Getting the right exposure to kill parasites...

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

I just purchased the Turbo-Twist 3X UV Sterilizer, it's the 36 watt unit and rated for up to a 500 gallon tank. My tank is only 72 gallons.

 

Coralife, recommends 400-1200 gallons per hour. On the box it says:

 

"The flow rate needs to be low enough to provide the appropriate exposure dosage, but high enough to treat the entire volume of the aquarium with appropriate frequency".

 

I have the Mag 700 connected to it and at 3 feet of head pressure my GPH is 500.

 

So I'm well within the lower end of the spectrum and I want to be, if I am to zap the free floating parasites.

 

But I'm getting mixed messages, since Dr Foster's and Smith has a chart for UV sterilizers and it says the conflicting data.

Take a look at their chart:

 

UV Bulb (Watts) first column; To ControlBacteria and Algae (gph) second column; To Control Parasites (gph); last column.

 

4 60 N/A

8 120 N/A

15 230 75

18 300 100

25 475 150

30 525 175

40 940 300

65 1700 570

80 1885 625

120 3200 900

130 3400 1140

 

Okay if I use this chart I'm in between 30-40 watt so my Max GPH should be 200 gph if I'm to control parasites. I'm over this since I'm at 500 gph.

 

Do you see the logic here? I'm confused, can the guru on the UV lights step in and clarify this confusion?

 

Thanks,

 

Mike G

[RayWhisperer]

Mike, I'm no guru, but I'm pretty sure you'd need to be between 200 and 250 GPH for it to be effective on parasites.

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

Ray,

 

Thanks for your response. I found out that these stats that I posted are for a UV on a single pass.

 

My particular UV is new on the market and has a 12x pass. That means it swirls the water 12 times on exposing any pathogens.

 

I'll have to look at their chart and see where I'm at on kill ratio for parasites with 500 GPH.

 

I'll post later to help other users out on this particular unit.

 

MG

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

Prior to the UV unit on Friday night, my Chevron and blue tang were literally covered in ich beyond anything I've ever seen, in fact from visual inspection I gave them one more day to live.

 

I was tempted to purchase Stop Parasites and place it in my tank in an attempt to give them immediate comfort but thought against it for my corals sake, so I purchased the UV unit.

 

I connected this monster size uv unit and started running it 24/7. What came next was very much a surprise, my water started to clear up even more and my fish started behaving different by Sunday night.

 

The big difference was in the night inspection, my fish were not darting around frantically like before they began going to sleep in the live rock. To me that's an indication that the free floating parasites are being erradicated.

 

This was the most evident with the powderblue tang which never would sleep peacefully since the ich outbreak, now he is off to bed, something I'd not seen since the day he first arrived.

 

Don't mis-construe what I'm documenting, my two tangs are still covered in ich as UV does zero on infected fish, just that secondary infection is looking bleak.

 

If I were to have a microscope handy I'd be able to see the concentration of parasites less than without the uv unit.

 

I've learned something with ozone and uv. My ozone unit is powered by a Mag 250 which is slowed down considerally to match the intake of my skimmer. As ich infested water is captured down my mega flow into my sump, parasites are still escaping this small recirculating pump.

 

In fact, having my controller shut off my ozone every night and not firing up untill daylight hours was giving parasites more time to breed.

 

Well, with the introduction of the monster size uv unit that is rated for 500 gallons, I'm turning over major kill ratio on a 72 gallon reef. With the mag 700 on a closed loop system, I'm increasing the kill ratio by passing the parasites on a continual basis as they enter the sump.

 

Between the Mag 250 and 750, I'm turning over about 700 gallons of infected water per hour and as I sleep I feel confident that the free floating parasites are getting their share of radiation and ozone.

 

I literally feel like my tank has become one of those coin operated water purification systems.

 

Now on the flip side of the coin, since I have the coralife powerstrip timer, I'm going to run my uv unit on daylight hours, as I feel and have read that running the uv in the night is not necessary especially since plankton is encouraged to breed in twilight hours. I'll do this after one month of operation ensuring the ich is under control.

 

I also dose at night and having the uv light go night night is very convenient for me, not having to manually each night shut it off, saves on energy and the life of the bulb, which is rated at 8,000 hours of continuous use.

 

I'm not out of the woods, but I certainly feel I've found a trail to begin my movement back to safe ground.

 

MG

[Gross111]

Great post

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

Well,

 

I just got off the phone with Tech Support with Coralife. Here is the consensus:

 

IN ORDER TO KILL PARASITES FOR THIS PARTICULAR 36 WATT UV UNIT YOU NEED TO HAVE NO MORE THAN 290 GPH MAX.

 

I'm using a Mag 7 which at 3 feet head pressure gives me 500 gph. So I'm off to my LFS to purchase the Mag 3 which at 3 feet of head pressure gives me 300 gph.

 

He told me the Mag 3 going through the UV unit, should lose just enough to fall into 290 gph.

 

Well, there you have it, the answer to my original question; the whole point here is about erradicating free floating parasites, and Ich is on that list for me.

 

MG

[proraptor]

I think your screwed up your last post mike...

 

A mag 3 wont give 300GPH at 3 ft of pressure

 

A mag 5 would though

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

Proraptor,

 

I'm sorry but I think it's you that is confused. I researched hard before I drove down and purchased the Mag 350.

