Advice? UV Sterilizers?

Hey everybody -

We have had two fish (relatively new fish) get ick in our tank recently. Once identified we have immediately quarantined the fish and started treating with hypo salinity.

One of the fish is a Coral Beauty Angel and the second is an Achilles Tang. The tang I have heard is more susceptible to ick, so this isn't too surprising.

But we would like to do everything we can to limit the chances of ick returning.

I have read that UV Sterilizers can be effective in accomplishing this.

My question - has anybody in the forum used them? And if so, to what level of success?

We do have coral in inverts in the tank. I have read that this potentially can reduce their amount of food (killing good bacteria).

A decent UV Sterilizer is expensive (> $400). So I don't want to spend the money if the benefit is minimal.

Thoughts?

 

I really really like them myself.

They are expensive to get one that will work. The twist ones are a garbage gimmick in my opinion.

You should really run a prefilter before the UV sterilizer to make it work properly and last longer.

 

Any particular one that you like? I have been looking at the Aqua UV Classic 40, although that runs about $400+. Seems expensive to me for it, but maybe that is just what a good one costs?

I have a 125 gallon tank. I think my flowrate is about 875gph. I am not positive about that, but I have a Danner Supreme 1800gph pump that is in my basement plumbed upstairs to my tank. It appears to be 10' from pump straight up to the output on the tank. Their site CLAIMS that to be 875gph.

 

Oh, and approx. 30 gallons of water in a sump as well. So total water volume (without taking into account rocks/sand) is 155 gallons.

 

I use the emporer aquatic ones.

 

This is a 40 watt Aqua UV that I have for sale. $100

 

That's a good buy