Louey wrote:
Hmm. I saw a jug of this stuff at the LFS last night.
The LFS say's that it did HELP him rid a tank of green hair algea
the observation in the first sentence explains the account in the second, and vice versa(read-sales pitch :wink: )-or coincidental, anecdotal observation, with a conclusion implying a cause and effect relationship that is absolutely unproven/unsubstantiated.
It claims to use bacteria to naturally consume phosphates and nitrates. The directions seemed straightforward and honest.
to the best of my knowledge, all bacteria produce phosphate as a waste product(krebs cycle/cellular respiration), and no bacteria consumes more phosphate than it excretes-i'd say the directions are misleading and absolutely dishonest.
it is snake oil.period-most, if not all, of these types of products are.in fact-having worked in lfs's, and seen many different 'aid additive' products come and go-i will vehemently state that 90% or better of ALL products sold for this industry are completely unnecessary, or ineffective, for the hobbyist, with perhaps the exception of making him/her feel better from the act of spending money in an attempt to solve a symptom,instead of treating the root cause of, a problem. :roll: :wink:
lfs's that push these products do it for one reason only-it helps them earn a living(or they don't know any better than to get their education from product labels as source info :wink: )
if hobbyists would do just a little research/self education on what the real causes of algae growth are, and the methods available to remove these, completely-the hobby would be much easier, and cheaper for the hobbyists. :wink:
Louey-this is in no way a flame directed at
you 
-just using your relayed statements of the product and the lfs to make a point(and flame them! :twisted: )
fwiw-it would probly be good advice(i hope!)for all hobbyists to avoid buying anything that has a 'claim' on the label-without scientific tests/results/data to support that claim-marc weiss fans-take notice! :wink:
Nibbs wrote:
Since this product is supposed to fight for nutrients in the water, how will mushrooms, leathers, and others handle this treatment?
Nibbs-
it doesn't-period.
get rid of the nutrients through proper management techniques-much cheaper and easier-only requires patience, and a little bit of self education.. :wink:
good luck, and keep us posted
hth
