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Normally, I would scour for an answer before posting, but...I'm "researched out"
Forgive me if the answer is in front of my nose.
I'm looking for a filter for a 95 gallon tank. I need it within the week, so I have to order one real soon.
I've got the cycles-per-hour, turtle gallons, etc down pat. However, while I was shopping, up pops this UV sterilizer stuff
I must be behind the times because it is new to me...are they intended to help purify the crud a bit or what ???
Any little insight will do.
Just wondering if I should go for what I know, or look into UV sterilizers.
Thanks.

Basically, some filters have a UV bulb inside them which kills off Algae. I personally find it overkill, but it could be useful in a pond.

UV sterilizer is almost a must in a pond, i run my pond with one. In a tank i also find it a waste.

My pond usually has a week when it turns green in the spring, but always goes back to clear.

You can get it as a separate attachment, where it attaches to the canister's hoses. I picked one up and am planning to see if it effective against fungal infections but I haven't had time to set it up.

With uv sterilizers, contact time is important.... Ie how long is the water flow exposed to the Uvc light? I agree they are kind of waste for algae control in an aquarium but if u do go that route, the slower the flow past the lamp, the better. The JBJ submersibles are a relatively inexpensive all in one unit for aquariums. It's a submersible unit though.

steve wrote:You can get it as a separate attachment, where it attaches to the canister's hoses. I picked one up and am planning to see if it effective against fungal infections but I haven't had time to set it up.

I would say no. Snce it didnt work out in my stocktank with my diamondbacks =/

I know it's a long shot... I'm hoping the wheat germ diet will help too.

VeipaCray wrote:With uv sterilizers, contact time is important.... Ie how long is the water flow exposed to the Uvc light? I agree they are kind of waste for algae control in an aquarium but if u do go that route, the slower the flow past the lamp, the better. The JBJ submersibles are a relatively inexpensive all in one unit for aquariums. It's a submersible unit though.

JBJ submersibles? I'm having a major algae issue right now and would it be worth it to get one of these?

It's better to fix the cause of the algae. The UV sterilizer is a band-aid. Try feeding out of the tank, reduce your lighting a bit, and try adding some GFO to your filter media.

The light is on for about 12 hours. Should I go less than that? I'll check into the GFO. Thanks.

Yeah, you could shoot for 9-10 hours of light and see if that helps.

VeipaCray wrote:It's better to fix the cause of the algae. The UV sterilizer is a band-aid. Try feeding out of the tank, reduce your lighting a bit, and try adding some GFO to your filter media.

Its more then a band-aid. Its a fix.

VeipaCray wrote:Yeah, you could shoot for 9-10 hours of light and see if that helps.

All righty. I might try that too. I'm getting a bigger filte this weekend and doing a whole tank clean too.

Diamondbacks4Life - I take it, it fixed your problem?

If the sterilizer cant keep up or when the bulb goes out...the algae comes right back. They're a necessary piece in ponds because we can't control sunlight. Indoors, the environment is controllable.