- Messages
- 384
- Reaction score
- 0
Im about to purchase a UV sterilizer. I need about 4-5watts for my size tank. My LFS has one that is 9w. Can putting a sterilizer in thats stronger than needed hurt anything?
UV sterilizer
- Thread starter umbrellacorp
- Start date
- Messages
- 384
- Reaction score
- 0
Great thanks guys
Sent from my iPhone4s via Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone4s via Tapatalk
It can make the water temp higher. (the bigger the uv, the higher the temp)
There is a very good thread on this site that goes over uv. depending on your flow, it may not do much of anything for you. (bug wise. ie: your water is going by the uv to fast to kill ick..ect, but not heat wise)
- Messages
- 384
- Reaction score
- 0
do what? sorry.. like i said, ive never owned a UV before. What exactly did u mean by that.. in laymen terms?
No problem.
Go to this link:
http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=36805">http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=36805</a>
It is a sticky in the Reef Discussion forum. Very Very good explanation on UV.
Nutshell:
1) The UV light itself gives off heat.(its a light bulb :) ) Depending on the size of it and your tank..ect it may or may not add some heat to the water.
2) This is where the link above can explain it the best. Most people assume that any UV will kill all the germs. This is not true. Bottom line is that the really bad germs need a higher UV and longer time in front of it. Most UV's are not strong enough or the water flows to fast for it to kill the really bad germs.
- Messages
- 384
- Reaction score
- 0
really? thats the entire reason im getting one.. my water is perfect. *knock on wood* my current fish (only have 3) are fine.. but the last two fish i introduced developed ick overnight. it was because the temp dropped so much during the night. i got a glass top now that i put on at night so the temp stays stable.. so hopefully any new fish i get wont develop ick. So i really need at least a 15w in a 36g tank to get rid of ick?
Edit: oh thanks for the link.. that helps a lot
it really all depends on the sterilizer...the oceanic 5w and the jbj nanozap wont get rid of ick...it depends on the amount of radiation the sterilizer puts out (not talking about wattage here) and the flow of the water through it (usually the slower the better)...the sticky on the first page really sums it up but if you know of a sterilizer you are looking for i can help you with the calculations to see if it can kill ick...
ick needs 336,000 uWs/cm2 of radtion to be killed
like it says in the sticky, if you had an 80w sterilizer rated for 90,000 uW/cm2 @ 1226 gph youd divide 336,000 by 90000 and get 4
so then youd take the gph 1226 dived by 4 and get 306 gph....so with the 80w you d need a pump going at 306 gph or slower to kill ick
like i said its not hard but 5w wont do the trick...let me know if ya need help....but the sticky on first page is great
ick needs 336,000 uWs/cm2 of radtion to be killed
like it says in the sticky, if you had an 80w sterilizer rated for 90,000 uW/cm2 @ 1226 gph youd divide 336,000 by 90000 and get 4
so then youd take the gph 1226 dived by 4 and get 306 gph....so with the 80w you d need a pump going at 306 gph or slower to kill ick
like i said its not hard but 5w wont do the trick...let me know if ya need help....but the sticky on first page is great
That's the sticker shock
You heard UV and think of pure water ...ect.. Easy to think UV kills everything. It does, but the problem is everything it kills is different. ICK happens to be on the higher end. It needs higher UV with a longer time in front of the UV. Read the sticky in my past post. It explains everything in clear terms. And.. btw... You can't really go by the size of your tank per say. Again.. it is how long the water is in front of the UV. (gallons per hour - gph)- Messages
- 384
- Reaction score
- 0
thank guys, i really appreciate the help
