Review on COODIA Internal Aquarium Submersible Disinfection by Seema Schroeder

Photos of a 55 gallon freshwater aquarium (cichlids). Background information: The aquarium was installed over the course of five and a half years. I do 20% water changes about every 2-3 months (to lower nitrate levels). I regularly check for nitrates, nitrites, general hardness, alkalinity, pH. The aquarium is one of the sturdiest and healthiest of my experience (several dozen personal freshwater aquariums over decades, I also had a pet store); However the water has recently become cloudy which I attributed to a bacterial bloom caused by the presence of free nutrients (the cichlid died in its skin and I didn't realize it until I smelled death from the tank and examined the rocks, to find him a half-eaten/half-decomposed carcass). The first photo was taken five minutes after I placed the filter in the aquarium (I would describe the water as milky, visibility up to an inch, "cloudy af"). The second photo was taken 10 days later. The water has cleared noticeably, but is still a little milky. The third admission was 15 days after the first, 5 days after the second. The water is cleaner than I've ever seen. I'm not a scientist, just a layman, but I would imagine that this filter works similarly to the UV water filter I take with me when I travel to purify water in the countryside. With these filters, bacteria and other free-floating biological agents do not necessarily die of their own accord, rather the UV radiation smokes out their DNA at the reproductive level, rendering them sterile. Thus, the first gen. UV-exposed bacteria can live for a while before disappearing, but they have no offspring (so it took longer than I expected to clean the water). The water is indeed clearer than ever and I'll be pulling out the filter soon to see if some of the natural (historical) turbidity returns (which I'm expecting). The only reason it didn't get a full five stars is because it arrived in a box that was covered in oil film/droplets all around. I figured it must have been left over from production or broken in transit. I wiped the oil off with paper towels, put it in the sink, ran some water and it worked great without leaving any oily residue on the water. I put it in the aquarium and took the first picture in five minutes. later.*NOTE: I understand that the 5W UV lamp cannot be seen during the day. For the first few days the water was so cloudy that I couldn't see the UV lamp display at all, but by about the fourth or fifth day if I looked slightly away from the display in pitch black surroundings with peripheral vision. In the middle of the night I could clearly see the UV indicator. Especially at a relatively cheap price I'd say it's worth adding to your aquarium tools, especially if you have a bacterial/algal bloom that needs to be treated (and you've eliminated the original cause). For your health.