UV Light ? And testimonial

G Santana · Mar 17, 2021

I have had a low grade algae bloom in my 130 BB for several weeks now which fluctuated from annoyingly light to clam chowder soup thick and after reading about UV lights here from many hobbyists, I decided to give it a try as everything else I tried didn't work.

Well I got a 55W light and strapped it on, within the first two hours my skimmer started going berserk, I had to dial it back and had to remove a milky skimate twice before going to bed.
I thought I noticed a slight improvement but I thought it was just wishful thinking.

This morning I anxiously made my way to my basement to look at the tank and was amazed that the tank is crystal clear. What a difference a UV can make!!!

My question is, do you guys run the UV 24/7, intermittently on a schedule.
I ask because I have never run one and in the past never needed one as live rock was my filter.

This site helps those who need help!!!
Thanks!!!

threebuoys · Mar 17, 2021

You'll get differing opinions on this question. Mine... run it 24/7 . Will constantly sterilize bacteria and algae in the water column and also parasites that make it through the canister. It serves a different purpose than your live rock. The bacteria there is not affected by the UV since in never flows thru the UV. The live rock supports the ammonia to nitrate cycle.

An argument for running it intermittently would be to prolong the life of the bulb. If you run 24/7 you will probably need to change the bulb about every 6 months due to the accumulation of deposits on the glass sleeve and the weakening of the light output.

G Santana · Mar 17, 2021

threebuoys said:
You'll get differing opinions on this question. Mine... run it 24/7 . Will constantly sterilize bacteria and algae in the water column and also parasites that make it through the canister. It serves a different purpose than your live rock. The bacteria there is not affected by the UV since in never flows thru the UV. The live rock supports the ammonia to nitrate cycle.

An argument for running it intermittently would be to prolong the life of the bulb. If you run 24/7 you will probably need to change the bulb about every 6 months due to the accumulation of deposits on the glass sleeve and the weakening of the light output.

Thank you for the reply and advice!