How long your UV light works before the bulb quits!

[Twobusy4]

I wanted some advice on how long has anybody had their UV light working before it goes out. I have had to replace mine for once a year for the last 3 years. Is this normal for the light to go out just after 1 year? If anyone has any advice on the brand to buy I would really appreciate it"

 

[Smaug]

I've never had them actually go out accept rarely. What happens is they lose intensity .

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Most manufacturers recommend replacing UV lights every 6 months to a year. They begin loosing effectiveness the very first moment that they are turned on.

 

[Smaug]

Quality units have a longer useful life then the cheap junk that's flooding the market nowadays. The unit I have for household use has been effective for over 2 years sometimes. Of course I'm going by results of actual bacterial checks as I get my incoming well water tested. I have had the same results for the one I used to have for my pond as well,after 2 years I could tell by the green water returning it was time to change. My pond has apparently matured enough to not need one anymore though.

 

[sissy]

A uv is a uv . cheap or expensive it is what you can afford and since I can't afford a Mercedes I drive a ford which for years I built .

 

[Smaug]

A uv is a uv . cheap or expensive it is what you can afford and since I can't afford a Mercedes I drive a ford which for years I built .

Not quite sure where that comes from but you are quite wrong in saying they are all the same quality Sissy. The junk chinese crap that's flooding the aquarium market is junk plain and simple compared to better made European, American or Japanese items. Been in manufacturing 30 years now,started there will finish there. I made the mistake of buying a Chinese lamp for my in home uv,it lasted 6 months and DID burn out.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

I've been using the same cheap Chinese Jebao UV unit for going on 4 years now with no problems. They aren't complicated devices, as long as the housing is water tight and durable enough to stand up to the environments they are being used in they really shouldn't cost much more then that. The lamps themselves are nothing special, all florescent lights produce UV, standard florescent lamps just have a phosphorus (florescent) coating on them that converts the UV into visible light. UV bulbs just don't have an extra phosphorus coating on the bulbs to allow the UV light to escape the bulb, so really when you think about it, UV bulbs are even simpler then standard household florescent bulbs since they require one less step in the manufacturing process.
My 55 watt Jebao unit cost about $100, but I've seen lower wattage units being sold by other manufacturers being sold for 3 or 4 times that amount. To me most of those units are generally over priced since they do exactly the same thing my $100 Chinese unit does, and in many cases use the exact same internal bulb. There are some units that come in stainless steal housings and it might be worth paying a little extra money for if you are going to be mounting your UV unit out in the weather or using it in some other demanding environment, but in most cases a plastic casing should be adequate.

 

[sissy]

I have the turbo twist one 30 dollars and extra bulbs with it and it works great .As long as the ballast lasts and you protect it from being banged around they are fine .For house water it is always different you are drinking that water and maybe you want better .But thing is it still all comes down to how fast the water goes into the uv .Even well water will not get treated properly when you run water fast and then if you do not flush your bladder tank or your hot water heater or change the anode rod they will build up bacteria .And also if you do not treat your well also .I am surely not going to drink my pond water big yuck .There are not many that are really American made that I have seen .

 

[Smaug]

Not all units are created equal. The low output cheap chinese units are definitely not good quality.
http://www.uvsterilizerreview.com/2011/04/long-life-uv-bulbs-are-these-

 

[Smaug]

I have the turbo twist one 30 dollars and extra bulbs with it and it works great .As long as the ballast lasts and you protect it from being banged around they are fine .For house water it is always different you are drinking that water and maybe you want better .But thing is it still all comes down to how fast the water goes into the uv .Even well water will not get treated properly when you run water fast and then if you do not flush your bladder tank or your hot water heater or change the anode rod they will build up bacteria .And also if you do not treat your well also .I am surely not going to drink my pond water big yuck .There are not many that are really American made that I have seen .

All of that above is why I have a quality uv unit. Uv specific bulbs are quite different from the low end hobby grade stuff available from most places. My uv system is rated at at least 5 times what my pressure pump would push even if I had every tap in the house on. Moot point for my pond really but I may believe that all uv units are created equal if the only place I got my info was from the forum.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

Not all units are created equal. The low output cheap chinese units are definitely not good quality.
http://www.uvsterilizerreview.com/2011/04/long-life-uv-bulbs-are-these-

Your link doesn't work.

But I will agree that not everything is created equal and some cheaply manufactured stuff may be more likely to be defective or fail prematurely, but by the same token there is a lot of over priced products out there that really aren't worth the extra money if they do exactly the same thing that a product 1/4 of the price does. This is were reading reviews and hearing from people who have experience with specific products hold more weight then just saying any inexpensive product from China is junk. I've bought and used lots of cheap electronic Chinese products before and I a can't think of one off hand that has failed me and they've all worked as advertised. On the other hand I've bought lots of American and Japanese products that failed or were simply defective upon arrival. Most of the time if there is any problem with Chinese stuff it's in the instructions or manual because it didn't get translated properly. LOL The cheaper price of most of these Chinese products are more related to the labor cost of producing the products then the actual functionality of the product. The simple undeniable fact is Chinese labor cost a fraction of what American, Japanese or European labor costs, and that's reflected in the cost of the product.

Smaug you said you had a UV unit burn out. What was the specific make and model of your unit?
I'm simply able to testify that the inexpensively priced Jebao units from China work quite well.

 

[Smaug]

It was the lamp,not the unit and it was the in home uv. The difference in quality was evident right from the start . It's not just the labor that makes the product cheaper it's also the near total lack of quality control. We should also discuss the basic human rights and workers rights that do not exist in chinese manufacturing . The dismal attitude they have toward environmental concerns. Hey,buy junk and proclaim how great it is. I am directly in manufacturing with my nose on the grindstone everyday. We have QC,workers rights,payed insurance and I make a very decent wage . I see it as a responsibility to spend my money wisely and not piss it away on substandard equipment.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

Hey,buy junk and proclaim how great it is..

I don't call it "junk" if it works as well, or better, than stuff priced 4 times the cost. I just call that a good deal !

As for human rights issues, that's another conversation and has nothing to do with the effectiveness of UV units. However, if you want to go there I'll suggest you buy the less expensive products that work as well as the overpriced products and use your savings to support some groups that have expertise in helping the under privileged people in China or some other third world countries, or better yet find some way of doing it yourself directly. Your suggestion of boycotting the companies where they work and putting them on the street doesn't seem like a very humane course of action.
I just used some of my savings to buy clothes and school supplies for 6 kids in the Philippines, would you like to see the pictures?

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Geez, a lot of discussion about the quality of UV units, but no discussion on what the OP asked. "How long does a UV lamp last?"

 

[Smaug]

Geez, a lot of discussion about the quality of UV units, but no discussion on what the OP asked. "How long does a UV lamp last?"

I answered that early on.