UV Sterilizer

[kp33]

Anyone have experience with AQUATOP SP13-UV 395 GPH Internal Filter w/ 13W UV Sterilizer. these are way cheaper than Aquaviolet and zero plumbing. One of the bigger stores in my area sware's by these over Aquaviolet especially for the price. They sell both also so its not like they are telling me this because its the only one they carry.​

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

UV Sterilzer is not a complex piece of gear. You have the bulb, the sleeve, the housing, and the ballast. The Aquatop housing looks like cheap plastic , while the Aqua UV is way more robust. UV degrades plastics

 

[kp33]

yeah the aqua UV is huge and i don't have a ton of room, plus its $300 more and at end of the day UV is UV I would think. My store that carries the Aquatop is a top notch store, very reputable, I don't think they would sell crap.

 

[Sleepingtiger]

Yes UV is simple, but trust Tuan when he says UV degrades plastic.
I have lifeguard and i can tell you it is built very robust and has worked well for me. Much cheaper than Aqua UV as well

 

[ThaBeast]

search UV housing here on R2R and see why they guys are telling you to be careful because UV degrades plastics. Lots of pics of UV sterilizers that have degraded the housing to the point the housing leaks

 

[CoralB]

yeah the aqua UV is huge and i don't have a ton of room, plus its $300 more and at end of the day UV is UV I would think. My store that carries the Aquatop is a top notch store, very reputable, I don't think they would sell crap.

Yah ! I’m not buying top notch stores not selling less than quality. Their there to make money . Although I don’t know which one your referring to and I don’t need to , however I have been to a lot of top notch stores who have tried to sell me inferior product as well as products I don’t need . You have to do your research before you go .

 

[kp33]

Yah ! I’m not buying top notch stores not selling less than quality. Their there to make money . Although I don’t know which one your referring to and I don’t need to , however I have been to a lot of top notch stores who have tried to sell me inferior product as well as products I don’t need . You have to do your research before you go .

no doubt on the research part, the reviews are pretty good on it, just wanted to see if anyone here actually has used one. My main issue is room, I don't have the room for another pump in my sump and plumbing ad what not for the aquaviolet one.

 

[Raul-7]

There are 3 reputable companies who produce UV sterilizer's for the aquarium hobby.
1. Pentair Aquatic Eco-Systems
2. Aqua Ultraviolet
3. Lifegard Aquatics

In that order. Pentair has the best UV's on the market.

 

[kp33]

yeah I'm going with the aqua 25w, I have a 90, I think the 15w is too small its only rated for 75 gallons. the 25w is rated for up to 150. Also I see where my LFS is saying i need a separate pump to run it but I talked with Aqua themselves and the guy there said just put it in the middle of my return line and I wont need a separate pump for it. I have the syncra 5.0 so I'm pretty sure that should still be strong enough to go through my UV and get to my tank, right now its turned down quite a bit because my overflow couldn't handle it turned all the way up.

 

[Sleepingtiger]

yeah I'm going with the aqua 25w, I have a 90, I think the 15w is too small its only rated for 75 gallons. the 25w is rated for up to 150. Also I see where my LFS is saying i need a separate pump to run it but I talked with Aqua themselves and the guy there said just put it in the middle of my return line and I wont need a separate pump for it. I have the syncra 5.0 so I'm pretty sure that should still be strong enough to go through my UV and get to my tank, right now its turned down quite a bit because my overflow couldn't handle it turned all the way up.

what are you trying to do with the UV? algae or parasitic?

 

[kp33]

what are you trying to do with the UV? algae or parasitic?

for now Dino's, bad outbreak, after that I guess algae....not sure to be honest.

 

[Sleepingtiger]

I use mine for parasitic (ich, velvet) control.

25w is good enough for you 90, but read the directions and make sure you have adequate pump.

 

[kp33]

I use mine for parasitic (ich, velvet) control.

25w is good enough for you 90, but read the directions and make sure you have adequate pump.

is the 15w too small, it says up to 75 and I have a 90, common sense would say the 15w is too small but would it still work on my 90. I will say I already bought the 15w one I have not opened it however I got it for $180 which is well under the store price of 310. So my question is saving that money even though it may be a little bit smaller worth it?


My pump is rated for 1321 GPH and i had to turn it down quite a bit, so I feel I should be fine by turning it up.

 

[CoralB]

yeah I'm going with the aqua 25w, I have a 90, I think the 15w is too small its only rated for 75 gallons. the 25w is rated for up to 150. Also I see where my LFS is saying i need a separate pump to run it but I talked with Aqua themselves and the guy there said just put it in the middle of my return line and I wont need a separate pump for it. I have the syncra 5.0 so I'm pretty sure that should still be strong enough to go through my UV and get to my tank, right now its turned down quite a bit because my overflow couldn't handle it turned all the way up.

I have a 25 watt and I run about 200 gph through it by way of a manifold system and it works great for my needs . Remember it’s about juggling contact time of the water passing past the bulb . You don’t want it so low that it increases the heat inside the unit , and you don’t want it to push 1321 gph as it will not be efficient. A 25 is a perfect size for your size tank . If you don’t have a manifold system to control the amount of water that passes past the bulb in the unit the opt for a smaller pump, a controllable dc pump , or put a valve inline to cut back and slow the flow in the UV . I would never put a UV light inline with the return pump unless it was such a massive UV unit that it could handle the full flow of the return .

 

[CoralB]

is the 15w too small, it says up to 75 and I have a 90, common sense would say the 15w is too small but would it still work on my 90. I will say I already bought the 15w one I have not opened it however I got it for $180 which is well under the store price of 310. So my question is saving that money even though it may be a little bit smaller worth it?


My pump is rated for 1321 GPH and i had to turn it down quite a bit, so I feel I should be fine by turning it up.

My personal opinion is a 15 watt can work albeit not as well as the 25 watt but the 15 watt with the water adjusted to the proper contact pass through rate can work. it would take a longer time to turn over the 90 gallons but it will get it done eventually .

 

[kp33]

I got the 25w they gave it to me for $330 instead of 400. Now I’m trying to figure out if I want to T off my return line or just have it on its own pump and if so which pump should I get. I’m thinking the syncra 2.0 or 3.0, Leanong towards the 3.0 so I have more if I need it. But not sure which way is better, it’s own pump or T off my return line with a control valve so I can slow it down. For my return I have the syncra 5.0 which is rated for 1320 and I had to turn it down as it was too much for my overflow.

 

[kp33]

what do most do , T off return it run on its own pump like a syncra 3.0. My return pump is the 5.0, and as of now its turned down due to my tank.

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

I run a dedicated pump at a fixed and known volume per hour.

 

[kp33]

So I got the 25w aqua violet before I fire it up I want to make sure I have the hoses correct, the hose running from my pump to the uv should be going into the inlet that is on the same side as where the blue light is and the other inlet is for rerun back to my sump correct so if it’s horizontal and the blue light is on the right then the right it let is for my pump and the left is going back into sump? Hope that made sense thanks