Instructions and Guidelines Prior to first use, rinse each 600 grams of Extrax Phos in ˝ US-gallon of purified water, then discard water; note that Extrax Phos material may become hot when first immersed in this water. Use 2 grams of Extrax Phos per 1 US-gallon of water in system and monitor phosphate concentration (“[PO43-]”) during usage. Apply Extrax Phos media as required to obtain and then maintain an immeasurable [PO43-]. It is time to replace Extrax Phos once the [PO43-] in the system either ceases to decrease (e.g. when the [PO43-] is >0.05 mg/L and is no longer falling) or begins to increase; this indicates complete media exhaustion. Slight changes in coloration of the media with usage do not necessarily indicate exhaustion and should not be used as a guideline for when to replace the media. The longevity of Extrax Phos is largely dependant upon the pre-existing phosphate concentration in the aquarium; the higher the initial concentration, the faster the material exhausts. Effectiveness of Extrax Phos is largely related to the reaction time it has with aquarium water; the longer the reaction time, the more effectively it will remove phosphate and silicate. In all cases, the use of a mechanical pre-filter to remove particulate organic material from water prior to its interaction with this media will inhibit biofouling and prolong effectiveness. Due to the friable nature of the material, use in a fluidized-bed filter is not recommended; instead, placement in a canister filter (active filtration) or 150 ěm mesh filter bag (passive filtration) are recommended. If choosing the latter approach, place bag in an area of medium-flow and turn bag over once during usage to shift the media and increase filtration effectiveness.
