Uv Sterilisers

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rfisher

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Hi All,

I was just looking in Ebay and come across a 'fish r fun' 9 Watt UV sterilser. What are the main benefits of a UV steriliser and is it worth buying one.

Thanks,

Rich
 
i have also seen these there very cheap and small. i know there supposed to stop disease spreading and improve water quality. i have also heard they can help get rid of algae. if they can help get rid of algea i would be very intrested.
 
They help to kill bacteria in the water so less disease. Helpful if you have scaleless fish that are harder to treat with medicenes.

Edit: Flame beat me to it :p i was going to mention about the algae but then deleted it as i wasnt sure either. Think it helps with green water, which is water-borne algae
 
UV sterilizers are good for decimating populations, but by their very design they cannot kill 100% of any pest in the tank.

Consider an example of algae. There are two rates that are important: the growth rate of the algae and the death rate. The population of algae will change, either the population will increase or decrease, until the growth rate is exactly equal to the death rate. Now, what the two rates are equal to depends on the environment: the food available, the lighting, and of course, the population of algae that is there. I.e. the food available to each cell of algae changes depending upon how many algae 'mouths' (cells) there are to feed. So, when all that equilibrates, the death rate is equal to the growth rate, the population remains constant.

Now, introduce the UV. What this does is increase the death rate. Well, the population will be reduced, but eventually, the population will get to the point where the death rate is equal to the growth rate again. There will always be some remnant population. It may be 99% of the original, 99.9%, 25%, whatever. And you may be happy with that.

The problem comes up when instead of dealing with algae, you use the UV to fight a disease, like ich, for example. Because there is always a remnant population, using the UV alone you cannot completely rid your tank of the disease. I think this is where the origin of the 'UV sterilizers weaken your fish's immune response' myth comes from. Because there is a small population of disease left over, it takes some time, maybe weeks to even months, until the population grows back, and your fish show symptoms of disease again.

Another way to look at this, the UV sterilizer can only treat a very small percentage of the tank at any one time. There will always be some algae or ich or bacteria that will not swim through the UV chamber. This is because the output of the UV is returned to the tank, and that re-mixing always occurs. And again, in the case of disease, if you ever take the UV out, the population will start to grow back.

Compare that with a medication you mix into your tank's water. The medication treats the entire tank at once. No matter where the ich or bacteria swims to, it will be attacked by the medication.

So, my conclusion is that a UV light can help to decimate, to quickly lower the population of a problem in your tank. But, if you are treating a disease, you have to then take the UV out and finish off the remnant of that population with a good, effective medication. Otherwise, the disease will takes its time to grow back and will rear its ugly head again some time in the future. So, like many things, UV is not a magic bullet, but it can be very effective if you know its limitations.
 
It might help but i'd prefer to find out what's causing the algae and treat it that way.
How long do you leave your lights on for?
 
atm i have live plants and for them i have the lights on a whole 5 hours a day :/ but nevermind that in my new tank im going fake so i was even more worried i want the lights on for 5 hours a day and dont want more algae the main problem is hair algae it is out of control i thought a uv sterilizer might help
 
mmm, very interesting,

I'm thinking of getting a sterilizer as they seem like a good way to keep my water cleaner and clearer the problem is, i also keep Otto's. If the sterilizer eliminates the algae in my tank, does that mean my Ottos' will run out of food and die? do you think algae wafers would help solvr this

Thanks for your help
Hank
 
I actually think that algae wafers are a very poor substitute for ottos. Ottos tend to be grazers, they like to feed continuously throughout the day. To replace that with wafers, you'd have to be putting a few in every few hours every day. If you are at home and have that dedication, it may work, but what if you ever leave for a few days? Why take away from the natural sources the ottos are using all the time? I think it is just more natural and easier to let some aglae grow and yank some out every time you do a water change if it gets to be too mcuh.
 

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