I'm Running Bio-Pellets Should I Run My UV Sterilizer?

[B1N4RY]

Okay so I have been running my Bio-Pellet Reactor for about 3 months now and water conditions are great. About 1 month ago I added my 3 Tangs (Blue Hippo Tang, White Cheek Gold Rim Tang and a Blue Hippo Tang). They have been eating me out of house and home (they eat Rod's Food Seaweed Sheets, about two sheets per day at a minimum). They are active swimmers and never had an issue. But yesterday I came home to find the start of Marine Ich (mostly on the Blue Hippo Tang but some slight signs on the other two) :headwally:. I have stopped using my UV Sterilizer because of of the Bio-Pellet Reactor but I'm thinking that my reactor has built up a nice bacteria colony within the last three months inside the reactor. Would it be logical to fire up the UV Sterilizer to at least assist in killing the Marine Ich when their in their free floating stage? I'm thinking it should cause minimal to no effect on the Bio-Pellet Reactor since all the magic happens within in. What are your thoughts?

 

[downbeach]

I would move all the fish to a QT and use the UV there. I'd do a cupramine treatment in the QT, and let the DT lay fallow for up to 11 weeks.

 

[B1N4RY]

I would move all the fish to a QT and use the UV there. I'd do a cupramine treatment in the QT, and let the DT lay fallow for up to 11 weeks.

Thank you for the information.

 

[swcc]

fire it up and see what you see.

 

[wooden_reefer]

Okay so I have been running my Bio-Pellet Reactor for about 3 months now and water conditions are great. About 1 month ago I added my 3 Tangs (Blue Hippo Tang, White Cheek Gold Rim Tang and a Blue Hippo Tang). They have been eating me out of house and home (they eat Rod's Food Seaweed Sheets, about two sheets per day at a minimum). They are active swimmers and never had an issue. But yesterday I came home to find the start of Marine Ich (mostly on the Blue Hippo Tang but some slight signs on the other two) :headwally:. I have stopped using my UV Sterilizer because of of the Bio-Pellet Reactor but I'm thinking that my reactor has built up a nice bacteria colony within the last three months inside the reactor. Would it be logical to fire up the UV Sterilizer to at least assist in killing the Marine Ich when their in their free floating stage? I'm thinking it should cause minimal to no effect on the Bio-Pellet Reactor since all the magic happens within in. What are your thoughts?

UV sized for bacteria control has no impact on ich. Ich is too tough for UV of this size.

UV is very useful for mostly bacterial and viral disease control but it has limitations.

 

[wooden_reefer]

I would move all the fish to a QT and use the UV there. I'd do a cupramine treatment in the QT, and let the DT lay fallow for up to 11 weeks.

Even for a small QT, UV may not be effective against ich.

I always use UV on QT when possible (when a drug that is degraded by UV is not used), not for ich but for bacterial and viral disease control.

The major problem is likely ammonia control in QT during the eight or more weeks to eradicate ich.

 

[MARINECRITTERS]

You can run UV with it. The bacteria on bio pellets is stationary meaning it is not free floating, since it is not floating about in the water column the UV can not remove it. UV removes free floating algae spores and other small organisms in the water. Although I would run the bio pellets for a couple months so they can become colonized.

 

[m2434]

The bacteria on bio pellets is stationary meaning it is not free floating

The bacteria on bio pellets is "hypothesized to be" stationary meaning it is not free floating.

It could be that the pellets are just slowly dosing carbon into the tank. I don't think anyone has shown that the bacteria actually remains on the pellets as advertised. People do seem to get bacterial blooms in tanks, when running pellets. So, this would at least partially dispute that hypothesis.

 

[Kyle918]

I like how he just adds in there that they all have ich like that isn't the biggest problem he has right now...smh. Tangs are notarious for having marine ich btw....I can't believe they were quarantined...

I don't think the UV sterilizer will have any impact on the ich. The proper way to get rid of it is to QT each fish and probably seperately because they are tangs and will most likely be agressive together in a small tank. Using hyposalinity OR copper treaments will help. What size is your display tank btw?

All the info on QT is located in the stickies as well as marine ich so I won't bother repeating them here. In the future, you should ALWAYS, ALWAYS QT new livestock because now not only do you have 3 fish that have ich, but you also have a display tank with ich....when you may have only started out with one fish having ich. Now your fish need to be removed and your display sit fallow for close to 12 weeks to be positive it is ich free. Imagine if this was your last addition of fish and youve spent thousands on your tank and it gets infected with ich?? That is a disater and half waiting to happen for all you that don't quarantine as it only takes one ich outbreak to snowball into a crashed reef.