The Cycle of Blooms

[ReeferNoob4ever]

I can tell I'm on to the point where I get dusty brown algae. I don't have to worry about my turbos starving anymore :dance:

I have a HOB filter that houses 3 filters. One big one for chunks containing carbon, a bio filter and a small sponge filter at the spout that can be switched. One will remove phosphate.

Would it hurt to put the po4 filter in while my tank goes through its blooms?

 

[mcgyvr]

hurt.. probably not at this point..
Without knowing the details of said sponges I can't really offer more than that..
Typically phosphate removing media is GFO (basically rust granules) that bind to phosphate essentially sucking it from the water and holding onto it and rendering it useless..
Sponges/biofilters are just to create surface area to allow bacterial to colonize..
But they can also create problems if you aren't ensuring that any accumulated "poop",etc.. is routinely cleaned from them..

In general mechanical filtration (sponges,etc..) do very little good in a saltwater tank except to potentially remove particles from the water for clarity purposes or during cleaning like right after you take a turkey baster to the rock to blow around the detritus,etc... Run the sponges then to collect all that then remove/clean right after and even take it out of service..
Other than that not many (that know better) use them all the time..

But things like carbon and "biomedia",etc.. can be ok in HOB filters..
You just don't want it to become a "rotting poop palace" that doesn't get cleaned..

 

[ReeferNoob4ever]

Lmao rotting poop palace!!

Duely noted sir.