UV steralizer opinions

cdubbs

cdubbs

Member
I was wondering some of your opinions on running UV steralizers in an aggressive FOWLR tank. I know some people love them and some dont because if they are killing bad things they also kill some of the good stuff. I have a 125gal tank and just lost a puffer due to ich and was wondering if adding a UV would help? Thanks
 
joker_ca

joker_ca

Active Member
UV's are a waste of money
if you QT your fish, do regular water changes, keep water parameters stable, feed a varied diet then your your fish should not get sick
you need to find out why your puffer got ich and fix that problem, UV's wont prevent ich also, just save your money dont waste it
 
J

jcrim

Guest
Obviously this is a hot topic around here. I run one on my 220 and haven't had any problems since. It's not a necessity but I'm glad I have mine... many people don't qt.
 
cdubbs

cdubbs

Member
ok thanks, so i am learning that a fish shouldnt get ich as long as the tanks parameters are steady and the fish is fed properly and stays healthy. If this is the case then i would guess that none of my fish except the puffer have gotten ich is because everyone else will eat anything i put in the tank and will eat every day. The puffer didnt eat for almost 2 weeks when i got him, then when he did he would only eat a little bit of raw shrimp from the grocery store. I will keep looking into the UV but thanks for the info guys.
 
J

jcrim

Guest
Since you've had ich in your system it's still there... dormant. It could show up again in times of stress.
 
joker_ca

joker_ca

Active Member
Originally Posted by jcrim
Since you've had ich in your system it's still there... dormant
never heard of that....dormant, ich is always in a aquarium but not dormant the immune system keeps it in check
the reason you cant always see ich is because its not visible to the

[hr]
eye what you see on the fish is the body reacting to the parasites (ich)
 
cdubbs

cdubbs

Member
thats what i kept telling the guy in the lfs, he said if no other fish in the tank has it on them and i took out the puffer then the tank is ok..i tried to tell him that its still in my tank and then i realized y am i asking this guy what to do when he doesnt know that it stayes in the tank.. So will a UV get rid of the ich parasite?
 
J

jcrim

Guest
There's no guarantee that it will kill all of the ich parasite. But there are many people, including myself, that have not had an outbreak since getting the UV. IMO, if you can afford it, it can't hurt.
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
No, exposure time along with flow rates render most standard aquairum uv's ineffective against the disease. At best, the window in which they are effective is quite small and closes quickly.
If disease including ich is present in the system and one or more of the following conditions exist you could experience an outbreak
1. Poor water quality
2. Stress-many contributors
3. Poor diet
4. Weak immune systems-many reasons
5. Overcrowding
6. Constant temp flucs of greater than 2 degrees.
The animal probably got the disease if one or more of the conditions above existed. The disease had to be present in the system..
If you decide to purchase a UV, you must feed it crystal clear filtered water. Many recognized names in the hobby do not feel uv's are very effective against the disease.
JMO
 
cdubbs

cdubbs

Member
thanks, but what do u mean by "If you decide to purchase a UV, you must feed it crystal clear filtered water."
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Dormant to me means the disease is in an inactive state...but later springs to action. This is not the case as life cycles continue to some degree. I have read a study where they documented ich was present in the system. Host fish were also present. After about one year and 12-13 cycles the system was free from ich. SOrry, I read that some time ago and I doubt I can find it on-line again.
Also, the study I site is based on my memory...which has been known to malfunction at times.
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Originally Posted by CDubbs
thanks, but what do u mean by "If you decide to purchase a UV, you must feed it crystal clear filtered water."
There is a correct way to install a UV. Water needs to be crystal clear whiich means some tyoe of filter media needs to be run like carbon. This will allow the light to penatrate and supposedly kill the paasites. The water also needs to be free of suspended "matter". This would further disrupt the effectiveness. You need to keep the insde of the unit clean. Shortly after you plug the unit in the decline for effectiveness is rapid.
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Originally Posted by CDubbs
thanks, but what do u mean by "If you decide to purchase a UV, you must feed it crystal clear filtered water."
In general, the list of variables for a UV to be effective against the disease is very long. TO control each of these variables within an acceptable effectiveness limit is IMO impossible. This is why uv's do little.....even if you could arrive at some acceptable flow rate and exposure time level based on unit size, you would have to slow the rate significantly...where a complete cycle of a larger tank woud take a very long time if at all. At this rate and IF you have achieved the desired level of rate and exposure time...the disease is muitplying faster then any denature rate.
JMO
 
cdubbs

cdubbs

Member
ok thanks for the in depth reply. I guess ill have to just keep my parameters good and fish healthy and do some water changes to try and keep the parasite dormant until i can do something like hypo salinity to get rid of it
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Originally Posted by CDubbs
ok thanks for the in depth reply. I guess ill have to just keep my parameters good and fish healthy and do some water changes to try and keep the parasite dormant until i can do something like hypo salinity to get rid of it
If you feel a UV will provide you with some level of disease contol as it pertains to ich then buy one. I simply provided my opinion...and I can assure you there are others on this site that will tell you I am wrong.
 
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