PetPal Gear Score

How well the unit delivers a useful UV dose to the water for its class — a function of wattage, the flow rate it is designed for, and dose transparency. We synthesize this from manufacturer specs (wattage, gallon ratings, published flow-versus-dose figures where available) and from Bulk Reef Supply's framing that UV dose depends on flow rate and only affects organisms that pass through the chamber. The Clear-Water UV Score is a composite of published specs and expert consensus, not a measurement — PetPalHQ does not run a testing lab.

Quality and durability of the chamber, lamp protection, bracket, and fittings. We credit quartz sleeves and sealed-bulb designs, durable pond-grade bodies, hang-on or in-line mounting flexibility, indicator lights, and safety certification such as UL listing where documented.

How easy the unit is to install and run. We reward all-in-one internal units that need no plumbing and tool-free installation, and we weigh whether a canister requires a separate pump and inline plumbing against the dose control that separate pump enables.

Living with the lamp over time — replacement intervals, the fact that UV-C output fades long before the bulb stops glowing, and any indicator that flags status. We reward designs that make bulb changes painless and ratings that account for end-of-life output, since the most common owner failure is running a spent lamp.

Purchase price relative to capability and the longer-run cost of replacement bulbs. This is the smallest weight in the score by design, so a strong-value pick never outranks a more effective unit on the score alone — value breaks ties, it does not drive the ranking, and rank here reflects best-fit use case rather than score order.