FishTechNH Posted April 9, 2006 Share Posted April 9, 2006 Should you get one? YES! Should you run it constantly? NO! It never hurts to have a U.V. on hand incase you need it. But to run one constantly just seems like a waste to me. Plus your running an environment that's just abnormally sterile and unable to properly mature. Link to comment
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted April 9, 2006 Share Posted April 9, 2006 Because if you ever get a ich outbreak, the odds are very high that your fish in the given tank will be able to overcome the ich with no meds from you. Ask me how I know? I'll tell you, my success story from my 72 reef and it's battle of evil ich vs my Ozone/UV unit. MG Link to comment
icenine Posted April 9, 2006 Share Posted April 9, 2006 Beware the cheap UV sterilizers..... most plastics will block UV, and most cheap UV sterilizers are made entirely of plastic.... every last part. ...kinda funny when you think about it. Yet true. Link to comment
danskim Posted April 9, 2006 Author Share Posted April 9, 2006 I was leaning towards the CurrentUSA Gamma units. They seem okay priced. Link to comment
steelhealr Posted April 9, 2006 Share Posted April 9, 2006 Vote no...waste of money. Excuse for good water husbandry. Heat issues. Kills microfauna if you have filter feeders. Unnecessary piece of equipment in a nano reef. SH Link to comment
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted April 11, 2006 Share Posted April 11, 2006 So what is the verdict? Are you going with one or not? MG Link to comment
Gwoardnog Posted April 11, 2006 Share Posted April 11, 2006 Voting no. fyi Ick lives on the fish and only leave the fish to go reproduce on rock and sand. Their time in free float is minimal and the chances of your UV being able to filter all of your water while ick is floating for that short period of time is one in a million at best. It isn't going to stop ick. You kick ick with either QTing and/or having a healthy and stress free environment with good nutrition. Waste of money imo. Link to comment
danskim Posted April 11, 2006 Author Share Posted April 11, 2006 Yeah, I decided not to get one. It's getting cramped in the stand! Thanks for everyone's input. Link to comment
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted April 11, 2006 Share Posted April 11, 2006 Danskim, Be very careful when adding your stock fish to your reef, go really slow and QT them. I made a terrible mistake when I added my 6th tang to my reef. This beautiful PBT literally brought the bigest ich epidemic I have ever had in my 15 years in reefing. We are talking Katrina in damage to my fish; and you know what my UV/Ozone unit have saved every single fish of mine. I have had zero loss in fish because of this epidemic.... Monday was week three of steady UV/Ozone use and my reef fish have made a 180 degree turn in recovery. The UV unit in my opinion is by far a huge allie if you are going to have many fish in your cube. I have 20 fish in my 72 gallon reef, yes 20 of them..... And all are still alive.... Mike G Link to comment
ScotchMaster Posted April 11, 2006 Share Posted April 11, 2006 I voted no....Cleaner shrimp are awesome for ich Link to comment
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted April 17, 2006 Share Posted April 17, 2006 Cleaner shrimp vs UV system? Not much of a comparison, but I will say cleaner shrimp are a huge benefit for regulating some ich... Just that UV unit will control an epidemic, whereas a cleaner shrimp is useless at this state. MG Link to comment
vthondaboi Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 some where there is a thread on RC statting that cleaner shrimp have no effect on ich I believe UV's are useful for say a fish store. All the holding tanks go through the UV before being returned to the holding tanks; therefore, ich in one tank won't get into another. Oh UV helps keeps water cleaner. Link to comment
Ecko Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 Cleaner shrimp vs UV system? Not much of a comparison, but I will say cleaner shrimp are a huge benefit for regulating some ich... Just that UV unit will control an epidemic, whereas a cleaner shrimp is useless at this state. MG Mike is correct, I have had my share of ich and had Cleaner Shrimp, and have added UV's since to both aquariums. Mike, I read your hole thread you did on your 72G, btw you did an awesome job, just really sucked what you went through, funny thing was just before you posted about the Coralife UV you bought, I had just picked up my new 9W Coralife UV for a 60G FO Uni and that thing is bad @$$. The CS will help in small amounts, lets just say the ones getting by when you don’t have a serious problem, but as far as running a UV, it will defiantly help you in the long run. You should run the UV all the time if you can to prevent any problems. I've been told and read they do alot better job of preventing a problem then curing one. Some also say you can shut them off at night due to in-activity. All it takes is one wrong fish, and you won't know until it is to late. Now I run UV's in both my SW-FO & Reef and also got a 12G NC just for a QT, no sand or ground cover so I can monitor any problems, and all new fish get to stay in the pen a min. of 2 weeks with my jewel damsel (small, used only to keep up bio when no one else is locked up). Did you know that commercial aquariums (ex: Long Beach or Monterey Bay Aquariums) QT for min. of 4 weeks. Makes you wonder why more people don’t QT. So IMO both UV & CS are a YES, but more important QT. Link to comment
