Driftwood?

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Gibberwatt

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
Jul 14, 2014
Messages
226
Location
North Carolina
Hi peeps.

I recently went up to the mountains of Virginia, and in a mountain stream, discovered some nice logs that I felt would be nice additions to my tanks. However, I do not know the exact protocol on the safemaking of logs. I know that you should boil/sun them for a few hours, but is that to get rid of the tannins, or to get rid of the bacteria, or to get rid of the bad wood?
 
Hey!

I've done this sucessfully a few times. First you should scrub the driftwood to get rid of any debris and left over bark stuck to it, then boil it to clean off any bacteria. I'd boil it for about a half hour. Boiling it also helps remove tannis and makes it waterlog a bit faster (if it's not already). If the wood is too large to boil, you can get away with repeatedly pouring boiling water over it, making sure to throughly get each side. If you don't want tannins in your tank, soak it in a bucket, changing the water when it gets brown, until the water stays clear.
 
Preparing Driftwood

Hi peeps.

I recently went up to the mountains of Virginia, and in a mountain stream, discovered some nice logs that I felt would be nice additions to my tanks. However, I do not know the exact protocol on the safemaking of logs. I know that you should boil/sun them for a few hours, but is that to get rid of the tannins, or to get rid of the bacteria, or to get rid of the bad wood?

Hello Gibb...

I live in Colorado and pick up a lot of driftwood for my tanks. I just use the pressure nozzle on the garden hose and spray the piece really well and leave it out in the sun to dry for a few hours. I pick up some good rocks too. You'll need something to weight down the piece in the tank. I've never had any pieces leach tannic acid though. I just put them in the tank and arrange the rocks.

B
 
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