 

It's rated at 300 gph at 3 feet. The Mag 5 will give me 380 gph at 3 feet. Here take a look at the specs from their website:

 

http://www.marineandreef.com/Info/DannerPumpSpecs.html

 

I also have in my hands there instructions which again validate my original statement.

 

May I ask where you got your info? I appreciate you bringing this to my attention.

 

MG

[RayWhisperer]

Mike, are you steadily increasing the temp in the tank? This may help erradicate it faster, it speeds up the lifecycle of the parasite. You'll never be able to get the temp high enough in a reef to be fully effective, but any bit would help I'd think.

[Saltwater]

OK, Mike I did find this a really good question and went reading, here is some interesting Info that Steven Pro wrote in a two part article on Ich:

 

Treatment Option 10: Ozone

 

The use of ozone is somewhat similar to the use of ultraviolet sterilizers in that you are attempting to kill the pathogen by killing everything that passes through a reaction chamber. In this case, the reaction chamber is usually a protein skimmer, although there are some dedicated ozone reactors on the market and instructions on the Internet for DIY units. Ozone does not have as many of the variables affecting its performance as UV's do. On the contrary, if water clarity is an issue, ozone will help to improve overall water quality while at the same time, work towards neutralizing parasites.

 

The other big difference between ozone and UV treatments is there is a higher probability that the use of ozone can affect a cure in a single aquarium. Wilkie and Gordon (1969) reported that they were able to prevent the infestation of fish placed into an infected aquarium for 21 days with the use of ozone. Unfortunately, due to the prolonged life cycle of Cryptocaryon irritans, I cannot say that this is definitive proof, but it does show some promise. It was not until more recently that the biology and life cycle of Cryptocaryon irritans was better understood, so much of the older data on this disease is now deemed inconclusive.

 

The major drawback to the use of ozone is the potential to overdose and kill everything in the system. Ozone must be administered using a monitor/controller unit. Also, the effluent of the water and air should be run through activated carbon to ensure that any residual ozone is neutralized (Moe, 1989).

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

Saltwater,

 

Thanks for your post, I have already read this article and I'm glad you brought it here.

 

As you know, I just replaced the pump on my UV unit, I pulled out the Mag 7 and dropped in the Mag 3.

 

I looked up the flow calculator on RC and found that at 3 feet I'm at 282 gph.

 

That gives me the target zone for killing parasites as per the instructions of my UV unit; 290 gph.

 

I also have the Ozone connected to my skimmer and that's on a Mag 2 which gives me 201 gph.

 

Between the two; I'm at 483 gph. So with 72 gallons of water in my tank I get about 6.7x turn over rate. Now this is for killing parasites.

 

I hope to see results in about 1 week. I'm not dosing any more medicatons, and the last medication that was in the tank has biodegraded more than 2 weeks ago.

 

The only thing I'm going to do is raise back the temperature of the tank; it's been at 77 degrees and I will bring in back up to 84 degrees in hopes of speeding the parasistes that are on the fish into the free floating stage.

 

I also intend on increasing the water flow in my tank with two additional MJ1200 in an attempt to have my megaflow capture more free floating parasites down to the sump, where Mr. Ozone and UV await them.

 

My chevron and blue tang are covered the most so I hope to see them come around with the intervention of UV and Ozone.

 

MG

[Saltwater]

The only thing I'm going to do is raise back the temperature of the tank; it's been at 77 degrees and I will bring in back up to 84 degrees in hopes of speeding the parasistes that are on the fish into the free floating stage.

 

This can be good and bad, Just keep in mind that even though this will speed up the parasite to a free floating stage, in return there will be those parasites that find there way back on your fish that may already have a weakened immune system due to the first batch of parasites introduced.

 

What about syphoning the top layer of your sand bed & over your rocks, try to pull some of them out before they become free floating. do you feel this may help?

 

Good Luck I really hope this works for you and you do not have to go to extremes.

[RayWhisperer]

Update Mike... How are things doing/progressing?

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

RayWhisper,

 

I'm approaching week number three since I added the UV unit. All my fish are healthy and eating very well.

 

My powder blue tang has never looked as nice as he does, since the day I brought him home; he's got just a very few spots left.

 

The chevron tang is also doing very well, he had gotten the ich really bad and he's doing so much better.

 

The algae blenny use to scratch on the gravel a lot during the night and he doesn't do it any more.

 

The blue tang was the most infected fish I had and he's still alive and eating like a pig, just that his skin still shows some ich and markings from all the sores.

 

He is however, looking so much better than before.

 

Ray, what I can honestly say is this: HAD I NOT PURCHASED THE UV UNIT ALONG WITH THE OZONE, MY FISH SHOULD'VE DIED FROM ICH.

 

Remember that I intevened with No-Ich on a second and third attempt and it failed really bad.

 

Had I just left the tank sit with the ich, it would've been over.

 

It was at this time that I decided from the cost of the No-Ich med, I could add some more cash and get a kick butt UV unit and really nice Ozone unit; and that is what I did.

 

Not only is the ich in check, but my water has never since I first set it up, been so crystal clear in the night, never.

 

My overall vote is get a UV unit for your reefs, if you have lots of fish like me, it's so worth it.

 

Had I lost all my tangs I'd be out the cost of the UV unit and it's pump.

 

Mike G

[RayWhisperer]

Good to hear Mike.

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

Anyone else have been having trouble with ich and need some advice on UV?

 

MG