YoungREEFA
New member
Vodka + uv is a pretty bad sun burn
Vodka+UV good or bad?
- Thread starter Nate R
- Start date
Its fine. The bacteria populate elsewhere. I vodka dosed and wasnt getting anywhere so i pulled the uv for a week. It did nothing except bleach my corals when i out it back and the water cleared. Akl that happened is i needed to raise vodka amounts. Im at 85 ml per day now in a 1400 gallon system with a remote dsb now and its working with the uv. Nitrates came down from 15 ppm to 5. So my experience is leave it be.
Big E
Premium Member
Just to clarify one thing ..............UV doesn't kill bacteria. I screws up their DNA and prevents them from reproducing. At 254nm UV it isn't powerful enough to actually destroy them.
http://www.epa.gov/safewater/disinfection/lt2/pdfs/guide_lt2_uvguidance.pdf
Give the link time to download it's a PDF file filled with all the facts anyone would want to know about UV.
Here is an excerpt on what UV does---
2.3 Microbial Response to UV Light
The mechanism of disinfection by UV light differs considerably from the mechanisms of chemical disinfectants such as chlorine and ozone. Chemical disinfectants inactivate microorganisms by destroying or damaging cellular structures, interfering with metabolism, and hindering biosynthesis and growth (Snowball and Hornsey 1988). UV light inactivates microorganisms by damaging their nucleic acid, thereby preventing them from replicating. A microorganism that cannot replicate cannot infect a host."
Knowing this fact makes me think UV would hinder carbon dosing.
http://www.epa.gov/safewater/disinfection/lt2/pdfs/guide_lt2_uvguidance.pdf
Give the link time to download it's a PDF file filled with all the facts anyone would want to know about UV.
Here is an excerpt on what UV does---
2.3 Microbial Response to UV Light
The mechanism of disinfection by UV light differs considerably from the mechanisms of chemical disinfectants such as chlorine and ozone. Chemical disinfectants inactivate microorganisms by destroying or damaging cellular structures, interfering with metabolism, and hindering biosynthesis and growth (Snowball and Hornsey 1988). UV light inactivates microorganisms by damaging their nucleic acid, thereby preventing them from replicating. A microorganism that cannot replicate cannot infect a host."
Knowing this fact makes me think UV would hinder carbon dosing.
Perfect. Thanks for the references
Allmost
New member
Check Big E's comment.
Big E
Premium Member
In that experiment referenced they turned off the UV sterilizer for 5 days and didn't see any change in the bacteiral counts. That's hardly enough time to come to any legitimate conclusion.
The test was done on a tank that had been dosing for 6 months. The results may have been completely different for someone just starting out to carbon dose and trying to start a population of bacteria.
Also we have no idea what type of bacteria they were counting.
From my own experience with carbon dosing it takes months to get to a balanced level.
UV's are used in modern septic systems to keep harmful bacteria counts down. There's no question they have a affect on bacterial populations.
It's debateable how much affect they would have on a tank as the bacteria has to make it through the UV unit, however if you look at it logically and put the info together, you're better off not running one with carbon dosing.
The test was done on a tank that had been dosing for 6 months. The results may have been completely different for someone just starting out to carbon dose and trying to start a population of bacteria.
Also we have no idea what type of bacteria they were counting.
From my own experience with carbon dosing it takes months to get to a balanced level.
UV's are used in modern septic systems to keep harmful bacteria counts down. There's no question they have a affect on bacterial populations.
It's debateable how much affect they would have on a tank as the bacteria has to make it through the UV unit, however if you look at it logically and put the info together, you're better off not running one with carbon dosing.
Big E
Premium Member
Are you talking to me?
Conjecture? Go ask any of Bio system manufactuters what they think about using UV with their systems.
What do you think UV does? It destroys bacteria.............that's it's primary function.
It will render any bacteria sterile that runs through it.......which means over time the population will be reduced. It doesn't zap bacteria into thin air. Does that experiment tell you how many of the bacteria are sterile when they were counting them?
My sisters house has a UV unit on her septic system that is inspected every quarter to make sure it's working properly. It's purpose is to eliminate harmful bacteria.
Read the link I provided from the EPA. It's all about UV and making drinking water safe...........it reduces harmful bacteria levels so water is safe to drink.
UV reduces bacteria populations........it's a fact.
Conjecture? Go ask any of Bio system manufactuters what they think about using UV with their systems.
What do you think UV does? It destroys bacteria.............that's it's primary function.
It will render any bacteria sterile that runs through it.......which means over time the population will be reduced. It doesn't zap bacteria into thin air. Does that experiment tell you how many of the bacteria are sterile when they were counting them?
My sisters house has a UV unit on her septic system that is inspected every quarter to make sure it's working properly. It's purpose is to eliminate harmful bacteria.
Read the link I provided from the EPA. It's all about UV and making drinking water safe...........it reduces harmful bacteria levels so water is safe to drink.
UV reduces bacteria populations........it's a fact.
FlyPenFly
SPS Killer
I do not disagree that UV kills bacteria. However, the part that is conjecture is that you're saying a bunch of stuff in regards specifically to a reef system that contradicts data provided without providing any of your own specific data.
Don't take it personally but in my field of study, if you disagree with findings without any or your own data to back up your position its called conjectured opinion.
I think the ecosystem in a septic tank and reef system are a bit different. I think it would be irresponsible to make claims without data.
Don't take it personally but in my field of study, if you disagree with findings without any or your own data to back up your position its called conjectured opinion.
I think the ecosystem in a septic tank and reef system are a bit different. I think it would be irresponsible to make claims without data.
