uvsterilizer

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faststang1

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 22, 2006
355
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Palm Spring's CA
My tank keeps turning green and it wont stay clear it has tint to it and it drives me nuts......the lfs said to put uvsterilizer and it keep my tank more clear.Is there on I can out on my canister or how should it be put on my tank?..should I even get?

INFO Please
 
Green water means you have excess light, with a good amount of nutrients. Try just limiting your light, and not over feeding. A few day black out (as long as you don't have plants) will help clear this up. I wouldn't have the lights on for more than a couple hours each day if it is fish only.
 
Green water means you have excess light, with a good amount of nutrients. Try just limiting your light, and not over feeding. A few day black out (as long as you don't have plants) will help clear this up. I wouldn't have the lights on for more than a couple hours each day if it is fish only.
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yup.
i had a green tank.
i lightened up on the feeding,
i raised my light 6-8" above the tank "some cant do that",
then i got a timer for the light at lowes for 5 bucks,
set it for noon to 3,then off from 3 to 6,then on 6 to 1.
just doing those things,in a few weeks it is perfect now,and has been for a while.
the lfs said to put uvsterilizer and it keep my tank more clean
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me and WyldFya will only take 20 each since we just saved you a hundred :ROFL::grinno:
 
Doing what WyldFya said should help but if it comes back than a uv would help as well, and it can be put on the return of your canister if it has enough head pressure to keep up.
 
Who makes it?
I think my canisters can do it.....
 
UV's need to be on a seperate system than most canisters because the flow rates of the fliters are too high to allow proper contact time between the water and the UV light. I have to agree with Wyld and Midnight on this one. Finding and eliminating the source of the free alge in the tank is always a better solution than dealing with it artificially.

One of the things the LFS is not making clear to you is how short the working life of a UV bulb really is and how much it's going to cost you in the long run to keep it running. My brother had the same problem with his outdoor pond reciently and recieved the same advice. I reworked the filter system and expanded the plant filter at a small fraction of the cost of a large UV sterilizer and the waters now as clear as a swimming pool.
 
While high flow rates may not be suitable on a pond, you can still get away with it on a fish tank since the volume is quite small. ie Kill rate may not be very efficient but what is missed can be killed on next pass through, or the next...

I would put the UV on the return side since the water should be a little clearer which allows the UV to be more effective.
 
All the above advice is right on.
However, in my situation because of my work schedule and other factors having a UV has saved me a lot of time and labor.

I have a 120gal and I "burn" my water (UV on) on Sat, Tues, and Thurs. for about 2hrs or less. The UV is on a weekly timer. I dont feel the need to keep it on all the time.

It's a big 25 watt Gamma going and so far things have been great. It maybe a bit overkill but I got a deal on it and I plan to use it in a larger project later.

My tank is not near a window so I also like to keep some sort of Circadian something going for the fish so my lights are on a daily timer.
 
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