+KimP Posted March 18, 2013 Share Posted March 18, 2013 I'm planning on buying a sterilizer for the 90gal I'm putting together. I went to pick one out and realized quickly I have no idea which brand is better than others. I don't want to spend a fortune unnecessarily but I also don't want something cheap that will be less than effective and/or break easily. This is for the treatment/prevention of ick. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainK Posted March 18, 2013 Share Posted March 18, 2013 If you are looking for cheap, I purchased the Green Killing Machine UV sterilizer from Petco. I had a bad bacterial bloom and it cleared it up in a day. I like the fact that I didn't have to plump it in to my return but this could also make it less effective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted March 18, 2013 Share Posted March 18, 2013 My prefered UV sterilizor brand is Ultralife Ultra-V VHO UV sterilizer, the 16 watt would work fine for your tank. Other brands are good and what you want to look for is a UV that lists it's kill rates for algae, bacteria and parasites as the required exposure to kill parasites is much higher than to kill algae or bacteria. A friend got one a few years ago that on the box said it was good for a 120 gallon tank but after reading the instructions INSIDE the box to deal with parasites it would only work on a 40 or 50 gallon tank and he had to get another one. Over the years I have actually gotten much better performance having the UV seperate from the rest of the filtration, having a small power head sized for the right flow rate to get the desired kill rate in the DT feeding to the UV and the return going back to the opposite side of the tank. There is one sterilizer I would not get after having two out of two develop multiple leaks and it's the Lifeguard Aquatics "Aquastep" series which has a rectangular housing, I want to add I have had very good performance using Lifeguard Aquatics "QL" series which has the typical round rousing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
(Bio)³ Posted March 18, 2013 Share Posted March 18, 2013 If I didn't get my turbo twist from a tank setup I bought I'd get an ultra life like Tim said, but I couldn't beat free. +1 for ultra life, but I don't mind my coralife turbo twist. I built a manifold so I can supply the uv with correct flow amount off my return pump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted March 18, 2013 Author Share Posted March 18, 2013 My prefered UV sterilizor brand is Ultralife Ultra-V VHO UV sterilizer, the 16 watt would work fine for your tank. Other brands are good and what you want to look for is a UV that lists it's kill rates for algae, bacteria and parasites as the required exposure to kill parasites is much higher than to kill algae or bacteria. A friend got one a few years ago that on the box said it was good for a 120 gallon tank but after reading the instructions INSIDE the box to deal with parasites it would only work on a 40 or 50 gallon tank and he had to get another one. Over the years I have actually gotten much better performance having the UV seperate from the rest of the filtration, having a small power head sized for the right flow rate to get the desired kill rate in the DT feeding to the UV and the return going back to the opposite side of the tank. There is one sterilizer I would not get after having two out of two develop multiple leaks and it's the Lifeguard Aquatics "Aquastep" series which has a rectangular housing, I want to add I have had very good performance using Lifeguard Aquatics "QL" series which has the typical round rousing. Thank you everyone for the responses! I was actually looking at that aquastep one, so I'm extra glad I asked! I'll look into the ultralife. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted March 18, 2013 Author Share Posted March 18, 2013 Hey Tim, I read in another post you wrote about having the pump that's hooked up to the sterilizer near the bottom of the dt on one end and the flow out from it on the other side of the dt. Does this mean I have to have the sterilizer mounted/hanging behind the tank, or can I have it under? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Hey Tim, I read in another post you wrote about having the pump that's hooked up to the sterilizer near the bottom of the dt on one end and the flow out from it on the other side of the dt. Does this mean I have to have the sterilizer mounted/hanging behind the tank, or can I have it under? I have mine mounted under and fed from my return pump. That way all water returning to the DT passes through the UV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
offroadodge Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 I have had an Aqua Medic 18W for almost 2 years with no issues. I will never run another tank w/o one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 It doesn't really matter where you mount your sterilizer, you can run your plumping anywhere, but I would keep in mind it does need annual maintenance and you will have to deal with the water in th UV, in the plumping and need room to remove the bulb and quartz sleeve. Also mount it so the air is flushed out of it quickly. I prefer to have the sterilizer on it's own closed loop (this is just anecdotal info but it has seemed to me to have cleared up parasite problems quicker this way) but like Mike's setup having it on the return line has worked for me on setups. The one configuration I would avoid is a closed loop in the sump. In one setup I had to deal with a large sterilizer had been installed on a seperate in sump pump and feeding back to the sump was unable to prevent "ick" from spreading and killing fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildman926 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) I use the Coralife brand, Turbo Twists. They do require the maintenance. I usually do it when the bulb needs replacing. I stopped running them one time, and I noticed within a week the difference, which was not good. So I added them back. I like the look of the Petco sterilizer. Just drop it in the sump and go. I have since added Ozone injecting it into my skimmer, and that has made the larges difference in crystal clear water quality. Edited April 3, 2013 by Wildman926 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 3, 2013 Author Share Posted April 3, 2013 I use the Coralife brand, Turbo Twists. They do require the maintenance. I usually do it when the bulb needs replacing. I stopped running them one time, and I noticed within a week the difference, which was not good. So I added them back.