uv sterilizer

[chr11tar22]

:notsure: I am in a quandry...I bought a uv sterilizer and the damn directions are so vague that I am now pissed...it's a Terminator 9w uv and it says I need a water pump for the unit to operate. I thought it would all come together.
I have a powerhead but I am unsure as to how the hook up should take place. The directions are vague. NO PICTURES....I NEED PICTURES!
Can someone help me? I think I need some flex tube and clamps. Do I run the flex tube from the outlet of the powerhead to the inlet of the uv and then a flex return to the tank?? I don't even were the inlet is on the damn uv as the directions do not indicate????
Any help would be sweet....

 

[technik]

Return the thing. UV sterilizers are a waste of money.

 

[krowleey]

Originally posted by Technik
Return the thing. UV sterilizers are a waste of money.
puff puff give bro, uv are NOT a waste of money they help in many ways, do some research on them they serve many purposes.

 

[timo]

UV kills waterborne parasites and bacteria. They will not cure a problem, but hamper it's spread.
You will need tubing and a powerhead, like a maxi-jet 400 or 600. Not too much flow as you want longer contact time in the chamber. Then rig it some way atop the tank.
Here's mine.

 

[technik]

If everyone would QT their fish you would not need one. There are guys that run the large aquriums at zoos and they do not use one. They preach QT of fish and seem to be fine with thousands of fish together.

 

[sagxman]

Originally posted by Technik
If everyone would QT their fish you would not need one.

Could you please go over the QT process. I'm not familiar with what is recommended.

 

[technik]

I usually fill up a 10g or 20g with the water I take out of the main tank during water changes. Add a heater and an air stone or hang on filter. Put new fish in there for at least 2-4 weeks for observation. If you see white dots like salt then treat for ich with Formalin and leave them there for at least 2 weeks. If they are breathing hard or you see white slime coating them..it is probably a bacteria infection and you can treat with Maracyn 2. QT fish is wise so the disease does not reach the main tank. Also trying to catch an infected fish will require removing most of the rocks in the main tank. With a QT you can just treat them in the QT tank since most medicine will kill corals and invertebrates.

 

[chr11tar22]

Dude...thanks for the pictures....anymore pictures from anyone would be sweet. I think I will try your method tomorow.

 

[tony detroit]

Only people without uv's think they are a waste of money. Are they necessary, NO, but they make clear water, and definitely help with disease and algae spreading IMO I ran one and will always recommend one. Now you don't HAVE to have it but it definitely helps.

 

[cprdnick]

I would not agree that they are a waste of money. However, the addition of a UV Sterilizer to a reef system is unwise IMO. All of the beneficial bacterias and phyto/photo plankton that we strive to keep in our systems for our planktonic or filter feeders is removed or atleast sterilized in the system itself. I have not researched them, though I plan to after this thread. I would recommend the addition of one on a QT, Aggressive, or FO system as that is where it is most needed without damaging the beneficial portions of the ecosystem.
Clint

 

[cincyreefer]

I agree with Tony. People who think UV is a waste have never used them or understand what they do. They may kill the plankton that flows through them, but it would be no more than what can be found in skimmate. It will not effect biological filtration, and no beneficial bacteria will be killed. I do not recommend using one on a quarantine tank, however, because it could mask a potential problem and give you the false impression a fish is "ich" free when it may be minorly infested.

 

[krowleey]

Originally posted by cprdnick
I would not agree that they are a waste of money. However, the addition of a UV Sterilizer to a reef system is unwise IMO. All of the beneficial bacterias and phyto/photo plankton that we strive to keep in our systems for our planktonic or filter feeders is removed or atleast sterilized in the system itself. I have not researched them, though I plan to after this thread. I would recommend the addition of one on a QT, Aggressive, or FO system as that is where it is most needed without damaging the beneficial portions of the ecosystem.
Clint
how does it kill beneficial bacteria? does benefitial bacteria free float in your water colum?

 

[cprdnick]

Your beneficial bacteria (nitrifying bacteria) is not only in your LR and LS. They colonize on glass, filters, powerhead housings, pretty much anything. It does, as I understand, inhabit the water column as well. More research is needed before I say this is iron clad.

 

[cincyreefer]

If you are relying on bacteria on the glass and equipment then your tank is bound for failure. The only way there is much bacteria in the water column is if it is bound to small particulates... This is often what happens when people say their water is very cloudy. If a UV was bad because it killed free floating bacteria then doing a water change would be bad as well.

 

[cprdnick]

Did I say I was relying on bacteria on my glass???? NO I didn't. Krowleey asked ME a question about what I had said, and I gave them an explanation of what I was talking about, whether I was right or not is not the point. If you felt that it was incorrect information or you had something to add to it, you could have done it in an appropriate informational manner. I can accept if I'm wrong, but you could have done it without trying to make me look like a moron.

 

[cholland]

I had a UV sterilizer when I first started my tank. It did help with the clearness of the water. But later when I added some filter feeders I took it out of the tank. So far my water has been fine. And this was 3 months ago. And my filter feeders look alot better too.
HTH
-C

 

[cprdnick]

How long did you run it with the filter feeders in the tank? Did it make a considerable difference in the health of the filter feeders?
Clint