Let me throw in my 2 cents - since this thread isn't long enough yet
I've been Pat Battling phosphates for a couple months. Reading through this thread, I've got to disagree with a few things.
IMO lr absolutely CAN leach
PO4. I tested my water, getting 1.0ppm and then tested water near a rock and got >2ppm. Rocks, I believe, absorb
po4 and leach it back into your water. They will burn it off eventually but that is what makes fighting
PO4 so difficult. You just need to export it by removing hair algae manually, and doing
pwc.
Also, Firworks just mentioned running "Rowa" in his canister eventhough he was testing
po4 at 0. I'm assuming he means "ROWAphos", which is just a phosphate remover - just to clarify. It will reduce
po4, but I believe that's all it really does. If
PO4 is not your problem, I'm assuming ROWAphos will not help. (Someone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong).
I'm now running Phosban (rowaphos competitor), bought chaeto, got a lawnmower blenny - already had a yellow tang (neither touches my hair algae), using
ro/
di water, removing hair algae manually every day, down to 6 hours of light a day, and doing frequent partial water changes, added 30 more snails/hermits and I still have 0.2ppm
PO4 and hair algae. It's a tough battle and I believe it is due to the rocks leaching phosphates - just an opinion. I would say take everyone's advice and be ready for a fight. Absolutely check your
PO4. Buy a test kit to see where you stand. This is really a must. Test your tank and your
ro/
di water (also test water near your rocks). I was using
RO/
DI water and thought I was safe until I tested it and was dumping 0.5ppm
PO4 into my tank with every change and top off. My
DI resin needed to be shaken up (it was clumped on one end). Didn't need to change it - just mix it up. Now getting 0ppm.
In closing, I wouldn't recommend buying any livestock - some lawnmowers and tangs won't touch the stuff anyway, especially if its already out of control. Find out where you are
PO4-wise, make sure your
ro/
di is reading 0
PO4, remove as much as possible daily, and do frequent
pwc to get that
PO4 down - and be prepared for a long battle if your
PO4 is high.
HTH - sorry for the long post
- Skins