UV light on timer?

[Lawdog]

After over a year of researching I am about a month away from breaking ground on my first pond. Approx size 6x12 and about 3ft deep. Going with a skippy filter feeding a waterfall/short steam into pond. I'm still considering building my own skimmer to keep cost down but we will see. I do want to ensure my electrical bill doesn't jump too high. I know the pump needs to run 24/7 but what about a uv light? Should it run full time as well or would it be ok to run part of the day to not use too much electricity. Maybe I am over analyzing it lol.

 

[sissy]

Most people only use a uv until the pond clears and then they don't use it and I use mine only during the day and since they are on a switched outlet on a different small pump .I shut both of when I turn the switch off .if it looks like it is not clearing then I live it on at night .But at the beginning a pond needs to cycle so you want it to go green .I found it helps .I just rebuilt my pond last year .My pond the first 2 weeks and then added fish since I had no choice but I used a lot of my old pond water .Last pic is after I added an aerator and a 9 watt uv

 

[Lawdog]

Most people only use a uv until the pond clears and then they don't use it and I use mine only during the day and since they are on a switched outlet on a different small pump .I shut both of when I turn the switch off .if it looks like it is not clearing then I live it on at night .But at the beginning a pond needs to cycle so you want it to go green .I found it helps .I just rebuilt my pond last year .My pond the first 2 weeks and then added fish since I had no choice but I used a lot of my old pond water .Last pic is after I added an aerator and a 9 watt uv

Thank you for your response, I sent you a message as well....if I did it correctly.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

Listen to Sissy. If one insists on using a UV, use it only when absolutely necessary.

 

[Dave 54]

Then you have the koi keepers side of things where they are run like our pumps 24/7 .

Dave

 

[sissy]

I have to agree with Dave also .I got my uv's not so much for green water but for any bad stuff that can get into the water and cause disease .Remember there are lots of things that can get into the water from outside sources .Plants and wind born stuff and birds ,frogs and in my case lizards also .I really want to build something that is insulated so I can run my uv in the winter .Rain water can also have bacteria in it and run off from heavy rains ..Even well water can carry bacteria .I have a uv built into my well system for that reason .

 

[Meyer Jordan]

I have to agree with Dave also .I got my uv's not so much for green water but for any bad stuff that can get into the water and cause disease .Remember there are lots of things that can get into the water from outside sources .Plants and wind born stuff and birds ,frogs and in my case lizards also .I really want to build something that is insulated so I can run my uv in the winter .Rain water can also have bacteria in it and run off from heavy rains ..Even well water can carry bacteria .I have a uv built into my well system for that reason .

This is a common misconception concerning UV units. Most that are sold for use in ponds are 'Clarifiers' and not 'Sterilizers' contrary to what the manufacturer may advertise. They can control algae growth but have no effect on other organisms unless they are appropriately sized to do so.To achieve any level of sterilization requires a quite large (high wattage) UV unit. The effectiveness of any UV unit depends on primarily two (2) things----Total wattage of the unit and flow rate. Water clarity will also affect its efficiency.
Here is a very good explanation of what UV units WILL do and what they WON'T do.
http://www.atlanticwatergardens.com/university/colleges/filtration/un-filters-401

 

[sissy]

But also you keep water way to clean then it is like a person being in a germ free atmosphere and then letting them out of it and they will get sick faster .You just want to keep some of it down, not all of it .I am not sure that you could ever really keep a pond that sterile considering it is outside .Not sure it would even be good for the fish after awhile .Could any one but a professional koi keeper really be able to do that .I know I could never afford to spend that much money and put in that amount of time it would take .

 

[Lawdog]

I really appreciate all the responses, I want to gain as much as I can before I dig next month. Does anybody have opinion on a sand and gravel filter in combination with a uv and skimmer, decent set up?

 

[Andy41]

Hi Lawdog,

To answer your first question.... originally i had the UV light wired into the pump, so it was always on when the pump is on. Since then i've split it out and the pump, and the UV, have their own timers, but the pump runs 24/7 anyway so i might change that this spring.

Sand/Gravel filters - my setup - i have two 55 gall drums... water comes into the bottom of the first (after going through the UV), and then up through a column of large-small rocks/gravel. Then it is gravity fed into the bottom of the second drum which contains cut up foam. The outlet of the second drum then goes back into the pond.

The first drum also has a feed coming off the top of it to gravity feed a bog garden. Obviously, since the drum is full of stones/gravel it gets clogged regularly, so i clean it by forcing compressed air into the bottom of it which agitates everything. I use the dirty water to water the plants then. Here's a youtube vid of a similar one in action.

I built mine last year and it worked perfectly. Amazing how much muck it catches.

cheers,

Andy.

 

[slick]

i run my 55 watt uv 24,7 52 weeks a year the only time is turned off is to change the bulb ever 6 months my water would go bad very quickly

 

[koiguy1969]

as I understand it....
Running a U.V on a timer will shorten its life span. the off and on causes more wear on the bulb than continuous use.... once your water clears you shouldn't need to run it any longer. I allow my water to green up a bit. turn on the U.V. the water will clear to Gin clear in a few days. then run the u.v for an extra week, for good measure. I then disconnect it, clean it, and pack it up, and store it till the next season. pathogen, and parasite control is why some folks run their U.V 24/7. but its effectiveness for this is a debate.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

as I understand it....
Running a U.V on a timer will shorten its life span. the off and on causes more wear on the bulb than continuous use.... once your water clears you shouldn't need to run it any longer. I allow my water to green up a bit. turn on the U.V. the water will clear in a few days. then run the u.v for an extra week, for good measure. I then disconnect it, clean it, and pack it up, and store it till the next season. pathogen, and parasite control is why some folks run their U.V 24/7. but its effectiveness for this is a debate.

Exactly. If the only way to keep your pond water from turning green is 24/7/365 or near continuous use of a UV, then your pond has some major water quality problems that need to be addressed.

 

[slick]

Sorry I dont agree,
I like to see my koi all the time winter or summer,
I have a deepish pond I like to see the bottom at all times, letting the water go green just sounds wrong,
it puts extra stain on the oxygen levels in the pond then extra strain on your filters,
better to keep on top of all year round,
A moderen uv takes next to no energy to run,
green water (algae) removes oxygen from the water in high temperatures so you add air stones and a compressor to add extra oxygen for the fish, more oxygen more green water,
there is not many ponds with no uv and claer water in brigt sunny conditions

 

[slick]

If you are happy only seeing 2 feet below the water surface then build a shallower pond this will save even more money