UV Sterilizer When Cycling A New Reef ?

427HISS · Dec 12, 2016

I'll be starting a new 125g mixed reef with a fish load soon, and have a chemistry question.

When we introduce either live rock or add bottled bacteria to start the cycle, will UV light kill the bacteria that we want have ? If so, when can we hook up a sterilizer ?

If one will not do any harm, will a UV help with the brown diatom algae during and after the cycle ?

I like the pods and other critters in my sump's, refuge's and sand bed's for fish & corals, and have heard that they will still flourish, if using a UV. Do you agree ?

I've never had a UV, so what's the pro's and con's on the reef chemistry ?

Oscar47f · Dec 12, 2016

In terms of water chemistry it changes close to nothing in your aquarium its just a light basically... what it does do is basically alter the dna of free floating algae and parasites like ich and it renders them useless so they can't grow or infect... this doesn't mean you'll be parasite and algae free it just helps to a degree and is more for redundancy... i think pods are too big to be affected by it but either way i would seed the main display and the refugium as well just in case.... and i don't think it helps too much with brown diatoms but im not very positive... if you do put one on its not necessary to use until after you cycle in my opinion...