I was just researching how to regenerate it. It looks like a headache, plus I don't know about buying lye. I think that's a meth lab ingredient. I remember years ago meth heads coming into my workplace asking if we sold "red devil lye" and they always had a crazy look in their eye when they said it. We soon pulled that product off the shelves. I've been using the BRS high capacity GFO, and changing it weekly. It's making a huge difference in my hair algae problem. It keeps getting less and less. But it's expensive.
you can make lye, don't have to buy it. It is made from tree bark I believe, back in the pioneer days.
Check the effluent from your reactor. Don't change until the effluent is no longer less than the tank. I don't usually have to change more often than once a month.
Ok good. Never thought to check it that way. I just always changed it once the phosphate started to climb. I can see how checking from the source would help an algae problem.