GFO or no GFO when carbon dosing

Do you use GFO or any other type of phosphate removal media in your carbon dosing regimen?

  • I use GFO

    Votes: 8 80.0%
  • I use other phosphate removal media

    Votes: 1 10.0%
  • I don't use GFO or any other type of phosphate removal media whatsoever

    Votes: 1 10.0%

  • Total voters
    10

FrugalReefer

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I don't want to debate if carbon dosing reduces nitrates only or reduces both nitrates and phosphates. There is info out there saying it only impacts nitrate levels and does nothing for reducing phosphates and then you'll find the same amount of other info saying it impacts both NO3 and PO4. Also, I've seen a lot of awesome reef tanks utilizing both carbon dosing and some type of phosphate removal media and a lot of awesome algae free reef tanks utilizing carbon dosing without any phosphate removal media whatsoever. Whether one is true and the other is false or not doesn't concern me, what I want to know is . . .
 

jda

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How much po4 are you looking to remove? I am one who believes that po4 does decline with OC, but just not very much... so if I had a lot of po4, I might use GFO too, but maybe not if po4 was not too high.

If algae free is your goal, neither of these will get you there, IMO. Those other algae free tanks like have lots of cleaners. I have no3 around .1 and po4 at 1-5 ppb and I would have algae everywhere without my urchins.
 

Zeeter

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I run carbon, biopellets, and GFO. Biopellets when the nitrates get over 10ppm. GFO when the phosphate is over .05. Carbon when the tank looks dirty. Works for me.
 

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