UV Sterilizer Questions

[Pazzoman]

Hey Everybody

I'm curious on how does a uv-sterilizer work and the pro's and cons of them. I've been thinking of getting one, but so many brands to choose from. I have some basic info about some pros and cons...but I'd like a clean slate from mfk member and not what companies say....

Is a UV sterilizer worth the extra money for the protection of fish against diseases?

Should I have it on my quarantine tank or on the main?

Is it true that after letting your main tank run for at least a year, you can then add a uv sterilizer so the "good stuff" is establish and won't get destroyed?

Anybody have them and what brand?

Thanks:

 

[Kitiara]

I have one on my tank (not certain of the brand, Jebo 18w I think) The main catch with them is they ONLY treat the water that passes through them. Any water t hat doesn't go through or any bacteria that lives in the rock or sand is unaffected. This is both good and bad - good in that your helpful bacteria and organisms in the tank aren't bothered, bad in that any bad ones (like ich) that are on the fish, sand or rock are also not bothered unless they become waterborne and pass through the steriliser.

My findings are they won't stop an infection if you introduce a sick fish into your tank, but it will help keep it from blowing out completely to give you a bit more of a chance at saving your fish.

I run this on my main tank. I have a canister filter with a built in UV sterilizer for quarantine

 

[Pazzoman]

Thats cool....my QT has a leak....for the past 3 days I was like why is it evaporating so fast?

 

[FLESHY]

Oh man...3 days of leaking before you noticed?

That is disastrous ha ha

 

[Kevin8888]

I would say skip it... they aren't worth the money, they don't "sterilize" enough of the water to make a difference, and they kill good micro organisms that you want as well.

 

[FLESHY]

I would say skip it... they aren't worth the money, they don't "sterilize" enough of the water to make a difference, and they kill good micro organisms that you want as well.

+1...there are places where they might be beneficial, but I have stayed away just for this reason.

If one had no substrate, fake decorations, densely stocked system with a high h2o turnover rate it might be worth considering. Zoos have this, and they run UV a lot.

 

[dookie]

one also has to be religious about changing the bulb every 6 months. It's hard to do when it's still shining bright and costing so much. After the bulb ages, the wavelength will shift to a harmless band so after that you are just wasting energy.

 

[Pazzoman]

.....No UV sterilizer then...and yes it did take me 3 days to realize my tank was leaking all because I was to lazy to feel the surface around my tank...

 

[nonstophoops]

Hey Everybody

I'm curious on how does a uv-sterilizer work and the pro's and cons of them. I've been thinking of getting one, but so many brands to choose from. I have some basic info about some pros and cons...but I'd like a clean slate from mfk member and not what companies say....

Is a UV sterilizer worth the extra money for the protection of fish against diseases?

Should I have it on my quarantine tank or on the main?

Is it true that after letting your main tank run for at least a year, you can then add a uv sterilizer so the "good stuff" is establish and won't get destroyed?

Anybody have them and what brand?

Thanks:

UV sterilizers do exactly what the name says. They shine UV light through the water in the tube as it passes by. The UV light kills pretty much everything alive in the water, both good and bad. They do also make the water clearer.

In my opinion, they are not needed. If your tank has good conditions and your inhabitants are healthy your fish won't need the help. If your conditions are bad and fish unhealthy, your fish will still most likely suffer problems with or without a UV sterilizer.

My people will say they have healthy tanks and UV sterilizers have helped, but I think that their other husbandry traits have kept the tank healthy, not the UV sterilizers.

If you get one, it should be put on your main tank. I suppose you could get one for your quarantine too, but again I think it is way unnecessary.

Establishing your tank will help everything establish and will slow the process in killing stuff. The bad stuff can also be established in the same way.