UV lamp vs. Ion gen

[studiovette]

My pond setup includes a aqua uv clarifier. I didn't buy it just inherited the entire setup when I bought the house 2 yrs ago. I bought a new bulb but debating whether or not to run it this yr. So my question is who else runs one and how have your results been. I noticed last season I had no algae the first few months but as time went on and the bulb weakened the string algae started. The manual does say that it will not kill all types. The problem I have is that they are known to kill good bacteria also. It will zap anything that passes through the light although plenty of good bacteria colonizes in the filter.
My local pond club has been pushing the aquascape ion gen. Anybody have any experience with it? Its not cheap. Let me know what your thoughts are.

 

[Dave 54]

Do you mean a U/V-C I run a 36watt Aquapond UV-C it has a double bulb which is rated two last two years , in that two year period we have no problems at all with string algae and the only algae we do get covers the sides and bottom of the pond like a well kept lawn.
Normal UV-C's tend to start using their effectiveness after around 6 months this is because they are only rated to last a year.
Your best bet is to buy a line book break it up into various sections and keep notes i;e water perameters , water changes , filter maintenance, UV-C maintenance etc , this way you can then buy the new bulb ready for the old one to loose total effectiveness.
However in saying this the single bulbed UV-C's are still worth running, just make sure the bulb is regularily replaced thats all

Dave

 

[Lisak1]

We have the IonGen. It works by releasing copper (and I believe zinc and silver) ions into the water that comes in contact with the probes. When we found we couldn't adjust the levels on the control panel, we were told that the effectiveness of the IonGen is based on the salinity of the water. We tested it in a bucket of water with pond salt added and were able to adjust it up and down, so we know the unit works. Apparently the quality of our water is such that it inhibits conductivity, so whether or not the product actually works to clear algae I can't say. I'm not sure if ours works a little, a lot or not at all. Kind of an expensive experiment!

Also, in our experience the probes wear out very quickly and they are pricey to replace - another consideration if you install the IonGen. The replacement probes run around $100. I've never used a UV filter, so I have no idea what the comparative cost is. My husband is the gadget guy, so this was his purchase. I would have passed on both quite honestly.

You should also be aware that copper is deadly to fish above certain levels. They recommend you test your copper levels on a regular basis if you use the IonGen.

I am a great admirer of Aquascape - they have many, many people who loathe them for whatever reason (mainly their rocks-in-the-pond style of building from what I can tell), but I am not one of them. This is simply an honest review of a product they sell which we don't have great confidence in. Having said that, we have met lots and lots of ponders who use the IonGen and swear by it.

 

[studiovette]

We have the IonGen. It works by releasing copper (and I believe zinc and silver) ions into the water that comes in contact with the probes. When we found we couldn't adjust the levels on the control panel, we were told that the effectiveness of the IonGen is based on the salinity of the water. We tested it in a bucket of water with pond salt added and were able to adjust it up and down, so we know the unit works. Apparently the quality of our water is such that it inhibits conductivity, so whether or not the product actually works to clear algae I can't say. I'm not sure if ours works a little, a lot or not at all. Kind of an expensive experiment!

Also, in our experience the probes wear out very quickly and they are pricey to replace - another consideration if you install the IonGen. The replacement probes run around $100. I've never used a UV filter, so I have no idea what the comparative cost is. My husband is the gadget guy, so this was his purchase. I would have passed on both quite honestly.

You should also be aware that copper is deadly to fish above certain levels. They recommend you test your copper levels on a regular basis if you use the IonGen.

I am a great admirer of Aquascape - they have many, many people who loathe them for whatever reason (mainly their rocks-in-the-pond style of building from what I can tell), but I am not one of them. This is simply an honest review of a product they sell which we don't have great confidence in. Having said that, we have met lots and lots of ponders who use the IonGen and swear by it.

Thanks for the honest reply. Sounds like u have the ion gen 1 which as you mentioned does not allow you to change the range of the pricey probe. The ion 2 does. It has a range of 1-10.
The uv bulb for my aqua ultraviolet is about $50 a yr to replace so not terrible. I might just leave it off for now and see what happens. My filter and skimmer combo over a one night period already have made drastic changes. I also did use the microblift winter/ autumn stuff since November which might be helping lift all the decaying matter.

 

[Lisak1]

Thanks for the honest reply. Sounds like u have the ion gen 1 which as you mentioned does not allow you to change the range of the pricey probe. The ion 2 does. It has a range of 1-10.
The uv bulb for my aqua ultraviolet is about $50 a yr to replace so not terrible. I might just leave it off for now and see what happens. My filter and skimmer combo over a one night period already have made drastic changes. I also did use the microblift winter/ autumn stuff since November which might be helping lift all the decaying matter.

No - actually we do have the IonGen2. We should be able to adjust from 1-10. That's what prompted our call to report that it wasn't working and how we learned that it won't work for all pond conditions. We can set it up to 9 or 10 and it drops right back down to 1.

Like I said, lots of people report good results. We just haven't found that it works for us.

 

[studiovette]

No - actually we do have the IonGen2. We should be able to adjust from 1-10. That's what prompted our call to report that it wasn't working and how we learned that it won't work for all pond conditions. We can set it up to 9 or 10 and it drops right back down to 1.

Like I said, lots of people report good results. We just haven't found that it works for us.

Ok gotcha !
The good thing about aquascape is they stand behind what they sell. They have replaced a couple of items that have failed for me and provided excellent service.

 

[crsublette]

My pond setup includes a aqua uv clarifier. I didn't buy it just inherited the entire setup when I bought the house 2 yrs ago. I bought a new bulb but debating whether or not to run it this yr. So my question is who else runs one and how have your results been. I noticed last season I had no algae the first few months but as time went on and the bulb weakened the string algae started. The manual does say that it will not kill all types. The problem I have is that they are known to kill good bacteria also. It will zap anything that passes through the light although plenty of good bacteria colonizes in the filter.
My local pond club has been pushing the aquascape ion gen. Anybody have any experience with it? Its not cheap. Let me know what your thoughts are.

Hmmm. Yes, No, Meh, and some light reading

Yes, UV does not kill all types of algae.

Meh, yes, the UV light will kill some good microorganisms that are freely floating in the water.

No, it will not "sterilize" the pond's water. UV clarifiers, when used according to the manufacturers recommendations, they are only strong enough to kill algae. Although, if you quite significantly reduced the flow, that is significantly below the recommendations, through the UV, then the UV clarifier can become a UV sterilizer.

UV or not UV thread will be a good thread for you to read.

A good post about copper ion gens in the ammonia reading thread. Personally, even though I have seen good experiences with copper ion gen devices, I would much rather use a chelated copper algaecide if desiring to use heavy metals, such as the ion gens uses toxic heavy metals, which are safe to fish in low concentrations that kill algae .

To further help combat any algae problems, then check out the threads: 1) algal blooms ; 2) solving the algae mystery.

 

[Tula]

We considered this purchase, but decided against it after some research. I continue with my uv light and filters....and a little patience