uv sterilizers

[qwiksilver360]

right know i have an 18 watt turbo twist 6x uv sterlizer on my 90 gallon fowlr tank it is inline after my little giant 3 return pump first of all im sure that the water is passing through it too fast to really be as effective as it could be so i was either considering removing it completely or still using and making it where it has its own dedicated pump with a lower flow rate to run it like it is supposed to be used
the main resason i am considering doing this is i want more turnover on my tank and if i took this out of the return line i would probably reduce some pressure and eliminate about 3 feet of line also
so i want to know what you guys think about leaving it in or ditching it

 

[polarpooch]

If you don't want to use the UV for its intended purpose, then take it out, rinse it off and sell it on ----!

 

[qwiksilver360]

it not that i dont want to use it for its intended purpose its just i wanna hear from people who use them or have used them and hear what they think about them

 

[polarpooch]

They are great at controlling parasites and hair algae. I use them on two of my tanks.

 

[fishtanker]

for an 18watt UV you want a max flow rate around 300-400gph...i have my UV with a dedicated pump with a flow valve to regulate gph.
you could just branch the UV off your return line with a ball valve and it would work just as well.
HTH

 

[aileena]

uv lights do make a difference on free floating algae and parasites but if the flow rate is too much then its worthless...I was using a rio800 on my 36watt double helix for the last three months...it helps kill algae and parasites. what works well too is the use of garlic extract along with the UV light...
it will not work w/o the proper flow rate...

 

[squidd]

I run a Turbo Twist uv on a return line to my tank also but put a "T" in line with seperate return to cut flow rate in half through the unit...if the water flows too fast it doesn't have time to kill whatever it is you want it to kill.
Max flow on that unit is 350gph minimum is 100gph...shoot for somewhere in between.
A seperate pump on the UV would allow full volume from return pump with additional flow from the UV unit.
The Turbo Twist unit has quite a bit of restriction due to the small diameter of the "twisted" tube so a 395gph powerhead would give you about 200-250gph flow rate measured at return line of unit.