# UV sterlizers project in progress pictures added May 9th



## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

I'm looking into putting an inline uv sterlizer on my 72 gallon bf tank, I'm totally new to using these. I know they require a pump, can you install them using your canister filter as the pump or is that going to put extra back pressure on the filter system? One person I spoke to says it will not because there is no filter in them to build up resistance and that it's like a extra piece of pipe that the water flows through to get to the tank. Or should it have it's own pump? What brands have been used and worked well for anyone, things like wattage size, flow etc. are things I would appreciate help with. Pictures on page 2 shows what I came up with after the advice given.
Cheers Laurie


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## Immus21 (Jun 14, 2010)

x1 Thinking about getting one too...


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## gklaw (May 31, 2010)

Problem with using the canister filter is that the flow will generally be too strong - maybe except for the Eheim 2232 running in a 15W plus. You can either reduce the flow through your canister or branch off from return with a control valve to control with the flow.

There was a thread on this topic before.


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

bump...............


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## Clownloachlover (Apr 21, 2010)

Clown Lover,
what I have done on my tank is to use the return line from the canister, however I have placed a "tee" in the return line and then placed ball valves on either side to control the flow...I can slow down the flow in either direction, yet at the same time not restrict the flow from the canister itself. Water will take the path of least resistance however it will still take a path if it is available. Remember you do not want a ton of flow through the sterilizer, but you want some...so I figure if 100% or my return water hits the "tee" and 80% goes through to the tank and other 20% goes through the sterilizer at a much slower rate, I have a much better chance of allowing the sterilizer to do what it is supposed to do...I can limit the flow in either direction to make this happen. If I want the water flow to be 50/50 I can adjust for that , or if I want 100% of the return water to go through the sterilizer I can adjust for that, however the flow will be restricted somewhat and the sterilizer will not be nearly as effective. If you want I can do a diagram of what I have done...just takes some PVC piping and ball valves, eay to use an easy to adjust as needed.


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## szavi (Nov 21, 2010)

Clown Lover said:


> I'm looking into putting an inline uv sterlizer on my 72 gallon bf tank, I'm totally new to using these. I know they require a pump, can you install them using your canister filter as the pump or is that going to put extra back pressure on the filter system? One person I spoke to says it will not because there is no filter in them to build up resistance and that it's like a extra piece of pipe that the water flows through to get to the tank. Or should it have it's own pump? What brands have been used and worked well for anyone, things like wattage size, flow etc. are things I would appreciate help with.
> Cheers Laurie


I had green water,ONLY ONCE lol, years ago. I did everything to get rid of it, black out, p-clear many times, everything. It got a little better but never great. I picked up a Coralife Turbo-twist 3x, their smallest model. Hooked it up to an eheim aqua ball, which is trash, but within a 4-5 days the green water was gone and never came back. After the bulb burnt out I took out the turbo and haven't used it for two years. The spiral effect is excellent as it increases exposure time to the UV rays, allowing for higher flow rates. The 3x is rated up to 125 gal and requires 150-200 gal flow rates. As most cansiters are generally overated due no media, should be fine due to the twist design. These units are well built with great fit and finish. The advantage to the cansister is less clutter in the tank. If you use a good power head you get better flowrates and it doesn't slow or effect your main filter, as there will be some slowing of the flow again due to the longer path the water takes inside the sterilizer.

I'm sure Rastapus @ IPU offers them in various sizes as this is were I got mine back in the big al days.

Hope this helps

Sean

Join the fun, join the VAHS


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## Treasure chest (Apr 21, 2010)

You can install it parallel to the return and install valves to adjust the flow. If you really want to make sure the flow is right, you can install a flow meter before the UV. Here is my set up. No flow meter though.


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## Vman (Jan 20, 2011)

*Coralife Turbo twister*

I also have a Coralife Turbo twister that I picked up at J&L and never had water cloudiness or ich again. I hooked it up in line with my Xp2 and it is great. Paid about $215. Seems to be one of the best units on the market.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

I'm planning to do the same thing, but for simplicity and flexibility (easily removed), I'm going to put it in its own closed loop with a Maxijet powerhead. If you're going to use it for parasite control rather than algae, a properly matched flow rate is important. You can kill algae at fairly high flow rates, but not ich and other parasites.


