Whats a UV Sterilizer?

Slip - water changes won't rid a tank of GW... at least not in a fertillized plant tank. Maybe in a FO tank, but certainly not a plant tank. You can do water changes till your face is blue, but unless you are able to eliminate all traces of the floating algae, they'll just laugh at you and come right back... it happened to me while I was just starting out on plant tanks.. added too many fish at once, had a small ammonia spike then bam! GW water in less than a week. A blackout solved that problem though =)

UV units are also used in plant tanks for that purpose, to rid the tank of GW. Of course, its usually used as a last resort, when blackout+nutrient controls don't work.
UV Sterilizers for the most part are never needed. As long as you keep conditions in your tank heathy (ie. good filtration, good stocking level, light feedings, etc. etc.) you'll probably never find a need for one.

-Richer
 
Originally posted by JamisonBWolsh
80GJoe,

Dont let the others discourage you. UV STERILIZERS work wonders on your tank.
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Thanks Jamison. I'm glad I have that product and will continue to use it. Anything to improve water quality is a definite plus! :)
 
A glorified high-tech patio bug-zapper that kills 'em all-- good or bad-- as long as they pass through the sleeve within one half-inch of the UV tube. This toy does not work on multicellular critters like copepods, etc. Probably just as well.

For green water, light and nutrients must be available-- of course. But the cure for green water is a balanced zooplankton grazing on those euglenoids and algal cells. It's not sensible to just blast everything within reach with a UV death-ray.

I was owlishly informed once that the way to have a wildflower meadow was to begin with weedkiller and sterilize the soil...
 
A UV unit won't cause any harm, but it is of fairly limited use. I researched them a year and a half ago, and bought one, but it currently sits in a box in my fish room.

UV is of use for killing green water outbreaks that don't respond to the less expensive, first-line treatments: lowering light and nutrient levels. I've read a number of accounts of people that tried conventional means to treat green water without success. In those cases, UV is worth a try.

UV can help with some pathogens, but only those that are primarily free floating organisms. Most pathogens aren't freefloating (i.e., they reside primarily on fish or on aquarium surfaces) and a UV won't do much good. UV are particularly good for free floating pathogens that don't respond to readily available meds (e.g., mycobacteria).

Another use would be in a central filtration system, where cross-tank contamination is a concern.

Otherwise, they are of limited use in FW tanks. They won't do any harm and they are fun, fiddly little gadgets, but if you run two well-maintained tanks side-by-side, adding a UV unit to one won't yield much of a difference. After you consider the cost of replacing the bulb after 6-9 months, you'll likely find yourself reconsidering their necessity...

Jim
 
Originally posted by JSchmidt
After you consider the cost of replacing the bulb after 6-9 months, you'll likely find yourself reconsidering their necessity...

Jim
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I see it at about $42 a year. (not 6 months..)
No biggie... :)
 
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