UV sterilizer vs Ozonizer

[barracuda]

Hi all,
i'd like to buy any piece of equipment which will help me to get rid of parasites in my tank. I heard about both UV or OZONE, but i'm not completely sure which one is beter to buy. Please give me an advise.
Thanks,
Dima.

 

[sonny]

Ozone is more effective, and will also remove other things from the water. It can help reduce particles in the water, and I think it can even remove ammonia. If you use ozone, you need to make sure none gets back into the tank. It is best to underdose it and run the output of the reaction chamber through carbon (keep it changed too). Most large aquariums like Sea World and Discovery Cove use ozone as a major part of their filtering arsenal. While I don't think it is needed on a continual basis, it is great to have as a standby. You can use a skimmer as the injector for the ozone, and use a controller to turn it on and off, or do it manually. The controller is the best way to go. Make sure to invest in an air dryer to remove moisture from the air that flows through the onzonizer. This will increase the life of the unit substantially. Look at the new Red Sea ozonizers. Some models have the controller built in. It is less expensive compared to buying the controller and the ozonizer separately. The low end ozonizer is about $140 (no controller), or $320 including controller and probe. You can get a basic controller with probe for about $200, so you be the judge of that. If I were choosing between ozone and UV, I'd definately go with ozone. It is more expensive, but more effective. Keep in mind with UV's, the bulb should be changed at least once a year. Hope this helps.
Sonny