ultra violet filtration

[oliverfish]

I am interested in putting an ultra violet filter on my 80 gallon reef tank which has had some disease problem resulting in fish loss. I have been told that a UV filter will eliminate the problem and should replace the use of a hospital tank. Can anyone recommend a brand or offer an opinion on how successful these are in disease prevention

 

[mbbuna]

[welcome]

exactly what diseases are we talking about?

UV sterilizers are only effective on what actually passes through them. it may help some on passing diseases from fish to fish but in all honesty i doubt it

 

[greenbean36191]

Experiments have repeatedly shown that UV filters have no significant effect on infection rates or parasite densities in recirculating systems. People still swear they work, but the experimental evidence suggests otherwise. Get a hospital tank and treat the fish properly. It will probably be the cheaper alternative in the long run and almost assuredly the more effective.

 

[fishdoc11]

I agree. A hospital tank (or quarantine tank) is really a necessity for fish and corals. There is really no "cure all" to having healthy fish. Good husbandry and preventing the introduction of unwanted pathogens and parasites is the best bet
Chris

 

[Randy1]

I never had any improvment on my tank when using UV only another item to maintain.

 

[azgard]

My experience has shown that UV will help with dinos.

 

[FreakonaReef]

I have never seen a benifit of using UV sterilizers. Used one for 2yrs, then removed it. No change in the last 3yrs. Maybe would benifit on a new tank or fish only.

 

[JC VT]

The use of ultraviolet radiation for the control of disease in eggs and fishes (the MBU-3 compact bactericidal plant):

Tests of efficiency were carried out on a compact UV bactericidal plant (the MBU-3) which destroys parasites of fish and eggs (Saprolegnia, Ichthyophthirius, Cercaria, Trichodina etc.). The use of UV radiation was found to be a reliable and effective method of sterilizing water in fish hatcheries. The method is automatic in its operation, does not require the addition of any reagents to the water, does not affect the quality of the water, is non-toxic and does not act directly on the eggs and larvae. The plant sterilizes water passing through it at a rate of 1 m super(3)/hr which is sufficient for simultaneous incubation of 10-16 kg of sturgeon eggs in a single trough incubator or for the operation of 2 trough incubators for the eggs of teleosts not infected by Saprolegnia. The total destruction of fish ectoparasites when water is sterilized in the MBU-3 makes it possible to use UV rays in fish hatcheries not only for egg incubation but also in the rearing of larvae in sterile water.

It's an old paper, but supports the use of UV filtration

OTOH, as mentioned above, a hospital tank seems to be the most reliable way to make sure parasites aren't hitch-hiking into your system on fish. LR, corals, and other things that are not quarantined could introduce parasites, however.

 

[greenbean36191]

It's an old paper, but supports the use of UV filtration

Yes, on single pass systems. There are literally hundreds of papers showing that UV is extremely effective for this use. Our tanks are recirculating systems though and UV has been shown repeatedly to be ineffective on recirculating systems.

 

[Spracklcat]

Exactly. Unless you can guarantee that all the water in your system, all the pockets in the substrate, everything will be in contact with the UV for a sufficient amount of time, it will be ineffective. UV can't kill what it doesn't contact.