Uv Sterilizer. Check this out

so i just got home and took a look at my tank. The water is turning green. So its gotta be an algae bloom. Will the UV sterilizer help clear this up, and then continue to protect against disease and keep my tank clear?
Yup.
 
so i just got home and took a look at my tank. The water is turning green. So its gotta be an algae bloom. Will the UV sterilizer help clear this up, and then continue to protect against disease and keep my tank clear?

yes, just check the flow rates for your intended purpose. if you're looking to protect from protozoans and what not you'll need it slower. make sure that lower number recommended by the manufacturer is at least a 2X's daily turnover. should be easy enough. if you are matching it to your filter use the output of your filter as a happy medium. that way if you need to slow it down in an emergency it's not much of a compromise.
 
yes, just check the flow rates for your intended purpose. if you're looking to protect from protozoans and what not you'll need it slower. make sure that lower number recommended by the manufacturer is at least a 2X's daily turnover. should be easy enough. if you are matching it to your filter use the output of your filter as a happy medium. that way if you need to slow it down in an emergency it's not much of a compromise.



Itll be on a forty six bowfront, which has an eheim 2215 (kept around 200gph with the adjustable flow) and a fluval 305 (kept at about 190 gph or so with the adjustable flow). Its rated at 200 gph. I don't know if that will be too much flow in my community aquarium.
 
An example, or two ...

Itll be on a forty six bowfront, which has an eheim 2215 (kept around 200gph with the adjustable flow) and a fluval 305 (kept at about 190 gph or so with the adjustable flow). Its rated at 200 gph. I don't know if that will be too much flow in my community aquarium.

I run a 9w with a trickle flowing through it on a 10g.

I run an 18w on a 36g with a 250gph powerhead (flow is probably 1/2 of that once it makes it though the vinyl tubing.)

Flow rates do matter on low watts and BIG gallons. On high watts and tanks like 46g, not so much.

Dwell time (time the water is in the UV unit) does NOT have to be completed in its first time through, so what, it dies second pass, or third?

Now, if you are talking a 9w UV unit on a 900 gallon pond, DWELL TIME IS EVERYTHING!

Regards,
TA
 
well i just ordered the 9w uv sterilizer. It should be in in a few days. Hopefully itll work.
 
well i just ordered the 9w uv sterilizer. It should be in in a few days. Hopefully itll work.

Excellent choice. Any UV sterilizer is better than none!

Green water will be a thing of the past for you. However, with disease control and ICK--that nine watts is a bit on the lightweight side, IMHO.

I would think ~40gph flow rate would be good. It will give you about tank volume through the unit every hour. Flow rate will cycle the tank volume 24x through the UV unit every 24 hours.

Three/four days, green water should be gone (maybe sooner.) Plan on replacing the bulb in the unit about a year from now ... if you run the unit 24/7.

Addition: When I have used those small units, such as the Green Killing Machine, clogging and "gunk" building up in the lamp assemblies and units has been bad. This has made frequent cleanings, for me, necessary. I would check flow rate through the unit daily and clean out when necessary. With the sealed bulb assemblies you will always wonder if it is clean or not, you just can't open it up to see if "gunk" is blocking off the light or not ...

Regards,
TA
 
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yes it will help you, but it is only a bandaid on top of a larger problem. find the source of your green water and eliminate it....much cheaper than buying a UV sterilizer and then replacing the bulbs periodically....
i am going to have to agree here again!

9 watts should be sufficient for green water removal at 200 gph or just under. for disease control i'd veer closer to tech's suggestion. if you don't have any problems right now the overall improvement in water quality should help keep things a little more stable.

i would definitely consider coach's suggestions even so.
 
Excellent choice. Any UV sterilizer is better than none!

Green water will be a thing of the past for you. However, with disease control and ICK--that nine watts is a bit on the lightweight side, IMHO.

I would think ~40gph flow rate would be good. It will give you about tank volume through the unit every hour. Flow rate will cycle the tank volume 24x through the UV unit every 24 hours.

Three/four days, green water should be gone (maybe sooner.) Plan on replacing the bulb in the unit about a year from now ... if you run the unit 24/7.

Addition: When I have used those small units, such as the Green Killing Machine, clogging and "gunk" building up in the lamp assemblies and units has been bad. This has made frequent cleanings, for me, necessary. I would check flow rate through the unit daily and clean out when necessary. With the sealed bulb assemblies you will always wonder if it is clean or not, you just can't open it up to see if "gunk" is blocking off the light or not ...

Regards,
TA


I was palnning on running it 24/7 until the green water cleared up, then add it to my light timer.
 
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