UV Sterilizer......pros and cons ?

[liveforphysics]

Barry, I missed your above reply somehow.

As far as why I think there is ich in all of our tanks, many times when I see a perfectly healthy tank have some even occur that stresses out the fish in a big way (like perhaps heater failure, huge pH drop from malfunctioning calc reactor, death of something huge rotting creating ammonia etc), its common to see fish just magically get ich. I dont know where the paracites come from if they aren't allready in the water, because I know they arent created from nothing, yet they have a tendency to just pop-up during events that highly stress sensitive fish.

I personally think that diet and food quanity plays a roll in how often fish get sick. Espically when I take a rescue fish covered in ich into one of my tanks full of healthy fish, I always make sure to feed all they can eat about 4 times a day. I think the fat happy well nurished fish are more resistant to health problems. Starved fish from reefkeepers that use tanks with inadquate nutrient removal that think underfeeding is the answer seem to frequently have paracites and things (just my observation and $0.02).

 

[NaH2O]

Brenden, I am able to get a $200 dollar unit for about $75 bucks, that is why I asked for the pro's and con's. I guess what I am really asking is....is $75 bucks for an Aquatic 25w UV Sterilizer a good deal or should I pass on it ??

First check to see how old the bulb is? You might need to replace that, which would add on to the initial cost. Also, make sure the sterilizer isn't undersized for your system.

 

[Krish]

Mike...IMO I can't see you really going wrong with one. I personally never bought one I guess because I had other things that were more important for me to get at the time as i tried to put together my whole setup and also because I never had a problem that I figured a UV would help me with. That price sounds really good. I'd check out those few things Nikki asked and if all sounds good, I'd go for it. Just another thought.

 

[charlesr1958]

Since it was asked, here is my opinion on UV units, and for those that seem to have misunderstood some observations about the Ich parasite, this Marine Ich page should provide answers to some of the perceptions about this parasite. Hope it is of use.

Chuck

 

[moortim]

I use one, but it was free so I figured I couldn't really go wrong. I never noticed anything when I added it, just another piece of equipment under the tank.
If I didn't get such a screamin deal on mine I would have never bought one.
There are a lot of things you can do for a tank for $75 that would be better (skimmer upgrade, refractometer, new lightbulbs, ect.)
JMO

Tim

 

[KRMNAL1]

Chuck, great read :exclaim: thanks for the good and bad guys, I decided that Tim is right, I can spend $75 bucks on things I probably need more than a UV Sterilizer

 

[liveforphysics]

"things I probably need more than a UV Sterilizer"

Thats going to be a very very long list.

With reguards to killing phytoplankton/greenwater with UV as a good thing, have you guys lost your minds?


Charles1958- I loved your page reguarding UV.

 

[Krish]

Isn't the ocean exposed to UV light every day?

 

[DonW]

With reguards to killing phytoplankton/greenwater with UV as a good thing, have you guys lost your minds?

:badgrin: Knowing how fast phyto grows and reproduces youd understand that there is no way to get rid of it. Uv just helps control it a bit.

Don

 

[liveforphysics]

Protoplankton consume bacteria (bacterioplankton) and small phytoplankton, and are in turn eaten by zooplankton and other aquatic animals. It moves up in animal size from there.

Its THE energy source for 99% the whole ocean. It has the miricle of photosysthisis to enable it to be an autotroph (An organism capable of synthesizing its own food from inorganic substances, using light or chemical energy. Green plants, algae, and certain bacteria are autotrophs.)

Every animal we keep in our tanks at some point is depending on phytoplankton. For most all of us (exception being PaulB's bananas and a couple other foods), phytoplankton was consumed by the first level of the food chain used to create the foods we feed. Looking on the back of a container of Formula1, everything listed came from phytoplankton.

For the 95+% of you guys that protien skim, you should be loving phytoplankton. That dark tint to your skimmate is phytoplankton, which had to bind N and P to exist, and now you are exporting it very easily. Don't think skimmers pull phyto? Add some phytoplankton with a clean skimmate cup and watch it turn green, draw your own conclusion.

Having a fuge without phyto is kinda like having a car without gas. Missing the key to makeing a more natural system function.

 

[DonW]

To much of anything is not good. Booze, drugs...... and yes phyto.

Don

 

[liveforphysics]

If you can detect phyto in your water coloring ( I assume this is what you mean by too much being a bad thing), the solution is definately not to KILL phyto. The solution is to fix whatever problem is preventing your eco system from consumeing phyto at an equilibrium. Realistically, skimming pulls out phyto like crazy, the green coloring you are likely seeing is gelvin, which is a green dye released during times algae/plants are not growing (aka, when they've been killed by UV). Gelvin can not be removed by skimming (doesnt effect surface tension on a bubble), and must be removed by carbon or WC'ing.

