Equipment Review and Discussion :: UV Sterilizer general discussion

Various accessories and equipment discussed here.

Post Posted: Tue Feb 19, 2019 5:32 pm   UV Sterilizer general discussion

Hi .... had trouble with green water after upgrading shelly to a larger house. I was always able to do partial changes with filter upkeep and water treatment for several months without doing complete water changes with canister filter at least 100 gallon capacity in 55 gallon tank. In the larger aquarium (100 gallon) I was doing water changes AT LEAST once a month. For me this was overkill considering my past experience. My current canister is turning 100 gallons at least twice per hour roughly and I can see it working sufficiently so I decided filtration was not the problem.Anyway after doing tons of research and trial and error we decided to get a uv sterilizer. Has anyone used these in their set up? Just curious for tips and feedback. So far so good with water quality. Last water change was roughly 2 weeks ago.Thanks all
ShellyTurtleButt
 
Posts: 18
Joined: Oct 26, 2018
Gender: Female

Post Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2019 2:13 am   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

It can help with major algae issues, though that can almost always be addressed by other means. I have an inline one but never got around to using it. Picked it up because my turtles have reoccurring fungus issues, and I think a sterilizer could help. Overall, I think they're safe as long it's from a reputable brand.
User avatar
steve
Site Admin
 
Posts: 31430
Joined: Apr 11, 2005
Location: New York, NY
Gender: Male

Post Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2019 8:22 am   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

The water is the cleanest its ever been. I'm really glad we bought it. We also starred started keeping a better eye on lights. Supposed to only be on like 8 hours a day? We sometimes would forget and if she was basking at bed time we would leave it on all night. I think making sure its not on too much has helped also. My water temp is 73 is that too warm for her?
ShellyTurtleButt
 
Posts: 18
Joined: Oct 26, 2018
Gender: Female

Post Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2019 9:33 pm   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

Which uv sterilizer did you get? For the length of lighting, just mimic sunrise/sunset times. I usually have the lights kick on 30 minutes earlier because they sometimes like to bask when it's really quiet. Get a timer for the lights, they have surge protectors with them built-in. 73 is fine for older turtles, most people keep it a little warmer, 75/76 range. Its important to get an accurate thermometer... I use a temp gun to check.
User avatar
steve
Site Admin
 
Posts: 31430
Joined: Apr 11, 2005
Location: New York, NY
Gender: Male

Post Posted: Mon Mar 04, 2019 4:32 pm   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

Aquatop SP9....i swear by this now....best water we have had ever...even after about 4 weeks we are so clear and minimal debris only been adding water as it evaporates
ShellyTurtleButt
 
Posts: 18
Joined: Oct 26, 2018
Gender: Female

Post Posted: Sun Sep 01, 2019 7:30 pm   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

I would look into the effects of the good bacteria getting killed by UV not sure if UV is good for every fish. I had an algae problem I got a GFO reactor which took care of it, but was a pain to maintain. After upgrading to a fluval FX6 i didn't have that problem anymore even without the reactor. I use https://www.apifishcare.com/product.php ... WxUR3tlDmg in the filter just plop 2 in there and toss the old ones. Makes cleaning it easier. Filter works for many months without touching it too.
jonathan1683
 
Posts: 50
Joined: Feb 1, 2014
Gender: Male

Post Posted: Sun Sep 01, 2019 8:43 pm   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

Some floating good bacteria will get killed, but there should be enough that are on the surfaces and on bio media to carry out their function. For certain applications, a uv sterilizer is safe and effective but can be expensive. Location of the tank probably has the biggest influence on algae issues.
User avatar
steve
Site Admin
 
Posts: 31430
Joined: Apr 11, 2005
Location: New York, NY
Gender: Male

Post Posted: Thu Jan 30, 2020 7:35 am   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

hi...for the first time in over 10 years, i began developing reddish algae in my 100g tank and have no idea what brought it on..almost simultaneously, my 11 yr. old res turtle developed a fungus for the 1st time that i am aware of...of course i freaked and got rid of the fungal infection -- finally-- and the red algae came back so i decided to try a uv sanitizer to see if that would fix it and it did for about a month or two but now it is back again...i didn't know the first thing about sanitizers, read a lot and still wasn't sure about them and wound up purchasing a 9w jebco with its own powerhead built in, no instructions (lovely) that someone with a similar set up as mine recommended. i had my reservations that since turtles need larger filters (i have a fluval fx6) that maybe i should buy a sanitizer around 18w or so....

so my question is whether or not anyone has had luck in ridding their tank of red algae using a uv sanitizer and if so, how many watts was it and generally what brands you recommend and why....i just don't want to make another bad purchase and more importantly, don't want my turtle to get another fungal infection and aesthetically, can't stand to see the algae grow in a tank that i have always kept very clean and test regularly for water quality and haven't added nor subtracted anything to the tank that explains why i suddenly got this algae come out of nowhere and how to get rid of it....

thank you for any input you might have on this problem.
User avatar
mr.turtle
 
Posts: 31
Joined: May 25, 2012
Location: Long Beach, CA
Gender: Female

Post Posted: Thu Jan 30, 2020 7:59 am   Re: UV Sterilizer general discussion

An aquarium forum might be better suited to answer this question, but did you do a full cleaning and replacing of filter media? What filter media are you using? Is the algae floating or growing on surfaces?
User avatar
steve
Site Admin
 
Posts: 31430
Joined: Apr 11, 2005
Location: New York, NY
Gender: Male


Return to Equipment Review and Discussion

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 17 guests