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Unread 01/06/2010, 01:16 PM   #7
wooden_reefer
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 4,670
Quote:
Originally Posted by RBU1 View Post
UV sterilizers do work. Here is a difference of opinion between wood and I. A properly sized UV should be about half your gallons of water so if you have a 100 gallon tank you will want a 50 watt uv. Not only is the size important but so is the water flow rate. After several years of trial and error I suggest you properly QT and treat all fish an you should never have to worry about ich.
I think you do not need quite as large a uv to kill most waterborne bacteria in most situations.

I go by about 10 gph per watt for a turnover of just 1 or 2 in DT.

If you have only one uv sized for DT, when you use it in QT likely you will have a greater turnover.

I find an 8 watt unit in a 30 gal QT effective in reducing incidents of external bacteria infection.

One subject of interest is the quartz sleeve. I think units with it is more effective per watt. I am not sure anymore, but long time ago I read that the purpose of the quartz sleeve is to reduce heat transfer to the water. A hotter UV bulb gives more UV than a cooler one. The temp of the bulb has an effect on the wavelength distribution of the light given out. I am not sure about the science behind it. May be someone else is.

I think most UV makers overstate the ideal flow rate. May be stating the ideal flow to kill bacteria seems too slow and hurts sales.



Last edited by wooden_reefer; 01/06/2010 at 01:29 PM.
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