Treatment products · microbes

UV Disinfection Systems

A UV system passes water along a lamp that damages the DNA of microbes so they can’t reproduce. It doesn’t take anything out of the water, needs clear water to work, and its claim is a dose at a flow, not a brand or a wattage.

A lamp that stops microbes reproducing. It doesn’t take anything out of the water, needs clear water, and its claim is a dose at a flow.

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How UV disinfection worksTreats every outlet · needs clear water and power

What it does

A dose, not a filter.

Microbes are inactivated by UV light at 254 nm. The claim that matters is the dose (energy per area) delivered at a stated flow and water clarity. Push more water through, or let it cloud with iron or sediment, and the dose falls below the rating. That’s why pretreatment comes first and why the sensor matters.

Who it suitsWells with a positive coliform or E. coli test, after pretreatment
What it needsClear water (at or above the maker’s stated UVT), a pre-filter and a power outlet
What it won’t doTake anything out of the water. Chemicals, metals and sediment all pass through.
Running costA lamp replaced at the maker’s stated interval, and the sleeve cleaned regularly

WaterDecoder’s picks · from systems in our database that qualify for this job · not a ranking

Our picks

Not curated yet

Our editors haven’t curated uv disinfection picks yet.

There are no picks for this set yet. Every system in our database is in the catalogue below, and Finder can match one to your home.

Ask Finder

Finder

Get personalized recommendations.

There are no picks and no catalogue here yet. Tell Finder what a test found, in your own words. It asks how you know, checks pretreatment first, and matches a configuration only when a dose at your flow is established.

Same engine as the full Finder, in a compact frame
Nothing is asked twice when you continue
UV is context here, never a diagnosis of your water

The catalogue

All UV systems

No published products

No published products in this category yet.

We don’t have any uV disinfection systems in our database yet. When one is added with its evidence on file, it appears here with its basis and the facts that decide a purchase.

Chemical or metal contaminants? Water filters →Iron, sulfur or low pH? Other treatment families →Not sure the test means microbes? Ask Finder →

Finder

Not sure what you need?

Finder asks how you know, what a test found and what your home needs, then tells you plainly what it can match.

Ask Finder

Before you buy

Four numbers decide a UV system before the brand does.

Dose: 40mJ/cm²; NSF/ANSI 55 Class A; Class B is 16 mJ/cm² and only for water already deemed safe. Independent dose testing we accept is read against the same scale. The number is meaningless without the flow it was measured at.NSF/ANSI 55 Class A.
Flow at that dose: At a flowGPM rating; The flow at which the rated dose is delivered. Your peak household flow must sit below it, or the dose falls short when it matters.The flow at which the rated dose is delivered.
Water clarity: Clearwater; UV transmittance. Iron, tannins and sediment absorb UV before it reaches microbes. Below the maker’s stated UVT, the rating no longer holds.UV transmittance.
Lamp life: Per makerlamp life; The lamp runs continuously and the maker states its life. Output fades before the lamp fails; a sensor tells you when, a calendar only guesses.The lamp runs continuously.

Also decidesPretreatmentA sediment pre-filter is the minimum; iron and tannins need their own stage first.Sensor and alarmClass A requires an intensity sensor. Without one, you don’t know the dose dropped.Power and bypassThe lamp runs continuously. A power outage means untreated water unless a solenoid closes the line.Sleeve cleaningMineral film on the quartz sleeve reduces the dose. Regular cleaning, on the maker’s schedule, is part of ownership.