UV Thoughts

So i along with most of you i started my tank out without QT even after reading posts seeing the cautions signs ect ect ect. Ugh and of course i got Ich and a bad case that killed a few fish even after i set up QT. My tank is currently running fishless (fallow is it?) and has been for almost 2 months. Back story some of you may know bcuz of other posts im overseas and will be til July/Aug so my wifey is tanking care of the tank and is doing a fine job utilizing my how too youtube videos lmao but we have a few questions...

As you can see i am trying to rid the disease correctly and i have set up a perm QT, but im looking into the future at prevention and am looking for updated thoughts on UVs? we have no desire to catch all those fish again, we had to drain 95% of the water remove 200lbs of rock, then put its all back together lol, although our rockscape came out way cooler...anyways back on track, Our current plan will be to keep the fish in QT either for 4 months total or even til after i get back (over 6 mo) to ensure its completly gone since ive seen too many threads were ppl wait 2-3 months only to have it return almost instantly. For the most part my tank isnt being affect by no fish except for my toadstool, i think the water is too clean, hes not doing terrible just not opening up as big as he used too.

The only issue i see with the UV is first I would have to upgrade/ run a seperate pump for it (have mag 9) due to the flow requirement on some models to ensure it want affect anything i dont want it to, and second is the sheer size of the things lol. Ive read the emps are about 4 feet long!!! Ive noticed the "bargin brands" are significantly smaller but honestly have no intention on getting one, my motto has been if im gonna do it to do it right when it comes to my tank (except of course the qt tank cuz im an idiot lol) In addtion to this, if we do decide to get one should i wait to return the fish til after its installed? or would you be willing to bet the disease will have run its course?

thanx again!!!

 

keep in mind i dont QT but i believe the correct procedure would be treat your QTed fish with copper, follow instructions on the medication and then monitor for another week to make sure its gone. not sure how efficient UVs are to treat ich. :S.

best of luck

 

i understand that, ive already cured my fish but trying to rid the disease in my tank which is why im waiting til it dies off to return them. I know UVs wont treat ich but i know they can be useful in prevention, jsut looking for some thoughts on brands sizes ect.

 

Personally, I'm a firm believer that any attribution to UV preventing or curing ich is purely anecdotal. First, I've never owned a UV, nor have I ever had an ich infestation. OTOH, I once had a neighbor who ran UV religiously, and his tank was plagued nearly every time he added a new fish. One also needs to consider the type of treatment applied where the fish were returned and again contracted ich- it may have only been put into remission; fish can carry dormant ich parasites in their gills almost indefinitely. I believe 2 - 3 months should be plenty long enough for the parasites to die off, considering that they can only survive 24 hours or so without a fish host once they've hatched, but waiting longer won't hurt anything.

 

I don't think I've read anything definitive that says UV will prevent ich so I'd suggest along the lines with Mr. Bill by leaving your tank fallow for 3 months and treating your fish in QT should eradicate the ich. If you QT new additions from here on out, you shouldn't have a problem in your DT with the disease as long as you keep parameters in check, provide fish with a variety diet, and don't make any radical changes that could cause stress. JMO.

 

There are a LOT of misconceptions out there about parasites, UV, etc.

Comments:

- It is not a parasite that kills fish, it is an overabundance of parasites that kill. A fish getting a single spec of ich is not bad. It is when that single spec reproduces into hundreds or thousands more inside a closed system that things get bad. The shear number overwhelms the fish in the tank. That's what kills.

- Saying UV won't "cure" ich is also a little bit of a misconception. It won't kill the ich currently on a fish, but typically those specs aren't what you have to worry about. Again, it's all the little swimmers those specs create. UV will cut down on those, allowing the fish in the system to fight off or survive through the infestation of the remaining.

- Just running water past a UV light won't kill parasites in it. Different parasites require different doses to kill. Ich is one of the tougher ones.

- Most UV sterilizers are rated at flows to deliver a dose of 15,000 mW-s/cm2. Ich requires nearly 20 times that dose.

- For your 120, if you want to run the tank volume through once per hour then you'd need a unit rated for about 2000+ gph at standard dose.

- I've found that trying to sterilize for ich is prohibitive. I run a sterilizer periodically, but do so at a dose required to kill velvet since that is a real killer compared to ich. Fortunately it requires only a 1/3 what ich requires.