I have been running an Aqua Ultraviolet 25W UV sterilizer on my 90 gallon reef for about a year now. It has worked really well and kept my water as crystal clear as I have ever seen a fish tank. A couple months ago I had to replace an O-ring that was around the wiper. I had the UV off the tank for about a month to see if there would be any changes to the tank and I was kind of surprised.
During the month that I had it off, I noticed the annoying brownish algae would appear on the glass quicker after cleaning it with my magnet. I also noticed a tiny amount of hair algae starting to grow in my refugium. Also the water didn't appear to be as incredibly clear.
I have had the UV back up and running on the tank for a month now and all back to normal. No hair algae whatsoever in the refugium, less scraping the glass needed as the algae takes a bit longer to accumulate on the glass, and the water is ridiculously clear.
I will always stick to a UV sterilizer, I know there can be an argument made for and against them but since I have been running UV's on my tanks the past 10 years, I have never had any issues with parasites or algae problems.
During the month that I had it off, I noticed the annoying brownish algae would appear on the glass quicker after cleaning it with my magnet. I also noticed a tiny amount of hair algae starting to grow in my refugium. Also the water didn't appear to be as incredibly clear.
I have had the UV back up and running on the tank for a month now and all back to normal. No hair algae whatsoever in the refugium, less scraping the glass needed as the algae takes a bit longer to accumulate on the glass, and the water is ridiculously clear.
I will always stick to a UV sterilizer, I know there can be an argument made for and against them but since I have been running UV's on my tanks the past 10 years, I have never had any issues with parasites or algae problems.