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted April 26, 2006 Share Posted April 26, 2006 I wanted to document factual evidence that my 36 watt UV coralife unit, has vanquished my ich epidemic in my 72 gallon reef... That is correct, ich is has been eliminated to the point my fish can handle any other small ich outbreaks... I would've lost all my tangs had it not been for this unit, my patience and time... I cannot describe in words how infected my fish were all over their bodies, I've been reefing for 15 years and never seen it that bad... These guys came back from the dead... No medications were used while I ran the UV unit for 5 straight weeks 24/7 days... I know UV are not practical for small nanos, but if you have a 30 gallon or higher I really recommend one, since you can enjoy more fish in your reef... Anyways, I walk with proof that UV will erradicate and control a infested ich reef, just like a previous article I read; given one full month of UV on a single tank will erradicate parasites, I ran on this theory and proved it right... Nuff Said, Mike G Link to comment
FishTechNH Posted April 27, 2006 Share Posted April 27, 2006 Even for a nano a temp UV would be a good idea to have on hand. Slow water flow is the key if you are looking to have enough kill time for higher organisms like parasites. I have an 18W unit that I run on a 55 gal. that is run by a tee off from a pump with about 30 GPH going through it. If I'm adding new fish or if any problems arise, I plug it in for about a week and it works like a charm. I do not run it full time and the quarts sleeve is cleaned off before each use. Link to comment
firefishbrain Posted April 27, 2006 Share Posted April 27, 2006 NO 1) you're not going to find one sized for an nano, so it will do overkill 2) there is always a natural and more efficient way of doing things than using man made technology. -if you're worried about disease, get a cleaner shrimp or goby or both. uv's aren't a way of not having to do as many water changes, it can't be justified as how the same job would be done on a real reef. (i.e. protien skimmers are good because the simulate the EFFECTS of the tides they take away all the bad stuff. there isn't that much UV radiation out on the reefs.) Link to comment
FishTechNH Posted April 27, 2006 Share Posted April 27, 2006 How "natural" is a nano-reef? Or any enclosed environment for that matter. I guess you could omit the UV if you got a whole lotta hose and hooked a direct line from a natural reef to and from the aquarium, no doubt the parasites would be spread out a little more "naturally" I guess heat might be an issue, but other than that the UV is a great piece of gear to have on hand incase of a problem. Link to comment
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted April 27, 2006 Share Posted April 27, 2006 Firefishbrain, Are you kidden me, you don't think UV rays run in the ocean??? Where have you been lately??? UV is a natural occurance in everyday life, not man made either, we are talking certain rays of the sun emit deadly rays that are considered ultra violet... You've been to the beach and come back burnt, it's the UV rays that are the deadliest out in the open sand... Our eyes are the most sensistive parts of our bodies that cannot filter out this light, hence UV protective glasses and sun screen... Out in the barrier reefs of Australia, certain currents that pull phytoplankton from thousands of miles are destroyed or can we say controlled by the rays of the sun UV. This is a natural occurance from mother nature; therefore what arrives to the barrier reef is not an over abundance that could cloud the reef and take away light from precious high light demanding corals... I'm not here to push your buttons, but simply lay down a little education on this thread... MG Link to comment
apophis924 Posted April 28, 2006 Share Posted April 28, 2006 UV sterilizer, snake oil. the UV thing treats the symptoms not the cause. UV kills without distinction, bad and good microbes die. You would be better off doing the basics, water changes, low bioload, and light feedings along with good water movement and a good skimmer. as Mikequerero stated Oceanic UV is at a level that life can deal with. UV is a killer of everything using UV radiation on your reefs is like running your tank water thru a chlorinator, granted it kills a lot of bad microbes but it also kills the microbes/plankton that you NEED for a healthy system. Link to comment
