I am looking at buying a uv sterilizer for my 180 tank. Any suggestions for size of uv? I have a spare pump which I will use for the uv in necessary 36w or 40w would work? I want to kill anything that is in the tank
uv sterilizer
- Thread starter millerkid519
- Start date
For 180 gal 36w uv is great choice. Less flow more is water contacted with uv.
xD i'm thinking you don't wanted to kill everything xD
xD i'm thinking you don't wanted to kill everything xD
Haha no not everything just the algae and parosites.
Do you have a brand you would recommend? I do t want to spend lots of money on a piece of junk
Do you have a brand you would recommend? I do t want to spend lots of money on a piece of junk
Not familiar with them, but if you've done some research on them and they seem good. $335 is not a bad price for a 40w. I'd recommend a brand like aqua, they are a little pricey but I trust a company who also makes UV sterilizers for use in home drinking water sanitation.
I'm in canada that uv should cost twice as much. Most people use them for ponds but I think it will work fine on my tank with a 900 gph
I'm using 36w jbl uv sterelization on 220g
I'm very hapy with it. Bulbs are cheap. It's recomended to change them every 12 months
I'm very hapy with it. Bulbs are cheap. It's recomended to change them every 12 months
36 - 40 watts is overkill... the one pass total outright kill has been found to be just that... overkill. All that is necessary is to damgage the parasite's or algae's DNA to prevent reproduction. This can be accomplished with as little as 9 to 15 watts on multipass if running 24/7 at lower flow rates.raubiy post: 7277669 said:
If you still wish to run a 36 - 40 watt UV then you might consider placing it on a timer to run it for only 4 to 6 hours per day at the higher turn over rate.
You mentioned 900 gph on a 180 gallon tank. 4 hours on per day for 20 turn overs will give you great results and the standard bulb will last you about 8 years.
Off and on reduces the life of the bulb. This is based on my field experience maintaining UV sterilizers.
Units that were turn off weekly for filter cleaning would typically burnout around 12-15 months. Units that are left on 24/7 would burnout around 36 months. Keep in mind that the UV ray intensity degrades with time used so it gets weaker with time. Most manufacture suggest replacing every 12-13 months for proper dosage.
