UV Sterilizers - pro's and con's?

[ckrhone]

i am researching as to whether I should invest in a UV sterilizer in order to maintain a healthy aquarium and to reduce the risk of my corals getting infections etc.

Just looking for other peoples experiences with this equipment.

 

[carlos_fb]

free bump cause I would also like to know.

 

[jnfallon]

me too. specifically, what size to use - there are many different "ratings" for each wattage, dependin gon the manufacturer.

 

[woodwrangler]

I recently installed a 40w aquauv on our 225. It has only been a couple weeks, so I really couldn't tell you any pros/cons/effects the uv has had on the tank. I did however do some research before the purchase and found some nice info;

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?acatid=423&aid=440
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/pic/article.cfm?acatid=423&aid=435
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produ...&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&pc=1&N=0&Nty=1

Hope that helps,

 

[ckrhone]

Hmmm!

Hmmm!

If I understand correctly, do the UV sterilizers actually kill of the good bacteria aswell as the nasty ones?

 

[carlos_fb]

Re: Hmmm!

Re: Hmmm!

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8263233#post8263233 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ckrhone
If I understand correctly, do the UV sterilizers actually kill of the good bacteria aswell as the nasty ones?

That's why I understand, maybe that's the reason some folks don't use it 24/7.

 

[Sk8r]

Yes, it doesn't discriminate; and I've heard that it may also kill off pods.

 

[PiNaPLeX]

Re: Hmmm!

Re: Hmmm!

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8263233#post8263233 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ckrhone
If I understand correctly, do the UV sterilizers actually kill of the good bacteria aswell as the nasty ones?

The "good" bacteria in your tank resides mostly on the live rock and sand. They are not free floating in the water column so they're not really affected by the UV.

The population of pods might be affected, but if you setup your UV in the right spot in your system, you should be able to minimize that.

IMO, the pros outweight the cons in this case.