Uv Or no

MichaelP121579 · Dec 30, 2021

I'm setting up a sps dominant tank. I plan on it being fish heavy. I'm considering a uv but wandering if it's worth it. Im my other system I got dynos, I have a freing that let me barrow his jebao 55 uv. My No3 was showing 0 and Po4 was. 02 I started dosing nitrates at same time I statered using the uv. The next day the stringy dinoes were 50% gone the next 72 hours every think was cleared up. So I don't know if it was the Uv or putting no3 in the system..
Any thoughts would be great. I'm looking at the pentair or Aqua UV
Tank is 80 gallon with bashsea 36x16x18
sump. So probably around 100 gallon total.
I'm trying to make my decision while I'm still in the process of the new build

BroccoliFarmer · Dec 30, 2021

Yes. Better to have and not need as opposed to need and not have. I run mine only for a few hours a day.

vetteguy53081 · Dec 30, 2021

UV always beneficial and you dont need to run it full time unless necessary. Simply run 8-12 hours per day and place unit on a timer to accomplish that

MichaelP121579 · Dec 30, 2021

vetteguy53081 said:
UV always beneficial and you dont need to run it full time unless necessary. Simply run 8-12 hours per day and place unit on a timer to accomplish that

What brand u run?

MichaelP121579 · Dec 30, 2021

vetteguy53081 said:
UV always beneficial and you dont need to run it full time unless necessary. Simply run 8-12 hours per day and place unit on a timer to accomplish that

What brand u run?
Thanks

vetteguy53081 · Dec 30, 2021

MichaelP121579 said:
What brand u run?

Lifeguard aquatics

Andresnyc93 · Dec 30, 2021

+1 on running UV for 8-10 hours daily. Keeps water and Display crystal clear

MichaelP121579 · Dec 30, 2021

vetteguy53081 said:
Lifeguard aquatics

That's the one I was looking at, but it looks like it would take up a ton of space and hard plumbing it in doesn't look easy. I found 1 with a 3/4 in and 3/4 out witch is what my return pump is plumed in with. So IDK

vetteguy53081 · Dec 30, 2021

MichaelP121579 said:
That's the one I was looking at, but it looks like it would take up a ton of space and hard plumbing it in doesn't look easy. I found 1 with a 3/4 in and 3/4 out witch is what my return pump is plumed in with. So IDK

it is large . If you dont have room, look at Aqua ultraviolet

kados · Dec 30, 2021

I'm a big fan of UVs. Never had dinos or cyano in tanks that ran a UV (all fish heavy). I run Pentair over the last few years. I've heard Aqua and Lifeguard are good also. I just bought the 50w for my 187g system and will move my 25w to my 125g. Have an 18w that's going offline (just saying lol). But yes, I think they absolutely make a difference for glass algae, water clarity and preventing against dinos & cyano. I don't use it for disease.

MichaelP121579 · Dec 31, 2021

kados said:
I'm a big fan of UVs. Never had dinos or cyano in tanks that ran a UV (all fish heavy). I run Pentair over the last few years. I've heard Aqua and Lifeguard are good also. I just bought the 50w for my 187g system and will move my 25w to my 125g. Have an 18w that's going offline (just saying lol). But yes, I think they absolutely make a difference for glass algae, water clarity and preventing against dinos & cyano. I don't use it for disease.

Gonna send you a pm

FiddlersReef · Dec 31, 2021

100% recommend UV. I have a Pentair 40W on my 130 gallon, running at the slow pathogen rate. I installed it as part of my solution after having a disease outbreak. Anything that will help prevent that in the future is worth it. Plus as other have said, freakishly crystal clear water.

Jaredtexas · Dec 31, 2021

MichaelP121579 said:
What brand u run?
Thanks

There has been plenty of tank of the months running UV on sps dominated systems. I really don’t see a downside from uv other than one more thing to service. A lot of people who complain about them get one very undersized or the “hobby toy grade sterilizers from petco”

I have the Pentair unit and use to run the aqua ultraviolet. The Pentair units are bigger so if space is an issue then I would go with aqua. I can tell you after putting the Pentair (e50 I think?) my water clarity is out of this world and I am having way less algae on glass.

im running the recommended like 300 gph for Protozoa

the tank I’m running it on is a 3 month old reefer 9003xl and it will be sps dominated as well