how to get rid of red stuff

[quarryshark]

What sponge would you recommend? I have tried phosguard and no changes seem to be apparent. I have also read that cheap carbon can release phospahte back into the water. Is this true?

Kents PO4 sponge worked well for me.

 

[steve-s]

What sponge would you recommend? I have tried phosguard and no changes seem to be apparent.

Phosguard does work you just need to change it out quite a bit in the beginning. Almost the whole 1 lt jar would be needed just for a 75 gal tank I found. If you have corals though I would not recommend their product but should be okay for FO systems. If you can find it try Phosban or other iron based products

I have also read that cheap carbon can release phospahte back into the water. Is this true?

That is actually true of even the more exspensive brands. All forms of carbon have some level of phosphate unless chemically bonded. If you do a google search you will find PO4 free carbon.

Chers
Steve

 

[steve-s]

If I get the chance to run a sample, I'll post up results and detection limits of the test I use. It is an all-in-one PO4 test that will look for orthophosphate (P2O5) and standard PO4 in oxidized and reduced forms.

Cool! I would be interested to see what you find.

Cheers
Steve