UV sterilizer recommendations

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
aglarond;2320034; said:
No guys, if the twists weren't there it would just move more slowly through the entire unit, giving it the same amount of contact time. They really don't do anything.
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Sorry but you're wrong, the twists do create a longer path, if the twists were not there and it passed though the unit in a straight line the water would have less exposure to the light because of the shorter path. The water in the TT not only has to travel the length of the unit but also has to travel around the circumference of the bulb a few times. So even at the same flow rate the TT does expose the water to the light for a longer period of time.
 
Frostyone;2320269; said:
Sorry but you're wrong, the twists do create a longer path, if the twists were not there and it passed though the unit in a straight line the water would have less exposure to the light because of the shorter path. The water in the TT not only has to travel the length of the unit but also has to travel around the circumference of the bulb a few times. So even at the same flow rate the TT does expose the water to the light for a longer period of time.
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The cross sectional area of the intake pipe and the velocity of the fluid traveling through it to the sterilizer are constant, with or without the twists. As is the cross sectional area of the outake pipe and the velocity of the fluid traveling through it from the sterilizer to the tank, with or without the twists. Area times fluid velocity equals flow rate. Realizing this you should also realize that flow rate through the sterilizer must remain constant, as flow rate into and out of the sterilizer are constant and equal.

With the twists we shrink the cross sectional area of the path of travel through the sterilizer. In order for flow rate to remain constant through the sterilizer the fluid velocity therefore increases. The water is moving relatively faster over a relatively longer path (the twists).

Without the twists we increase the cross sectional area of the path of travel through the sterilizer. In order for flow rate to remain constant through the sterilizer the fluid velocity therefore decreases. The water is moving relatively slower over a relatively shorter path (no twists).

In either case the dwell time for the water in the sterilizer is exactly the same.
 
I got my turbo-twist 18W friday. Installed it during lunch, wake up the next day and poof, like magic, tank is crystal clear. I have it plumbed after my fluval 405 which is just being used as a mechanical filter (primary filter is eheim pro 3 2080). Tank size is 120 gallons. Gotta love it! Install was a breeze, I used the adapter to 5/8" to match my hose size. I need to put a GPH meter on it, but im guessing its at 200gph or less.
 
Which holds more water... a 10' hose at 1/4" diameeter or an 8' hose at 1" diameter... obviously the fatter hose... even though it's shorter... So now that we've proved "a longer path" isn't the only factor to consider let's move forward with more critical details.

If the UV unit holds one gallon of water... and we pump 60 gallons per hour through it... we obviously have 1 gallon per minute flow rate, so the water spends one minute in the unit...

Now keep all the numbers the same but spin the water... how long does it stay in the unit... one minute...

The twist is hype...
 
Well if it is hype I bit lol

So maybe it takes longer for the water to go through a UV with twist. There is no way to test a unit with no twist and then add twist so your testing the same internal volume of the UV. Think about a straight path down the football field...it take X amount of time to walk it. Then zig zag that path down the same field and see how long it takes walking the same speed.


Another thought too is maybe it is flowing the same amount of water through the UV. But instead of a free for all going in one hole and out another in a large volume. The twist UV's take a smaller amount of volume and run it around the bulb making it be exposed to the bulb for longer....but still outflowing as much as the large all at once volume.

Think about dropping a marble in this...that marble would spin around the bulb and be exposed for longer than if it didnt have any twist...the marble would just drop past the bulb once.

P34778.jpg
 
NOLAGT;2334941; said:
Think about a straight path down the football field...it take X amount of time to walk it. Then zig zag that path down the same field and see how long it takes walking the same speed.
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What you forget is that the football coach (aka the water pump) has mandated that one person must enter the field every five minutes and one person must leave the field every five minutes. The people on the field can choose if they want to walk in a straight line or in a zig zag but no matter what one person must be entering and leaving the field every five minutes. In order for this to happen the people walking the zig zag have to move very quickly; the people walking the straight line can move a lot slower. Their time on the football field is the same though - five minutes.
 
jcardona1;2335330; said:
well for what its worth, i just bought this 24w internal unit from petsmart. works great! my water was literally pea green and it cleared it up on my 55g in less than 3 days!

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2750628

pPETS-3763084dt.jpg
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thanks for the info,............ how much was this? and i have a 110g, can i get 2 of these for my 2 canisters i have running my 110g? Or is it better to go with a bigger one to put on only one of the canisters?
 
svang55;2335344;2335344 said:
thanks for the info,............ how much was this? and i have a 110g, can i get 2 of these for my 2 canisters i have running my 110g? Or is it better to go with a bigger one to put on only one of the canisters?
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the 9w model is $39.99, 24w is $59.99. actually, you dont plumb these with your filters. they are standalone submersible units that come with their own powerhead...
 
TT creates turbulence that causes the water on the surface area on the quartz sleeve to be ever changing making for a more through UV'ing..

What is being described is DWELL time...the time the water is exposed to the UV...at a given GPH the longer the distance with turbulence, the more exposure...

As far as the analogy...
1 Player on and off the field every 60 seconds...(GPH rate)
the field is muddy (UV rays)
player 1 is walking on tip-toe straight down the field. (straight pass)
player 2 is rolling from sideline to sideline and down the field
in a steroid induced rage (turbo-twist)
both players took 60 seconds to get on and off the field...
who is dirtiest?(exposed to UV)
 
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