<br /> <br />I like the look of the Petco sterilizer. Just drop it in the sump and go.<br /> <br />I have since added Ozone injecting it into my skimmer, and that has made the larges difference in crystal clear water quality. <br /><br />What difference did you notice when you stopped running your UV?<br /><br /> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoneysReef Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Aqua ultraviolet are good but a bit pricey. I run a 25 watt on my 200 gallon system. The bulbs last a long time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildman926 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 (edited) What difference did you notice when you stopped running your UV?" Hi Kim, I noticed that the water clarity was going south, also, much more algae growth on the glass that what I was used to seeing. I run the flow to help with algae, not ick. There are different flow rates for ick and for algae. Edited April 3, 2013 by Wildman926 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planeden Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Kim, Are you going to do another tank build thread for the 90g? I read your 47g one last night and really enjoyed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 3, 2013 Author Share Posted April 3, 2013 Kim,<br /> <br />Are you going to do another tank build thread for the 90g? I read your 47g one last night and really enjoyed it. <br /><br /><br />That's nice of you Yes, I'm definitely going to start one because I'll need a lot of help! It's coming really soon..<br /> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildman926 Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Kim, So a 90g is in the works? That is awesome. The goals are the same, just that things don't happen as fast as they do in smaller tanks, so it takes longer for an issue to go south, but longer to correct the issue also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planeden Posted April 3, 2013 Share Posted April 3, 2013 Kim,<br /> <br />Are you going to do another tank build thread for the 90g? I read your 47g one last night and really enjoyed it. <br /><br /><br />That's nice of you Yes, I'm definitely going to start one because I'll need a lot of help! It's coming really soon..<br /> cool, looking forward to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wardlaw Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 What light did you end up with Kim? Do you like it? Where'd u get it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 I went with an Ultralife 16w from Premium Aquatics. Just today I got the last of what I need to finish the tank build, so it's still sitting in the box. It's been a slow build... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Cob Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 If I didn't get my turbo twist from a tank setup I bought I'd get an ultra life like Tim said, but I couldn't beat free. +1 for ultra life, but I don't mind my coralife turbo twist. I built a manifold so I can supply the uv with correct flow amount off my return pump. be careful on these, someone posted on maast recently that they had rust internally after 6 months use. They posted pics of it on MAAST. I'm also using the Green Killing Machines, like 24watt I believe. I have 3 of them on all of my clownfish systems and they work well, so does the price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 If I didn't get my turbo twist from a tank setup I bought I'd get an ultra life like Tim said, but I couldn't beat free. +1 for ultra life, but I don't mind my coralife turbo twist. I built a manifold so I can supply the uv with correct flow amount off my return pump. be careful on these, someone posted on maast recently that they had rust internally after 6 months use. They posted pics of it on MAAST. On the turbo twist or ultralife? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planeden Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 If I didn't get my turbo twist from a tank setup I bought I'd get an ultra life like Tim said, but I couldn't beat free. +1 for ultra life, but I don't mind my coralife turbo twist. I built a manifold so I can supply the uv with correct flow amount off my return pump. be careful on these, someone posted on maast recently that they had rust internally after 6 months use. They posted pics of it on MAAST. On the turbo twist or ultralife? Turbo twist http://www.maast.org/showthread.php?76419-Rust-inside-turbo-twist! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 Thanks, I looked over there but didn't see the thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planeden Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 Thanks, I looked over there but didn't see the thread. i cheated. i googled maast uv rust or something along those lines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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