I was having the same issue as OP, I was dosing po4 and my Hanna ULR and Salifert kits kept reading zero. I was given this same advice, and after about 3 weeks of dosing po4, I finally started getting readings. I started off dosing conservatively though, so perhaps thats why it took me a little longer.You may need to dose far more than calculated until the rock and sand has finished taking up phosphate at the level you want to maintain.