Check this out UV Fail!!!

[mellotang]

So I am fortunate enough to run some nice aquariums in NYC and tonight I had to do some services

Everything is great, water change done on 500 gallon system, about to turn system back online and I hear a pop and see water streaming out of UV

Everything was unplugged, UV, pumps, chiller….not sure why caused the fatigue to the plastic but I sure am glad the catastrophic failure happened when I was there

I would have been screwed if it happened 2 minutes later after I walked out of filter room. I guess someone is looking out for
Me

 

[mellotang]

Ill Update when I take that UV apart and see what’s up

For now I lick my wounds, decompress and reevaluate

 

[kharmaguru]

I had a mickey mouse setup yrs ago with a small waterproof uv bulb in my ABS overflow pipe. When I took the system down after a few years I saw that the ABS had become paper thin from exposure to the light. Much longer and it certainly would have collapsed the pipe. Not saying it's the same issue but plastic and UV are not friends.

 

[jason2459]

That's a pretty popular brand too. Glad you caught it quickly.

 

[mellotang]

I’m thinking I’ll look into UV units that use a housing other than plastic

 

[mellotang]

Maybe not, I’m reading Stainless will rust

 

[shred5]

I had a mickey mouse setup yrs ago with a small waterproof uv bulb in my ABS overflow pipe. When I took the system down after a few years I saw that the ABS had become paper thin from exposure to the light. Much longer and it certainly would have collapsed the pipe. Not saying it's the same issue but plastic and UV are not friends.

You know it is something I never thought of was UV affect on plastics. I also wonder what could be coming out of those plastics as they degrade and how it affects the health of our aquariums.

 

[kharmaguru]

You know it is something I never thought of was UV affect on plastics. I also wonder what could be coming out of those plastics as they degrade and how it affects the health of our aquariums.

Well all that degraded ABS had to have gone into my water. Nothing died except green star polyps now that I think of it lol. Other corals, a few mollies and two mangroves seemed unaffected.

Certainly some plastics handle UV better than ABS drainage pipe.

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Years back I had a UV light where the plastic became mushy for lack of a better word.
The mfg. wanted it back after I inquired about it.

 

[mellotang]

the area of the fail was very mushy

 

[ironwill723]

Very common especially with that brand. Happened to me as well on a smaller unit. Had to use a heat gun to tear apart and reglue the center pipe housing. If you search the forums you will see others with the same issue.

 

[mellotang]

@ironwill723

Thanks, I searched some forums and didn’t find too much in regards to plastic fatigue

I only Found one similar leak thread

Could you please point me to threads related to Pentair Emperor UV leaks?

 

[kharmaguru]

@ironwill723

Thanks, I searched some forums and didn’t find too much in regards to plastic fatigue

I only Found one similar leak thread

Could you please point me to threads related to Pentair Emperor UV leaks?

Read these reviews at BRS. Exact issue you experienced:

Smart UV Sterilizer 40 Watt

"
As a few others here and on reef forums have reported, after about 5 years of use, the main housing has degraded. I just happen to notice recently that green light was coming out of the side of the middle of the housing when it never had before. When I touched it, it was very soft. I'm lucky I caught it before it got so bad that it leaked. Looking inside the housing I can see most of the material thickness and is flexible where it used to be firm. Near the inlet and outlet it still has about a 1/4" wall thickness. When I contacted Pentair support, they said they never head of this issue and suggested I contact a local service and repair company to see if they could help me. So, I guess you can't count on them. I assume the UV is degrading the PVC. I wish they would be forthcoming about the expected lifetime of the housing especially for the high price of these. I'll replace the main tube with a piece of 3" PVC and see how long that last.
Review by Scott
Posted on 9/6/23"

"
As some of the other reviews mentioned, after a few years the housing degrades until it is thin enough to start leaking. Mine just sprung a leak last night. Spot where it started is so thin it is easily pushed in with a slight press of the finger.
Review by Ben
Posted on 11/21/22"

"
After 6 years of service without any issue my unit started dumping water out of the housing and on to my floor. Luckily I was home when this happened but still took time to shut it down and close valves so about 3 gallons of water on my wood floors. Found the housing itself degraded and became thin in the middle of the tube and then the housing finally cracked thus spraying water. Not happy about this kind of failure, as it means the plastic can't handle the UV light over the long term and this could have been really bad.
Review by Keith
Posted on 9/6/22"

"
We are an aquarium installation maintenance company and we've had at least a dozen pentair aquatic UV's of all sizes melt thru the casings. It does take a year or so to happen but it will happen. Pentair knows about this and does nothing! We switched back to AquaUV.
Review by ayef12
Posted on 5/25/22"

 

[ironwill723]

@ironwill723

Thanks, I searched some forums and didn’t find too much in regards to plastic fatigue

I only Found one similar leak thread

Could you please point me to threads related to Pentair Emperor UV leaks?

UV light penetrating casing

Hi All, I have a pentair smart uv 40w running about 600GPH flow for a 220 gallon plus reef tank. Ive owned the unit for about 3 years now and have changed the bulb and glass sleeve twice. It seems to work with out issue until month week when i walked into my garage and saw that it was...

www.reef2reef.com

UV - different manufactures have different flow rates... confusing...

OK, was all set on the BRS recommended Pentair 40W UV sterilizer... Although BRS doesn't seem to stock them anymore...? However, not sure if the quality went down after they became Pentair (from Emperor) - but there are a lot of negative reviews on the Pentair UVs nowadays... The reviews...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[shred5]

So are the housings degrading from the UV or melting from heat?

.

 

[mellotang]

I think it’s the UV light

The unit I had issue with was never warm
Never felt any heat
Had adequate flow

 

[ironwill723]

Yes UV light exposure. I also believe some of the manufacturers have been cutting corners with thinner walled housings which degrade quicker.

 

[BeanAnimal]

Plenty of turbo twist mush threads too