# 55g canister filter with 9w UV steriliser



## Simon87 (May 2, 2010)

hey all, first post.....
im lookin at a 1400l p/h canister with 9watt UV steriliserfor my 55g tank. havnt really had any filtration issues as yet, have got undergravel and a internal sponge filter running at the moment and seem to be doin fine, but with my juvie sevs starting to get growing a little i was thinking of upping the filtration. So yeah, was pretty much wanting too know if that size canister would be good for my tank? or maybe something bigger?


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Hi Simon,

Welcome to CF! First of, you don't usually need a UV sterilizer. The main problem with them is that the lamps have a certain time period after which they burn out, and replacement cost is significant. I have been contemplating the purchase of a UV sterilizer that I can hang on a tank in case of a problem, but so far I have never actually used one. I certainly would not have one running all the time.

Second, liters per hour (or gallons per hour, gph, as they are called in the US) is only an indication for the size of the pump in the filter. It doesn't actually say anything about the filter itself, or it's capacity to filter your tank well. For example the filter volume, also often called media volume, in my experience is a lot more important than gph. So is the way you set up the filter to provide good aeration. Aeration with any canister filter can be improved for example by using a diffusor.

If you let us know what model canister filter you are considering, we'll probably be able to give some more detailed advice.

Greetings

Frank


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

1400 LPH = 370 gph... for us darn Americans....

As mentioned above... the 1400 lph rating is what the motor is rated for without any restriction... Canister filters generally function at around 50~65% of what the pump is rated for... Power Filters (HOBs) generally function around 80% (+/-)...

So if you are talking about a 1400 lph canister, it will actually move around 700~950 lph (185~240 gph)...

A 9W UV light at that flow rate will definitely kill free floating algae (green water), bacteria, fungi, etc... it may 'clarify' the water a little bit... but it will do nothing to get rid of parasites...

For the full benefit of UV lights I highly recommend:
1W of UV light per US gallon of tank volume...
10 US gph per 1W of UV strength...

in other words a 9W UV light for a 90 gal (340 liter)... with 90 gph (340 lph) flowing through the UV...

A slightly larger UV is fine... or a slightly slow flow rate is fine...

But increasing the flow rate beyond this ratio will make the UV less effective at 'sterilizing' the water...


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## Cichlidude (Feb 7, 2010)

A 9 watt UV light with about a 200 gph pump is only about $28 on ebay. Replacement bulbs are only $11. Pretty cheap.


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## kabuto (Mar 9, 2007)

Simon87 said:


> hey all, first post.....
> im lookin at a 1400l p/h canister with 9watt UV steriliserfor my 55g tank. havnt really had any filtration issues as yet, have got undergravel and a internal sponge filter running at the moment and seem to be doin fine, but with my juvie sevs starting to get growing a little i was thinking of upping the filtration. So yeah, was pretty much wanting too know if that size canister would be good for my tank? or maybe something bigger?


seeing that you are in Australia,... i think you talking about the JHW-303B model, am i right? 


If you are, then i've got one of those.
The flow rate is pretty good, the filter media volume is a whopping 14.7liters. It does a darn good job at biological filtration. About mechanical filtration, you need to fix a lil bypass issue on the tray handle bar holes, basically by filling it up with filter wool. *PM me for more details if you can't figure out what i'm saying about bypass*.

I never really had the chance to try out the UV, but if you search up Sunsun 302 model, i think its the exact same model sold under a slightly different name, and people have claimed that the UV was good to clear up greenish water.

The only problem i've had with my unit is that it gives off a lil humming noise. This only the 2nd canister filter i got, but the first one TetraTec made in germany with a 1000lph flow rate motor is completely silent i can't hear it at all. This one gave off a lil humming noise and i find that a little irritating when it is dead silent at home (my wife can't hear it, so i think its not that bad) but still, don't buy this for your bedroom, or for a quite resting place at home (such as book room).

the company is selling it for darn cheap so i think its a good buy.


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## Simon87 (May 2, 2010)

its a JT303B, on ebay and finishes in 3 hours and only on $55 at the moment. thinking of ditching the UG filter and swapping substrate to sand. not terribly worries about the built in UV filter, dont have any trouble with algae and the tanks been running about 8 months and havnt lost any fish yet. Also found a HUGE 6ft, really wide tank today that i want too upgradfe too, just need too find a spare $1300  hehe
As for the noise, its says its silent, but even with a bit of noise it wont matter, tanks in the lounge so theres usually some kind of background noise.
Thanks for all your help guys.


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## Melanochromis (Mar 30, 2005)

This filter is the SunSun HW303B external filter, these SunSun filters seem to be popping up all over the internet, but with different names on the packaging.


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## cichlidfeesh (Apr 6, 2009)

Simon87 said:


> thinking of ditching the UG filter and swapping substrate to sand.


Sorry I can't help you with that type of canister, but this is a very good idea in my book :thumb:


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