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## szavi (Nov 21, 2010)

2wheelsx2 said:


> I'm planning to do the same thing, but for simplicity and flexibility (easily removed), I'm going to put it in its own closed loop with a Maxijet powerhead. If you're going to use it for parasite control rather than algae, a properly matched flow rate is important. You can kill algae at fairly high flow rates, but not ich and other parasites.


That is absolutely correct, with regards to the algae vs parasites. Im sure I read it somewhere that the cell walls of the simple alage are not as tough as the parasite. The trick I found with my weaker powerhead was that the deeper it was the more pressure it had to prime the unit. Near the surface it could barely pump back to the surface.

I hope this helps Clown Lover, now you can just go out and buy it.:bigsmile:

Sean


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

so it seems coralife Turbo twister is the popular choice, to clownloach lover sure a diagram would be great, 
Cheers Laurie


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

if you're going to be getting from J&L, I'd have a hard look at the Pentair Lifeguard ones. Those are the ones I'm looking at.


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## Treasure chest (Apr 21, 2010)

Here is a diagram I just drew. Hope it helps. I use PVC plumbing parts, it takes a bit more time to put them together but they have a much cleaner look. You can get away with using flexible tubes also. I installed unions so I can move the UV to different places.









Here is a picture when i temporary moved UV unit to outdoor pond.


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

Looks easy enough to do, did you use the pvc primer and regular glue for the joints and did you use 1/2" pipe & ftgs. Thanks again to everyone for all your help. Laurie


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## Treasure chest (Apr 21, 2010)

Yes, I used PVC primer and glue. They are 1/2 pipes. The ones connected to the UV may be 3/4(can't remember exactly as I did it a long time ago). I used 3/4 to 1/2 reducer to connect the rest. Hope this helps.


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

Sounds good, thanks again.............Laurie


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## oakley1984 (Oct 10, 2010)

personally ordered myself a coralife turbo-twist 12x (36w) for my 210g this morning after reviewing many Many uv filters was the best price/features/quality that was suited to my needs... hope this helps others!


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## szavi (Nov 21, 2010)

Clown Lover said:


> Looks easy enough to do, did you use the pvc primer and regular glue for the joints and did you use 1/2" pipe & ftgs. Thanks again to everyone for all your help. Laurie


Laurie are you a member of the VAHS? If you are, and are comming to next wen meeting, I could bring my 3x in for you to have a look at to see how easy it is to hook up. Let me know.

p.s I love the DIY setups of Treasure Chest, are you plumber with you own shop! LOL. It just goes to show one can do a simple setup all the way to advanced.

Sean

Join the fun, join the VAHS


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## Clownloachlover (Apr 21, 2010)

Laurie,
Here is the diagram I promised you. As you can see this is inline with my canister however gives me the ability to either have 100% of the flow through my sterilizer or adjust to whatever percentage I want, or to completely bypass it all together. All piping is done in PVC and then to connect to the sterilizer I used barb fittings and short pieces of flex tubing with stainless steel hose clamps. Hope this helps!


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

Clownloachlover, Thanks for the drawing Cheers Laurie


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

I looked at the Pentair Life guard, a good looking unit for sure, it was the one I was going to go with because I liked the way it stands up by itself. My friend found an add on Craigs list for a Laguna 1800 16 watt unit, I looked at it and it was like new so I got it for $65, so I'm going to run a eheim 2232 canister at 106 GPH thru it to keep the flow low and give lots of exposure to the UV area. My tank is 72 gallons which will give a little more than 1 tank water change per hour. Here's some pictures of test set up bit of a plumber's nightmare in my fish room, but it work's great. I'll tidy it all up when I install it in the cabinet under the tank. Laurie


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## The Guy (Nov 26, 2010)

pic's added bump...........


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## gklaw (May 31, 2010)

Looking good Laurie my friend


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