Plumbing Design for IM 40L EXT

[fishy408]

Hi guys, have a few questions on plumbing.

I know the 57 watt UV might be overpowered for the small setup, but it is something I have laying around. The ball valves would allow me to swap it out if needed. The ball valve near the return pump will allow me to add a manifold in the future. The Varios 6 should be sufficient to push enough flow through the UV.

Thoughts or guidance on this layout? Are the unions in the most favorable spaces?

 

[blaxsun]

I think it's a fairly ideal setup. The only time you'll really use the unions with the UV is for maintenance and bulb replacement. The 57-watt is definitely overkill (I have the same unit on my 200-gallon system), so you'll definitely be running "phasers on kill" in terms of flow/UV sterilization.

 

[fishy408]

I think it's a fairly ideal setup. The only time you'll really use the unions with the UV is for maintenance and bulb replacement. The 57-watt is definitely overkill (I have the same unit on my 200-gallon system), so you'll definitely be running "phasers on kill" in terms of flow/UV sterilization.

thanks Blaxsun, I am worried about the heat raising the tank temperature, especially in the summer. This setup would allow me to remove it if needed, but wondering if I shoulf just swap or sell my 57 now instead of later.

 

[blaxsun]

thanks Blaxsun, I am worried about the heat raising the tank temperature, especially in the summer. This setup would allow me to remove it if needed, but wondering if I shoulf just swap or sell my 57 now instead of later.

Most of your heating comes from ambient temperature, so you may find that you don't need to run any heaters with the UV. i have a friend who has a tank in his condo and struggles with a high ambient temperature - so he just has the UV run at night when it's cooler - so that's an option (just turn it off for 12 hours).

 

[bozo]

Any updates?

following along

 

[fishy408]

I have been running the UV from 9pm-9am and temperature never surpassed 78.5F. I started running the UV 24/7 two days ago and noticed temperature hit 79.5F today. Today was also a hotter day than usual.

I will keep an eye on the ambient temperature and the tank temperature the next few days.