Phos Guard Pros And Cons

[skybreezy]

Google and i have a love hate relationship. Thats why i turn to yall. Hoping for more pros cause i just bought a bottle.

 

[Chef G]

Ive used it before I tried GFO, GFO is def the better route to go in my opinion. For me GFO last longer and strips more phosphate out of the water and I didnt have to change it as often.

 

[Salty Cracker]

Phosguard is aluminum based, and can leech back into the tank, but works quicker.

In my personal experience, It crashed my tank by ripping phosphate out of the tank too quickly. GFO is the best long-term solution.

 

[skybreezy]

Ive used it before I tried GFO, GFO is def the better route to go in my opinion. For me GFO last longer and strips more phosphate out of the water and I didnt have to change it as often.

Thank you my friend

 

[skybreezy]

Phosguard is aluminum based, and can leech back into the tank, but works quicker.

In my personal experience, It crashed my tank by ripping phosphate out of the tank too quickly. GFO is the best long-term solution.

Thank you. Ill go to big als today get my phosphates checked and go from there. But what do i do with this bottle of phos guard i picked up yesterday? Lol. All good maybe i can just run it lightly if needed.

 

[Salty Cracker]

It's fine unless your tank is well established. It just works "too well". Anything done quickly in the reef tank can cause havok. If you put some in a mesh bag in a water stream you'd likely be fine, but don't leave it in too long (no more than a couple of days).

 

[skybreezy]

It's fine unless your tank is well established. It just works "too well". Anything done quickly in the reef tank can cause havok. If you put some in a mesh bag in a water stream you'd likely be fine, but don't leave it in too long (no more than a couple of days).

Id be using it in a kent media reactor. Tank has been running for almost a year. Called my connect at big als (i didnt buy the pg from there) he told me has never had an ish with it. But yeah ill just get my phospates checked and go from there. I do lilke your your just use for couple days idea. The last thing i want to do is crash my system . 2017 i want to really get my garden going. My 90 at the moment has about 100 pounds of live rock but only a nem that just recently split. A beautiful frogspawn from @Granty and a nuclear green colony about 15 polyps. So yeah its time!

 

[Dan Cole]

For clarification on the toxicity of Phosguard please see this study done by the good folks at Seachem.

The opening summary says...

Aluminum oxide is a widely used phosphate remover. The question arises as to whether
aluminum oxide provides soluble aluminum in the aquarium environment, and whether soluble
aluminum is toxic to aquarium life. This paper addresses both the question of aluminum
solubility and aluminum toxicity. A series of controlled experiments, in both fresh water and salt
water, examines the aluminum solubility of aluminum oxide used for phosphate removal. Results
of the study indicate that aluminum oxide is so insoluble as to render the material completely
safe.

If anyone is aware of any other studies that suggest otherwise I'd be interested in seeing them.

 

[Dan Cole]

As for using it....like any phosphate remover it only has a certain capacity to absorb so if you are worried about pulling it out too fast just use a little...it will be used up quickly...see where you're at and use a wee bit more, if needed.

 

[skybreezy]

As for using it....like any phosphate remover it only has a certain capacity to absorb so if you are worried about pulling it out too fast just use a little...it will be used up quickly...see where you're at and use a wee bit more, if needed.

Sounds good. Would u suggest using a mesh bag as well ?

 

[Salty Cracker]

I guess I should clarify.

Phosguard doesn't leech -aluminum- it leeches it's stored phosphate after it reaches saturation.

It's also a BRUTALLY aggressive substance to use in the delicate reef aquarium. I've seen this firsthand, and this "product" was pushed on me by a LFS, and usually is only pushed by people selling it. Just FYI. I've actually been fairly nice about it so far, but personally I would never let that crap near my tank.

 

[Salty Cracker]

I should stress again that the reason we have "the frag tank" is so that reefers get a fair shake at successfully running a reef tank. LFS and potion sellers really have to earn their stripes here, as in "prove they aren't just out to make a buck at the expense of the consumer". I've been at this 20 years, and have had the misfortune of buying almost every single magic elixir imaginable by guys all too happy to take my money. We don't take money from anyone at all, so the only ulterior motive any of the fragtank staff (including myself) has, is to make sure you have success. So when I warn you about how aggressive phosguard is, I mean it as a "learn from my mistakes" kind of thing.

 

[SpongeAl]

I tried phosguard in a media bag, it didn't seem to do anything at all. (Yes it was just a media bag, but it should have done something, I had concerns about using it in a reactor at the time.)

There is a lot of hoopla about how safe it is, you can't leave it in there long.

I found it easier to use a GFO type product. I use a premium GFO called Rowaphos, you can leave it in your system until it becomes ineffective.

Rowaphos works best in a reactor, but some use it in cartridge filters etc.

 

[skybreezy]

I tried phosguard in a media bag, it didn't seem to do anything at all. (Yes it was just a media bag, but it should have done something, I had concerns about using it in a reactor at the time.)

There is a lot of hoopla about how safe it is, you can't leave it in there long.

I found it easier to use a GFO type product. I use a premium GFO called Rowaphos, you can leave it in your system until it becomes ineffective.

Rowaphos works best in a reactor, but some use it in cartridge filters etc.

Sounds good thx. The consensus looks like GFO is the way to go. But ill just use the phos guard sparingly when needed till its gone. Hopefully dont have to use it much at all.

 

[Dan Cole]

I found it easier to use a GFO type product. I use a premium GFO called Rowaphos, you can leave it in your system until it becomes ineffective.

Rowaphos works best in a reactor, but some use it in cartridge filters etc.

There is nothing wrong with Rowa. It is a great product but it does require a reactor to be used efficiently. To me the big difference between GFO products and products like Phosguard is how they are used. Phosguard is best used in a bag in a sump, used in a passive way and contrary to what has been said it does not leach Phosphate....again from Seachem's site...

"It does not leach phosphate or silicate back into the water and may be removed, dried, and returned to service until exhausted. Continuous use of small quantities is better than intermittent use of larger quantities."

 

[unibob]

To me the big difference between GFO products and products like Phosguard is how they are used. Phosguard is best used in a bag in a sump, used in a passive way and contrary to what has been said it does not leach Phosphate....again from Seachem's site...

"It does not leach phosphate or silicate back into the water and may be removed, dried, and returned to service until exhausted. Continuous use of small quantities is better than intermittent use of larger quantities."

Why would seachem say anything different...it's their own product.



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[Salty Cracker]

I actually like rowa, but I think it's really just wet bulk gfo.

I had a vet once that ignored the 50+ links I sent her, including FDA recall notices, about health risks to using "prescription diet". She responded by having the company send me a brochure: "see? It's safe, they say so!!".
(got a new vet. That was oakridge animal hospital).


***edit, just checked, they just had YET ANOTHER recall. Guess the lesson is "don't buy your dog food from the same company that makes your toothpaste and shampoo"

 

[Dan Cole]

Why would seachem say anything different...it's their own product.

I've got an open mind...can you point us to anything to suggests it's not true? I'm thinking their competitors would be all over it, if it wasn't.

 

[Janice]

I USED PHOSNET (a small 50g mesh bag of Phosguard) in my son's 32G AIO tank two weeks ago and it very gradually brought the P04 down to perfection. All of our parameters are now bang on. It is very good for a small tank where you cannot have a reactor. I also bought some Rowa and mesh bags to try for the future as required.

 

[skybreezy]

Why would seachem say anything different...it's their own product.



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My thoughts exactly