Wow, Tom, what an answer, thank You so much, I really really appreciate it!!

I understand that fishies only will never be able to support good macrogrowth, I have been keeping FW "high-tech-CO2"-tank for a couple of years with your EI-method, and it worked like a charm with KNO3, KH2PO4 and Traces. It was challenging to keep the CO2 levels high enough, but I understand everyone falling into that trap now and then.

Anyway, as I said, I fully understand that only fishpoo and ammonia from their gills cannot support good macrogrowth. Due to my background as plantnerd in freshwater I was cocky enough to say to reefers here in Sweden that even macroalgae can strip saltwater clean of nitrates and phoshpates much better then any skimmer and phospatresins. Nobody - except one guy that professionally worked with algae/fish for a living - believes me. Nobody.

I told reeffolks here that if one has a densely planted refugie, that is as big as the show tank with fish, one gets such low levels of phospates and nitrates that the corals will colour up the same way, if not better, as if one had a skimmer and a phosphatresin. Many people there think I'm an idiot suggesting it. It gets worse when I'm telling ppl that in order to get phospates down one has to dose KNO3. And they think that I am a complete fool when I tell 'em that it wouldn't hurt to dose just a little little tiny bit of KH2PO4 to keep the macroalgae, that in turn consume ammonia and phosphates from fish and fishfood.

I feel quite confident that macroalgae - just like freshwater plants - shouldn't be underestimated, but I still would like to hear Your opinion: would it suffice with a refugie that is as big as show tank to be able to keep the nitrates and phosphates very very low without skimmer/phospatresins?? (if one wanted those levels to be very low thats is). Or is it even enough with a much smaller refugie than the show tank, and still not use any skimmer/phosphateresins?