# UV sterilizer lamp replacement - facts?



## Borsig (Nov 21, 2012)

I have an aqua UV sterilizer in my 75 (advantage 2000+) and a turbo twist 18w in my 180.

Both items came with used setups. I started using them after I had a columnaris outbreak in my 75G. I haven't seen any sign of columnaris since. Not sure if that is the UV or better fishkeeping. Either way, the sterilizers came with very good craigslist deals on used setups so I already had them,

Some of the documentation says to replace the lamps every 6-9 months. The bulb in the AUV has been going strong for 2 years. The one int he turbo twist has been running a year.

Do these truly lose the abilty to output effective UV over time, or is this just hyperbole to get you to spend $40 on bulbs?


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## sirdavidofdiscus (Dec 8, 2006)

IMO should be once a year. But no less than 18 months. The problem is you won't know they're not working properly until you get an outbreak of something. With good fishkeeping practices you may never get another outbreak of anything, so you won't know if the are bad or not. Good fish keeping doesn't mean you won't ever get another disease just greatly reduces the possibility.


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## richraceri (Mar 3, 2013)

I replace them annually and originally purchased in-line units with enough intensity to be useful. Do they need replacement? My T5 lights dim over time as you can tell when putting in a replacement so I'm pretty sure all bulbs do lose intensity over time. Since intensity and exposure time = effectiveness the lights with time are surely "less" effective. Many aquarium keepers will tell you UV lights and carbon filters are a waste of money with proper water changes. I think comparing the importance of UV/Carbon to water changes is unfair as water changes are far more important. I live in a cold climate where houses are sealed tight so fish tank smell walking in the door from outside is more noticeable. We love pets hate pet house smell. That said carbon changed monthly is worth every penny. All you have to do is take a wiff inside the cover of your tank after you missed catching that dead fish for a day, add carbon smell again in a day to know it works great. Likewise, I believe UV works, can afford its initial cost and replacement bulbs for the net (probably small) effect it gives. $200 for the inline unit and $20 for annual bulbs is probably not the most effective aquarium money spent compared to things like water changes but still relatively cheap if your after show tanks, sensitive to smells or the type of person that goes alittle overboard in pet care. PS: If you live in CA with the current water shortage it also seems helpful as UV might be helpful in reducing water changes.


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## workharddieproud (Nov 7, 2013)

I have a Green Killing Machine 24 watt that I use every now and then, the electronic box has a red bulb in it that won't light up if the bulb needs replaced, but all your UV bulb life depends on how long you run them each day.


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## BillD (May 17, 2005)

At a nearby college that has an aquaculture course, they use UV sterilizers in their trout hatchery/farm. They found the lamps lasted much longer than claimed. They regularly cultured water samples to check for bacteria growth to determine when they actually needed to be replaced.


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## mambee (Apr 13, 2003)

Where does everyone purchase their replacement bulbs? An 18W bulb is $45 at online pet stores and $18 at an online lighting store.


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## workharddieproud (Nov 7, 2013)

I buy mine from Ebay when I find a good deal on them.


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## Dovii 64 (May 18, 2014)

Got mine from ebay as well.


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## Ryan_R (Aug 20, 2014)

Fun fact: cheap bulbs are not as good as the manufacturer's fare. This goes contrary to everything I believe to be true about manufacturing.... but it's true.

Experiences: One online retailer whose name I will not mention because of forum rules. Sold me two bulbs for my two Turbo Twist 18W. Both bulbs failed within two weeks. I complained. The retailer told me that the Turbo Twists had all sorts of ballast issues. When I pointed out that the original Coral Life bulbs still lit up, he said that wasn't a good test. I then sent pictures of the bulbs with all of the tungstun stuck to the glass. The proprietor still gave me the run around. These were simply crappy bulbs. My Turbo Twists are still running strong 4-5 years later.

I bought two eBay bulbs, and those worked fine for much longer, still looked much worse than the original Coral Life's after similar time when I went to preventatively replace them. For the first time ever, I had an ich outbreak this past fall. After dosing the tank, I looked at the UV bulb.... again, blackened inside. I slapped in another set of eBay bulbs, they were in for a few weeks. Just long enough to order a couple genuine Coral Life bulbs. The eBay blubs looked pretty bad after just a few weeks.

As a bit of an auto enthusiast who's imported used headlamps from Europe, I know that not all bulbs are created equal. Cheap bulbs are cheap for a reason. That said, Coral Life can't be making these bulbs, so one should be able to cut out the middle-man and get the bulbs that Coral Life resells directly from Coral Life's supplier. I've not found that supplier.

-Ryan


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