FishTechNH Posted April 29, 2006 Share Posted April 29, 2006 I think people are missing the point here. Use the UV when necessary, not full time. If you had pneumonia you wouldn't skip the penecillin for fear of knocking out the beneficial microbes in your intestines. Ofcourse not, so why not use the UV when you need to. On the other side of things though you wouldn't want to take antibiotics daily as a means of prevention, that would be foolish. Link to comment
Ecko Posted April 29, 2006 Share Posted April 29, 2006 I think people are missing the point here. Use the UV when necessary, not full time. If you had pneumonia you wouldn't skip the penecillin for fear of knocking out the beneficial microbes in your intestines. Ofcourse not, so why not use the UV when you need to. On the other side of things though you wouldn't want to take antibiotics daily as a means of prevention, that would be foolish. Are you sure about this?? the UV isn't a medication that you are adding to your tank, which is what you are comparing this to. Does the UV in the real ocean stop when it is not needed to kill bad parasites. The sun is out everyday at some part of the ocean and is emitting UV rays constantly into the ocean feeding & killing different organisms. As Mike said they even helping with population control in different parts of the ocean. The UV from everything I have heard and read is more useful as prevention then correction. Check out what Coralife recommends for their new UV's: "Coralife Turbo-Twist UV Sterilizers are the most efficient devices for ultraviolet sterilization on the market today. They feature a quartz glass sleeve with a PL compact fluorescent UV lamp surrounded by a revolutionary "Turbo-Twist" flow design to increase dwell time, which in turn increases efficacy. Continuous ultraviolet sterilization of your water eliminates single-cell algae for crystal-clear aquariums and also eradicates most harmful microorganisms on the initial pass through the chamber. Its triple-treatment time fully utilizes all the available UV output of the lamp and ensures that disease-causing pathogens cannot reproduce, thus decreasing the possibility of a disease outbreak in your system. Coralife Turbo-Twist UV Sterilizers have been designed for use in all freshwater and saltwater aquatic systems. " This is taken directly off of their website. Link to comment
Micro-Reefs Aquariums Posted April 29, 2006 Share Posted April 29, 2006 I think what is boils down to is what the reefer wants to control in his or her reef... Your fish corals don't have a choice of what foods they will get, what live rock will be their homes or what other tank mates will go in with them once they are brought home... All respondsibility goes to the reefkeeper as he has become nature himself fighting to keep the elements in his favor to the success of his reef... Regarding a UV unit in a reef tank; I HAVE PROVEN WITHOUT A DOUBT THAT THE INTRODUCUTION OF A UV UNIT IN AN INFECTED SINGLE REEF TANK WILL BRING DOWN THE EPIDEMIC WITHIN A CONTROLLED NUMBER THAT FISH CAN FIGHT OFF. I showed that with the use of a 36 watt UV unit and the correct GPH; I worked hard on getting the correct ratio, it helped eliminate my parasites. I cannot express the anguish I use to be in when it was discovered that my entire tang population was dying of ich and no reef safe medications were working. I was watching them die in my reef; until I broke down and finally decided to set up UV in my tank. Within the first week I saw drastic improvements and the weeks that followed kept getting better and better. I was so relived to see my fish happy and the ich spots gone and no recurrence whatsoever. I'm going on week 6 and still everything is going great. My advice to reefers is that a good size UV unit on a heavily populated fish is essential especially if it's a reef tank like mine. Don't make the mistake of investing money on reef safe medications, they don't work. Doesn't it make sense to enter a blizzard with snow shoes, jacket, pants and all the other gear necessary for survival? Nuff Said, MG Link to comment
Ecko Posted April 29, 2006 Share Posted April 29, 2006 I think Mike pretty much summed up this thread with not only very good explanation but with proof behind it. Link to comment
FishTechNH Posted April 30, 2006 Share Posted April 30, 2006 Okay, Iguess I'm a little lost here . Maybe I'm somewhere inbetween. All I'm saying is that the UV is great as needed. Earlier in the post I stated that I use the Coralife UV myself. I also have installed many of them for clients over the past few years that they have come out I agree that they are a splendid product. Anyway, my point is this, why would you run a UV full-time on a reef tank? Why kill off a number of beneficial microbes that are not harmful? And again on the other hand why would you NOT have one on hand just in case since they are obviously useful for their purpose? Lastly, please be cautious with information from a manufacturor, they tend to be a little biased Link to comment
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