Driftwood and Ph Questions...

[woofwoofgrrl]

I've been looking into driftwood as a way to bring down my PH. This research has left me with some questions that I haven't been able to find answers to -

I'm under the impression that it's the tannins released from the driftwood that cause the drop in PH. However all the advice I've seen say that one should soak or boil to remove the tannins since they discolor ones water. So my question is - once I've removed the tannins to the point of not discoloring my water, have I removed the PH lowering superpowers of the driftwood?

Also, if that is not the case, then does the drift wood lower the PH indefinitely or will it eventually run out of whatever give it this superpower?

Thanks!

 

[ejaramillo01]

driftwood and pH

I have a tank of 26G (Community fish), with two medium-large size pieces of driftwood. The tank was fully cycled before I added the fish. The tank has been running with fish for around 2 months now

In my experience: the pH has not changed (ever) with the driftwood.

And I don't want it to change, I'm just saying that my pH has been forever 7.4 in my tank.

Not sure how much supose to drop the pH

 

[tyspot1000]

You don't have to soak or boil the driftwood if you dont want to, in the fishes natural enviroment, tannins are natural to find.

Why people tell you to soak the driftwood, is because not many people like the yellow coloring of the water once the driftwood stays in the tank. But if you dont mind the wait, the yellow should go away in a few months.

The tannins make the the ph lower I believe.

Tyler

 

[mfdrookie516]

I have had driftwood in one of my tanks for over a year now... never has made the pH drop. It's either a myth, a certain type of driftwood, or tannins.

 

[tallchik77]

tannins leaching from driftwood lower your ph...soooo, boiling the driftwood and getting the tannins out will inturn, not lower the ph of your tank. if you clean your driftwood, and i mean CLEAN your driftwood so you don't introduce yucky bacteria into your tank, you can just put it straight in. you would have to really really scrub it though. probably everyday for a week or so. also, when driftwood isn't water logged, it will float, so you will have to attach rocks or something to it. i've heard of people using aquarium safe silicone to do this. it can take driftwood MONTHS to be completely water logged. also, the tannins will turn your water a brownish color, however, some people like that. good luck!

 

[drprowant]

but with the right lighting it will still be a lil yellow but not bad but yea it will float till it gets water logged the way i did it was put a few rucks on it it tuck me like three weeks to make it were it would stay down by it's self but good luck it is always a chance that what one thing that works for one will not take as long or it will take longer and it is always a gamble when dealing with these cute fragile lil creatures

 

[Coleallensmom]

If I understand correctly, driftwood can absorb minerals in your tank water which can alter your water's alkalinity and hardness. Alkalinity in your tank in preferred ranges buffers the water and reduces swings in pH. I have a very large piece in one of my tanks and over time my alkalinity when from moderate to low. My PH went from 7.4 to around 6.8.

 

[i3k]

Someone send this question to Myth Busters!

 

[BigJim]

Tannins are a type of weak acid. Removing them from the driftwood does lower it's ability to lower pH.

However, driftwood doesn't have much power to lower pH in the first place. If you placed it in RO/DI water, sure, you'd see a pH drop, but that's because RO/DI water doesn't have any buffers.

If you put driftwood in tap water, there are usually enough buffers to combat any pH drop caused by the tannins. pH is a really overrated water parameter anyways. Unless you're keeping really sensitive fish or trying to breed picky fish, I wouldn't worry about your tank's pH as long as it's pretty constant.