Randy Holmes-Farley
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Also, does carbon dosing remove phosphates as well as nitrates? If not, I would want to stick with algae scrubbing as it does both and add a little GFO if needed later on.
Organic carbon dosing generally will remove some phosphate, but not as much (relative to nitrate consumed/reduced) compared to growing algae.
There are a couple of reasons for this, and the main one is likely denitrification (a process that requires organic material) that consumes nitrate and not phosphate.
However, organic carbon dosing has benefits beyond nutrient reduction, which may make it a better choice than simple algae growth.. These include the bacteria being food for other organisms, and potentially direct uptake of the organic compound as food by corals, sponges, etc.