Lovergasoline
Community Member
I have a freshwater 37 gallon tank with a single adult turtle (Red Ear Slider).
I currently have an algae bloom which is a once or twice a year occurrence (tank is mounted in window) which although annoying is manageable.
I've been using a Green Killing Machine with the 9 watt UV bulb (recommended for 50-200L aquariums) whenever I get an algae bloom. This time after 3+ weeks and no discernible improvement I checked and noticed the bulb was dead (LED indicator light was off and I had not checked this). I'd replaced the UV bulb (around $35) last year so got only approx. 2-3 weeks usage before it died. Thus, the operational costs can be a little pricey for this unit.
The other problem is that it's an in-tank unit and its water intake port is small (approx. 1.5" x 0.5") so the little foam filter over the intake clogs very rapidly in my turtle tank due to turtles being very messy eaters with inevitable debris in the tank. No intake foam mods have remedied this and further my turtle likes to attack the foam visciouly and remove because he takes patrolling his his tank very seriuously, lol.
Based on that I think an inline UV sterilizer (or clarifier?) that's mounted outside the tank would be a better solution for this application. I could just leave it installed but turned off, and on the rare occasion I get an algea bloom I can switch it on to sterilize the water. I have a Oase BioMaster Thermo 600 canister filter so I'm unclear on compatibility of inline UV sterilizers and their specifications working with my filter. My understanding is that a specific water volume needs to be adequately exposed to the UV light and I assume this is achieved via some combo of the design of the unit's bulb-to-water surface area and also the water flow rate.
Anyway sorry for the longish post but can anyone recommend a budget priced inline UV unit that would work with my set up and serve my occasional needs? There's lots of very well made and seriously competant units - which are priced to reflect that - but for usage a week or two a year that's overkill. My turtle is very robust so I don't have to worry about damage to extremely sensitive life forms in the tank getting threatened by the algae, it's more an aesthetic issue.
Thanks for any ideas.
I currently have an algae bloom which is a once or twice a year occurrence (tank is mounted in window) which although annoying is manageable.
I've been using a Green Killing Machine with the 9 watt UV bulb (recommended for 50-200L aquariums) whenever I get an algae bloom. This time after 3+ weeks and no discernible improvement I checked and noticed the bulb was dead (LED indicator light was off and I had not checked this). I'd replaced the UV bulb (around $35) last year so got only approx. 2-3 weeks usage before it died. Thus, the operational costs can be a little pricey for this unit.
The other problem is that it's an in-tank unit and its water intake port is small (approx. 1.5" x 0.5") so the little foam filter over the intake clogs very rapidly in my turtle tank due to turtles being very messy eaters with inevitable debris in the tank. No intake foam mods have remedied this and further my turtle likes to attack the foam visciouly and remove because he takes patrolling his his tank very seriuously, lol.
Based on that I think an inline UV sterilizer (or clarifier?) that's mounted outside the tank would be a better solution for this application. I could just leave it installed but turned off, and on the rare occasion I get an algea bloom I can switch it on to sterilize the water. I have a Oase BioMaster Thermo 600 canister filter so I'm unclear on compatibility of inline UV sterilizers and their specifications working with my filter. My understanding is that a specific water volume needs to be adequately exposed to the UV light and I assume this is achieved via some combo of the design of the unit's bulb-to-water surface area and also the water flow rate.
Anyway sorry for the longish post but can anyone recommend a budget priced inline UV unit that would work with my set up and serve my occasional needs? There's lots of very well made and seriously competant units - which are priced to reflect that - but for usage a week or two a year that's overkill. My turtle is very robust so I don't have to worry about damage to extremely sensitive life forms in the tank getting threatened by the algae, it's more an aesthetic issue.
Thanks for any ideas.
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