Are UV Lights worth their salt?

[RussC]

I've not given UV lights much thought until recently. Now I'm interested. Do they really work? They are expensive! But if they do what they say, its an insurance policy for your tank. RC, what's your thoughts?

 

[JoshH]

Having never owned one myself but looked into it heavily, like everything else, they have there benefits but I fell most people buy them with the expectation they will provide this impenetrable defense against diseases which just isn't true. From what I've read there best benefit overall is crystal clear water. They can help suppress algae/bacterial outbreaks and I'm sure help suppress certain free floating diseases. I think they can be a very useful part of any filtration system as long as you get the right size and run the right flow through them. I will be adding one on my next build down the road but couldn't justify the cost on my current system. As long as your expectations are in line with the actual capabilities of the UV I don't see you being disappointed.

 

[brandon429]

I would never ever ever own a large tank without a pond sterilizer in place, I wouldn't even consider an aquarium one. All you have to do is wrestle in invaded tank threads for a few years, or lose some $$ to invasions to begin stepping up game. Mine is a UV system that looks like a sold rocket booster, for any tank over about 50 gallons that's just my way. id consider it my top most important investment after lighting. then skimmer. I ran a pond UV on a 75 g system it was rated for ten thousand gallons, it did nothing but help me cheat out the typical invasions we must use time to correct, so I love it. no temp issues or anything, and I was overrated by 9925 gallons. it was one of the multi pass arrays for UV off my grandmothers koi pond, she didn't want it so I took it.

agreed below on the no need, they're pure cheaters solid rocket boosters/do consider. they were really big in the 90s but nowadays, in my estimates about 30% of posters are running them. zoos, aquariums and exotic large displays likely run them at the rate of 90% or better, another reason Im into the trend. they wont be spending $ on wastefuls

manually keeping any normal reef tank clean is about as good as uv, strong water changes etc have very similar effects. but just for the lazy times, or the occasional QT not...

when you can't just dive into a huge tank to get to invaded sand, you'll wish for a cheat. if no UV is to be used on any tank over 100 gallons, the best most patient QT approach ever is indicated, having some form of hedge if not UV is just required or we're taking mass chances.

 

[madweazl]

They have value to some people but "need" isnt remotely a term I'd associate with a UV sterilizer. Been keeping corals and fish in tanks a little over 20 years and there was never a point where I even considered one for my own system. Doesnt mean they dont serve a purpose (though that is largely my opinion), I just never saw anything to indicate they were useful in terms of successful reefkeeping.

 

[Reefin Dude]

UV lights (spectrum), or UV purifier/sterilizer?

i would not run a system without one. not for protozoa control, but for its ability to kill bacteria (all that go through it) and algae. it can also break up some organic material. i do however believe a UV should be plumbed before the skimmer so that the skimmer has first crack at removing anything killed before it can get back into the display and be incorporated into a nutrient sink.

G~