# Leaking UV Sterilizer



## tazcrash69 (Sep 27, 2005)

Anyone?
Bueller?
Am I the lucky one?


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## khoile (Jan 27, 2005)

My 18W leaked also, I'm even luckier than you, it ruin my stand and I have to replace the stand. Which mean I have to tear the fish tank down. I did replace the O-ring and it didn't help at all. It turn out to be a defective unit and I have to RMA it. Hope it's just the O-ring for you, how long have you have the unit?


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## PRESTON4479 (Mar 22, 2007)

I have the 3x 9 watt and have had no problems so far. It works great.


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## tazcrash69 (Sep 27, 2005)

khoile said:


> My 18W leaked also, I'm even luckier than you, it ruin my stand and I have to replace the stand. Which mean I have to tear the fish tank down. I did replace the O-ring and it didn't help at all. It turn out to be a defective unit and I have to RMA it. Hope it's just the O-ring for you, how long have you have the unit?


I've had it just over a year. 
I think the problem might have started after I put a Kent Venturi on the Eheim 2026 output, and maybe put too much back pressure, and this is where it found the weak link. :angryfire 

well, live and learn.


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## Naja002 (Oct 12, 2005)

I've had my 18w Turbo-Twist for about 7 months now without any problems, But I have it set up as portable via the DC method.....

HTH


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## tazcrash69 (Sep 27, 2005)

Yea, that is on my list to build .


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## Jimmyblues (Dec 16, 2010)

*Plumbing An Inline Heater Or UV Sterilizer Into Your Canister Filter & Leaks*



tazcrash69 said:


> Looks like a good time to make it a hang on (thank you DC) so I can move it, and increase my flow.


 

I have had the same thing happen with an AquaTop IL10UV inline uv sterilizer on one of my aquariums. I had it plumbed into the output tube of a Fluval 305 and wonder if the ribbed hosing may have had something to do with this leaking.

During a recent power outage, when the power came back on I noticed that the uv bulb for the IL10UV was no longer working. I wasn't too concerned about it since the bulb is the better part of a year old and in need of replacement anyway.

I was just going to purchase the bulb. However, by the time I added shipping the cost would have only been about $18 shy of an entirely new unit.

So I purchased another IL10UV figuring that I could use it for spare parts, given that it came with a power supply, extra ballast and another quartz sleeve, in addition to the new uv bulb that I needed.

It's a good thing that I purchased the entire unit instead of just a new uv bulb, since as it turns out, the uv ballast from the original IL10UV blew out during the power failure. And the quartz sleeve on the new unit was cracked when I received it.

So I ended up using the two IL10UV's to make one good unit. Fortunately, they are inexpensive, at under $40 each.

When I installed the first IL10UV earlier this year, the top of the unit leaked a bit, but after a day the leak subsided. However, everytime I had to remove the unit to clean the Fluval's output tube, it would leak for about a day or so before the leak would subside.

The other day, when I installed the new IL10UV, the unit leaked from both the top of the uv sterilizer as well as the bottom. In fact, it leaked so badly that I decided to break the unit down and silicone both the top and bottom of the unit; underneath and above the washers which AquaTop includes with this product.

This almost cleared up the problem completely, however, there was still a leak at the top of the unit. I drained the water from the hoses, siliconed the outer portion of the top cap where the IL10UV meets with the Fluval hosing and let it cure for 36 hours.

This has completely stopped the leak. And I would suggest that anyone who considers plumbing a uv sterilizer or heater (such as Hydor ETH series) into the output hose of a canister filter silicone the connections before using the item, just to avoid the headache of a leak, and the water damage that a leak can cause.

The IL10UV may be inexpensive and cheaply made, but it does an excellent job of killing algae and bacteria, and leaves the water in my aquarium crystal clear. It is also the cheapest 10 watt uv sterilizer I have seen on the market, often selling for between $35 and $40 on Amazon.com.

Consider that an AA Green Killing Machine Mini with 3 watts of uv sterilization, costs about the same price, and you can see what a bargain
the IL10UV is, with more than three times the wattage.

I have a few smaller aquariums that I also grow plants in, which use high tech lighting and CO2 injection. So I decided to purchase a few AquaTop hob uv sterilizer filters for these aquariums, in order to keep the water clear, and they work quite well.

Prior to using uv sterilizers in my aquariums, each of which uses T5 lighting and injected CO2, the water was always cloudy. Now the water is nice and clear, and my fish have never looked healthier.

I also like the portability of the hob uv sterilizer/filters, which like the IL10UV, I keep on a timer, so that the sterilizers are only on about half the day. 

This is enough to keep the algae in my aquariums at bay, which allows my plants to grow even faster, since they don't have to compete with the algae or bacteria for nutrients.

As for the claims that cheap uv bulbs don't offer germicidal benefits, I have seen water clouded from a bacterial bloom completely clear up overnight , after a uv sterilizer was used.

So these inexpensive uv sterilizers do have germicidal benefits, even if they don't work as well as some of the more expensive uv sterilizers on the market.

However, when you consider that the replacement bulb on an IL10UV costs about $12, and that many of the more expensive uv sterilizer bulbs of a similar or slightly higher wattage can cost five to six times as much, this unit really is a bargain.


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## Guest (Jan 24, 2014)

*leaking turbo twist*

I had the same problem with my turbo twist uv 3X. It is leaking from the clear plastic side, not the power cord side. I ordered a gasket kit and it still leaks. I have it mounted horizontally. It leaks a couple of drops every few seconds. Just enough to drive me insane.Thinking of some type of glue, but don't know what kind to use.Any ideas?


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