Setting up new UV

[thefishguy7]

To solve my green water problem, I purchased a 55 watt UV clarifier/sterilizer. I'm hooking it up to a 180 gallon display tank in my living room. I'm worried it may be too large, but if it is, I can use it elsewhere.

It's a bit over 40" in length, which I like because it will be exposed to the UV for a longer amount of time.
It will be hooked up onto the output of a 700 gph (approx) canister filter. I didn't want too fast of a flow- again for maximum exposure time.
Since the tank is in the living room, I have to install the filter in another room and run it through the wall into the air lock on the other side. I'm using pvc because the house will fail inspection if regular filter tubes are run through the wall. (We're putting an addition on my house so inspections happen regularly here.) PVC is also much "cleaner." All joints will be siliconed and clamped just in case.

Hopefully I'll finish by Sunday and have it running Monday. Here's a poorly drawn diagram so you get the gist of it: (The tank can be viewed from both sides, but from the back [the view the drawings from] about 18" of the tank can't be seen because of a wall-which is used as an advantage to hide everything.)

 

[Oreo]

55w is overkill for fixing green water in a 180gal. Not that that's a bad thing.

 

[Dr Joe]

It should get rid of the algae (floating) pretty quick .

What is the manufacturer's suggested flow rate?

With this high of wattage after you get the algae under control you may be able to use the UV on a timer so it extends the bulb life a little.

Dr Joe

.

 

[thefishguy7]

55w is overkill for fixing green water in a 180gal. Not that that's a bad thing.

I love overkill.

It should get rid of the algae (floating) pretty quick .

What is the manufacturer's suggested flow rate?

With this high of wattage after you get the algae under control you may be able to use the UV on a timer so it extends the bulb life a little.

Dr Joe

.

The manufacturer says the max flow for it is 1300 gph. They don't suggest any particular flow, but I'd assume it's around what I have now, maybe a bit more. How long would you recommend keeping it on each day?


I didn't get around to working on it yesterday because of school work, but I bought all the plumbing. It was just over 50$ for 10ft of ribbed hosing, 12ft pvc, ball valves, corners, silicone, etc. I should have the holes drilled and plumbing together tonight.

 

[Toby_H]

When using PVC I highly suggest using the PVS ‘cement’ available in the same section of your hardware store. This ‘cement’ actually dissolves the surface of the pipe and the surface of the fitting so when it cures it is literally all one piece. This is far superior to silicone for this application.

I have been using UV lights for 5+ years and have settled on this as my “rule of thumb” guide:

10 gph per 1W of UV power…
1W of UV power per 10 US gal of tank volume (including sump if applicable).

I’ve been using this guide on my tanks with Juvi Blue Dempseys which are known to be prone to parasitic disease. I’ve not lost one Juvi Blue Dempsey to parasites nor have I seen the dreaded white stringy poop that comes with parasitic illnesses in them.

Green water can be cured at higher flow rates or lower UV wattage… but in my opinion if your going to add a UV you might as well get all the benefits of a UV light…

Be cautious, the “max flow rate” may be the max pressure the housing can handle and have absolutely nothing to do with the practical efficiency of the UV light. I know this is how Danner rates their max flow rate (or at least last time I checked their site).

Fluorescent bulbs experience more wear and tear by being turned on than they do being on for a while. So to run a bulb one hour on, one hour off, etc. will kill the bulb faster than constant use… but running it on 12 hours on, 12 hours off cycle will make your bulb last longer. My father who has been an industrial electrician for 40+ years suggests powering a light on would create the wear and tear of around 4~5 hours use… and powering it on using the amount of electricity as approx 3 hours of use…

The above paragraphs I can be sure of in regards to fluorescent bulbs (UV lights are fluorescent bulbs) but our UV lights have an additional chemical which gives it the UV potency. I, nor my father, can saw with confidence what effect the on/off cycle will have on this chemical. My father speculated that turning it on/off more than once a day would be unadvisable… meaning 12 on / 12 off is acceptable, but more frequently than this may cause excessive wear and tear…

Hope this helps…

 

[thefishguy7]

Thanks nc, unfortunately I didn't see the glue thing until after I was done putting all the connections together. I think it should be okay though.
12 on 12 off seems perfect.

Everything is done and drying, pictures will come shortly.

 

[thefishguy7]

I finished installing it all a few days ago. Everything went smoothly except for hooking the hose from the canister into the wall. It was dumb on my part to leave 4" between the tank and the wall. I still got it done. The water cleared in 2 days, it's not perfect yet, just a white-ish tint now. (hardly noticeable) I don't like the way the ribbed hosing lays, I'm going to mount it against the wall later.
Camera was broken, just fixed it. Here's some pics:

 

[FireMedic]

will your set-up lend itself to easy bulb changing?
Have you considered placing a 90 deg thread/barb at the left side of the UV?
This may help in making the hose lay more neatly.
Respectfully, FM.

 

[StripeGirl]

also can you get to change the bulb if need be?I placed my uv right in front for easy access as well as putting shut offs on the uv.I only used a 25 and my tank is a 450 gallon but overkill is fun.

 

[FireMedic]

ahh yes, leave it to HotFish, think about shut offs to isolate the filter in times of repair. -FM