 

[charlesr1958]

I believe this whole conversation is based upon those who wish to fix the problem by going after what is a result and not a cause, fix the causes and you fix the results. Green water is a result, find its cause, which has been explained extremely well by liveforphysics, fix that, and the result will be clear water.

Equipment should not be a cure, it should be a means that allows our systems to find and keep a balance, A UV unit provides neither a cure nor a balance. In fact, they are worse than that, they are one more hurdle for the system to overcome to get to a balance while denying the life in our tanks of a valuable and much needed food source (refer to food chain explanation).

 

[NaH2O]

There is nothing wrong with using a more mechanical approach to reefkeeping. Not everyone follows natural methods. Yes the UV will kill phyto (provided it passes through the unit), and the skimmer picks it up also. My goal is to get as many of the nutrients out of my system as possible via mechanical filtration. Corals look great, so???? UV 24/7, tons of pods....I've never added phyto to my system, nor do I plan to. Yes, when you dose phyto you should turn the skimmer off for a little while.

 

[nccmike]

I added a clown tang to my tank and it introduced ich and died. Not my best decision.

My purple tang got ich so in a panic I purchased a 25w UV for my 110. Don't know if it was the uv or not but the spots were gone in 36 hours and have not returned.

I had to remove my phosban reactor due to no room in the wet / dry for the uv and I have no algae and have not scraped the glass in like 2 weeks.

When i change out my filter media there's always pods in there flopping around.

 

[liveforphysics]

Nikki- "There is nothing wrong with using a more mechanical approach to reefkeeping. Not everyone follows natural methods."


We could save ourselves some money and just stick a couple of nice flat pannel displays together in a box shape playing movies of the ocean.

We could get some realisticly painted platic corals that looked like something you would find in a real eco system.

We could get high-res printed photos of things that live in eco-systems and post them up around the house.

I have a hunch these things would feel like poor substitutes to many of us. Keeping a specimen alive in a petri-dish through the use of life support machines seems like an equally unsatisfying/unimpressive substitute to me.

I think the difference comes down to goals. Sustaining and growing some coral species, or createing and watching an eco-system do it all for you.

Everybody had different goals.

my $0.02

 

[Llarian]

Hyperbole much?

-Dylan

 

[NaH2O]

Nikki- "There is nothing wrong with using a more mechanical approach to reefkeeping. Not everyone follows natural methods."


We could save ourselves some money and just stick a couple of nice flat pannel displays together in a box shape playing movies of the ocean.

We could get some realisticly painted platic corals that looked like something you would find in a real eco system.

We could get high-res printed photos of things that live in eco-systems and post them up around the house.

I have a hunch these things would feel like poor substitutes to many of us. Keeping a specimen alive in a petri-dish through the use of life support machines seems like an equally unsatisfying/unimpressive substitute to me.

I think the difference comes down to goals. Sustaining and growing some coral species, or createing and watching an eco-system do it all for you.

Everybody had different goals.

my $0.02

You're right - everyone has different goals (did I not say that earlier?), however, saying a tank that uses mechanical filtration is comparable to "living in a petri dish with life support" is just wrong. I kind of like some of these petri dishes.....mojoreef's for one....and he uses ozone, too :shock:.

 

[Krish]

I agree with you as well Nikki. I don't care what anyone says, they will never have a perfect ecosystem taking care of itself! If you use powerheads, that isn't natural, if you use a heater or chiller, that isn't natural, if you add calcium and other supplements to your tank, that isn't natural, if you use artficial lighting that isn't natural, if you feed your fish and corals, that isn't natural, if you use electricity, that isn't natural. So whether you believe in using a skimmer or not, believe in a UV sterilizer or not, regardless of your approach, you are by no means doing things naturally and allowing the tank to take care of itself. If you think you are doing things naturally, then leave your tank alone for a few days without touching anything, feeding it, and without any electricity at all and see how long things survive. Your tank would crash in no time, trust me.

My point is, when you put anything into a tank, you are responsible for it. It can't be taken care of all by itself on it's own. That's why people use all types of different techniques and approaches to help maintain a tank and give it's inhabitants the best life they can with the least amount of stress. Some people may use less equipment than others, but still you aren't using a natural approach to things whether you like the idea or not. Just my 2 cents

 

[Skimmy]

i'd just like to say that it still really depends on what kind of livestock you have as to how appropriate a natural or mechanical filtered system is.
i would prefer a natual system for some critters, while prefering a mechanically stripped system for others.

and believe me, i have sold a crap ton of refugium sumps for people to use for main filtration, as well as a crap ton of skimmed systems, i only prefer skimmed systems because of the creatures i keep, and the experiences i have had with them compared to refugium systems.

i still strive for a combination of both methods in most all the tanks i currently set up and maintain.

and yes i think u.v. is pretty worthless in a reef, much better for fresh water or ponds for controlling algae