add one. I have researched extensively on UV in marine tanks and what I say here is either undeniable fact, and I indicate as such, or more controversial in the case of plankton, and I indicate as such. Those who use UV 24/7 in marine tanks have healthy fish and corals, clean water, etc. But most don't use them at all (as is also the case in f/w).

As I said in the other thread, your problems are most certainly water quality problems you need to address to prevent further loss.

 

[RamJet]

I strongly disagree with Ostrow, you have to remember that we are talking about unhatched and larvel cortals and arthopods. Very, very small little items that can not be seen by the naked eye.
They pass right though filters and right by the UV light. If you have a 10 gallon tank, and your normal water flow is say 10 gallons per hour past your UV, and you up that say by 5, you now have the same water being exposed to the light 5 times more an hour. Its like this, if you normally spend 6 minutes an hour in the sun per day and then decide to only go out in the sun for 2 minutes every 20 minutes. You are still getting the same exposure. Thus, your flow will not save some and kill others, it will simple kill some fast and kill some slow. That is why you dont leave it running in a reef tank.
Now as far as the Meds go, it is my uderstanding that UV will not effect any chemical med you put in your water. Read the labels and see if your meds say not to use with UV, I have never had any bad effects, infact I can usually stop treatment early.
As far as contacting the Sales Rep., well, I am a Sales Rep. and if a customer calls me and has concern regaurding using one of my product with a third parties product, I tell them not to use the products together. This keeps the company and my self from being liable for any damages. "The Rep. told me I could do this and now look at it!"
Bottom line, if you want lots of new life in your tank, dont use the UV all the time, use it only when you need too.

 

[ste2k3]

firstly, I would not bother with a U.V at all. I would only run one on "sterile" tanks such as freshwater and fish only marine tanks. I run a double 30watt U.V on my large cat tank and it does keep the water crystall clear. as for running them on a reef tank, they will not effect coral as it only kills life that passes over the bulb. yes, it will kill any planktonic life that passes over it and that is why I won't use one on my system. when I say planktonic life, plankton is a name used to cover all "drifting life" and plankton could be a krill @ 2" long so no all plankton will be killed, just the small ones such as the copepods etc.

In the Uk Ick isn't heard of, do you mean white spot? if so, then the best way to get rid is to feed the fish with vitamin enriched foods 10 times a day or more. not increasing the total ammount of food but spreading the amount of food going into the tank over a longer period. In the wild, fish are constantly picking at bits of algae and taking pods of the rocks etc but in an aquarium, they only fed 2-3 times a day, so they have to stuff themselfs with food and not all that food is digested as the gut of a reef fish (there are exceptions such as the biger fish and crrnivores, bass, groupers etc) is designed for a constant ammount of food to be passed through but in captivity they get 2-3 big loads of food a day which is not natural and can cause the fishes immune system to lower in tern leading to white spot. this is also the reason behing aggression in marine fish, they wouldn't fight for food in the wild as there is a constant supply but in captivity, if they miss a feed, then they will starve for hours until the next feed.

so I would NOT put a U.V on a system to cure disease as it will only kill life that passes through and over the bulb.

ste

 

[Hazmat]

WOW...I have kept an eye on this subject for some time now. What i have learned from my friend that has worked at the LFS for 15 years is that if you have a reef with little or no fish you should not have the UV on. If you have a fish only tank you should keep it on 24/7, if you do a reef with lots of coral and fish
then you can still go 24/7 or turn it off a few hours a day. I may have missunderstood him but i think i am going to do more research myself and i will go in detail with my friend the next time i go to the LFS.

Hazmat

 

[ste2k3]

I agree partly hazmat, but if you have corals, then the u.v will be killing potential food for the corals. There is NO, "you should have a U.V" or "you shouldn't have a U.V" every tanks different so its personal choice. my choice is not to have one on a tank where planktonic life is encouraged to grow and is needed by corals. again, thats just my opinion and you will probably find many people running systems with U.V on 24/7 with great sucsess.

ste

 

[Hazmat]

I agree that it is more a personal choice. I still plan on doing more research for my own personal knowledge and to help other's make the right choice for their tank.

Hazmat

 

[ostrow]

I agree with ste2k that UV on a reef tank isn't normally needed and I don't use one, though if Ick/whitespot developed and I couldn't easily kick it I would go that route. The rest is just not right.

Pods does not = plankton. Copepods, etc, are not going to pass through the UV any more than they would through a cannister filter or skimmer. When they do on occasion, they are dead. Then if they make it back to the display they get eaten, so no problem. I used to run a cannister with fine microfilters and my pods were thriving. Plankton you are not going to see with the eye, but they are also primarily living on rocks, sand ... they adhere to things. Most tanks don't have live plankton breeding, that's why we feed. And some feed live, some feed dead, and they all get eaten, so again, who cares? They get eaten.

Look, what I am writing is not opinion. Do a search in reefcentral.com, reefs.org, wetwebmedia.com -- the 3 leading forums on reef aquariums, and they all say the same thing. UV will not harm populations of pods, worms, plankton. If you have them you will continue to, if you don't you will continue not to until adding them.

But again, I don't use one and have not had ick in my reef tank, and most who have been here for ages will remember that I had ick bigtime in my f/w tank.

Interesting, then people here (Rose) said UV was strictly for salt tanks. Wrong. UV is, IMO and IME, essential in f/w tanks. I wouldn't run one without. So far, my reef has been fine without. The animals (cleaner shrimp, cleaner goby, cleaner wrasse) work great for controlling parasites. Other animals control unwanted algaes.

I FORGOT THE MOST IMPORTANT PART!
Anyone who has added meds to any tank, fresh or salt, without turning off their UV has simply been lucky not to have had substantial losses. UV can and will break down chemical bonds in medications, and every single UV sterilizer sold for aquarium purposes says to shut it off when adding anything to the tank. Any cheleated copper for instance gets broken down. Quinine goes ballistic under UV and will kill everything in a tank. Malachite Green goes bonkers under UV and they must not be used simultaneously. Almost every antibiotic is rendered useless by UV, and some become toxic. It is absolutely the case that EVERY newe UV unit sold has this warning, at least in the States. Coralife, Custom Aquatic, Aquanetics, all have the warning. I have to assume the other brands do as well.

 

[RamJet]

Ok, I have changed my mind. I must have gotten lucky then, no problems running both UV and meds, but I just fond it on a label "Do not use with UV sterilezer."
Still looking for my ick meds, I'll let you know what it says when I find it.
Thank you all for beating that through my skull, I would be rather upset if had lost my tank. It wont happen again.

 

[Landlocked]

I thought that you would only need a UV sterilizer for a quarantine tank. Is this a bad opinion?

"Do not use with UV sterilezer."

I can spell sterilizer right!

 

[ostrow]

That is a good idea. But not if you are medicating that tank.

 

[Landlocked]

Thanx a lot!