OK, this is what I did: took the mini jet 404 and attached one of the
aquaclear quick filters (supposedly 1 micron or so) to the intake
(removed the grill and used superglue) put an inline valve between the
pump and the UV unit (cheapo originally intended as an add on for home
water filtration) and used that to drop the flow rate down to a
guesstimated 50 gph, then back to the tank with the output near the
intake for my via aqua which is still providing circulation. Couple of
very slow leaks at the connectors I used to step-down tube size from .5
ID to .25 OD. Everything seems OK, but a couple more questions:

1. the lining of the UV unit is shiny metal. I try to keep metal away
from my aquariums on principle, to the extent that's possible. Since
we're not talking long term use here, is this a problem?

2. obviously I can't look inside to see that the lamp is lit, so how do
I tell if it's on?

3. In terms of killing the floating nasties, there's clearly a point of
diminishing returns beyond which it isn't worth it to continue running
the UV. How long should I run it and how often? 10 hrs. twice a week?
3 hrs. once a week? I can break down and do the math but if there are
any rules of thumb out there, I'd like to hear them.

One more observation: the SAEs are working wonders with the brush algae,
albeit slowly. These critters are worth their weight in gold if you've
got this problem.

In article ink.net,
says...
you don't need a prefilter. just get the normal cap at the end to ensure no
fish go exploring up the tube and you are ok...the steralizer is just a tube
that the water passes through so as long as the thing sucked in can make it
out you have no problems

"willis stanley" wrote in message
. ..
What I had thought about doing was hooking the UV output line up to a
small via aqua pump's air hose intake, drawing water through the UV
rather than pushing it through. That would get me below the 60-80 gph
required for my UV unit. Then what I'd have to do is find some way to
put a prefilter on the end of the intake hose. Either that or find some
way to filter the grille intake of the via aqua. Since I already have
such a pump running for circulation, it would mean no new pumps in the
system.

In article ,
tose says...
You will also need a valve to slow down the output of your
pump.....

I think you only need that if you're getting an inline model. (Which he
can't,
since he's got a power filter.) If you're getting a standalone, you
just have
to be careful to buy a powerhead with an output that matches the UV
sterilizer's gph rating.

Leigh

http://www.fortunecity.com/lavender/halloween/881/