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Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation. UV light attributes for about 10% of the light coming from the sun. It causes sunburns, skin cancer, and it is a very effective sterilizer for everything it comes into contact with. This is why UV is popular in home aquariums to “clarify” water. The light emitted from the UV sterilizer kills algae, bacteria and other microscopic life that passes through the light. A Fish Tank UV sterilizer simply has tank water pass through a chamber that is emitting UV light. Although effective at killing things that isn’t necessarily what you want for the microscopic life in your tank.
The single most important thing in any aquarium is the microscopic bacteria inside of it. Without bacteria, waste can’t be broken down and harmful toxins (ammonia, nitrite, etc) cannot be oxidized. Without these simple functions of bacteria the nitrogen cycle will not take place in the tank. No nitrogen cycle means high levels of toxins that ultimately lead to the demise of all creatures inside the tank. So why on earth would we want to use a UV sterilizer to kill the bacteria we need? (heterotrophic bacteria) It’s simple really, it’s because we humans tend to prioritize clear water over bacterial health. Why would we care about life we can’t see?! We just want to see the fish in clear water!
Heterotrophs (heterotrophic bacteria) are the ones that break down solid waste within the aquarium. They break down fish poop, uneaten food, dead plant matter, dead fish and other organic waste in the aquarium. The “problem” with this bacteria is they reproduce so rapidly when organic waste is present they cloud fish tank water. We view this as a good thing because they are working hard to clean the tank naturally for you. We want and recommend allowing these guys to thrive rather than killing them with a UV sterilizer. UV lights kill these bacteria when they are reproducing in the water. The result is clear water, which again is what we humans want despite it not being very natural and actually harmful to a healthy aquarium/ bacterial colony.
So let’s get this straight… the SCRIPT with home aquariums means using a UV light to kill beneficial bacteria along with tanks ability to process waste naturally. You then need to remove this waste through water changes and other filtration methods like a large amount of carbon that needs replaced frequently or expensive equipment like protein skimmers. So UV lights actually cost you more money and time than just allowing nature to do its thing!
We at Unscripted Aquarium have developed an all-new way to have clear water by working WITH the beneficial bacteria. The Unscripted Aquarium Clarifier introduces a small electrical charge to ions within the aquarium. This allows for microscopic organic particles to be caught in the gravel and filter of the aquarium. With all the organic waste in the gravel and filter the bacteria are free to thrive within the gravel and filter, and not in your water. This natural process results in clear and clean water without any casualties of beneficial bacteria. This process also takes care of algae spores in the water. The two main “benefits” of a UV sterilizer is killing bacteria and algae resulting in clear water. The Unscripted Aquarium Clarifier provides clear water by keeping the algae and waste out of the water. Instead, the waste is served to bacteria on a silver platter so they can break it down naturally.
