Using driftwood from the lake

[hartgirl]

So I don't know if this is the right section to post in, but here goes...

I'm planning a 55 gallon, medium light planted tank. I want to use a lot if driftwood, some rock, and lots of live plants for a natural looking angel fish setup.

I went to a local lake today and found some cool pieces of wood to possibly use, but I have questions!!

1. Is there a "right" or "wrong" type of wood to use? Some that I found was still wet from the water, others dry. Some look like different types of wood (I have no idea what kind!)...

2. I know I can boil and/or bake the driftwood to get rid of little critters and potential pathogens, parasites, etc....what do I do with pieces that are too large to bake or boil??

3. Once the wood is ready and everything else is planned, I plan on moving the fish and water (and one piece of wood already in use) in my 30 gallon over to the 55. Should I wait and see if anything weird leeches out of the new wood that affects pH on it's own first (before adding the fish)?

Thanks in advance! I've never tried found driftwood not bought at a store!


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[Mebbid]

So I don't know if this is the right section to post in, but here goes...

I'm planning a 55 gallon, medium light planted tank. I want to use a lot if driftwood, some rock, and lots of live plants for a natural looking angel fish setup.

I went to a local lake today and found some cool pieces of wood to possibly use, but I have questions!!

1. Is there a "right" or "wrong" type of wood to use? Some that I found was still wet from the water, others dry. Some look like different types of wood (I have no idea what kind!)...

2. I know I can boil and/or bake the driftwood to get rid of little critters and potential pathogens, parasites, etc....what do I do with pieces that are too large to bake or boil??

3. Once the wood is ready and everything else is planned, I plan on moving the fish and water (and one piece of wood already in use) in my 30 gallon over to the 55. Should I wait and see if anything weird leeches out of the new wood that affects pH on it's own first (before adding the fish)?

Thanks in advance! I've never tried found driftwood not bought at a store!


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1 - Anything soft, sappy, or rotted should be avoided. Once it's dry try pressing a fingernail into the wood. If it sinks in then it's a no go. The more well weathered the piece of wood is, the better.

2 - You could let them dry thoroughly in the sun if they are too big to bake or boil. The chances of a parasite surviving the drying process is low. You could also boil water and use a rubbermaid tote to pour over the wood and let it woak for a while.

3 - I wouldn't worry about it. Carbon or a water change will remove tannins form the wood. If the wood is well weathered there should be minimal leeching anyways.

 

[hartgirl]

Ok gotcha. I got a TON of wood so hopefully I'll have some useful pieces!! I might have pics of a few pieces in the am for clarification. Possibly...

Thanks!


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[Fishfur]

Another thing you can do with bigger pieces is simply soak them for awhile. A big bucket or tub, garbage can, whatever is big enough, will do. This will leach excess tannins out of wood that's not waterlogged, and for dry wood, it will water log it so it will sink and stay down.

You can put some bleach into soaking water if you want. It will lighten the colour some, but it will also prevent fungal growth. Once the wood's in a tank, the colour difference between bleached and unbleached wood is not that much. The bleached layer is also quite thin, it won't bleach the entire thickness of wood.

If wood still has bark, remove it. Bark will just rot eventually.

 

[hartgirl]

Ok sounds good thanks everyone! Is there a "wrong" type of wood, or is all wood ok for the most part? (As far as the type of wood, not quality)


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[Fishfur]

I have read that using softwoods is not a great idea. This would include willow and most evergreens. Some of them rot too quickly, some have resins that may be toxic. Wild gathered wood needs to age at least a year if it was green when you got it, to allow the sap to dry out. There are compounds in the sap of some trees that could be toxic, so better safe than sorry.

I used to gather branches from the road side when the tree trimming crews left them and just put them in the corner of my balcony for the winter, 'til the following summer. Sun and wind do the trick. Then I soak them to get the bark off if it's hard to strip off. Next time, I think I'll try stripping bark while it is still green, I suspect it will be easier.

 

[treemanone2003]

I have read that using softwoods is not a great idea. This would include willow and most evergreens. Some of them rot too quickly, some have resins that may be toxic. Wild gathered wood needs to age at least a year if it was green when you got it, to allow the sap to dry out. There are compounds in the sap of some trees that could be toxic, so better safe than sorry.

I used to gather branches from the road side when the tree trimming crews left them and just put them in the corner of my balcony for the winter, 'til the following summer. Sun and wind do the trick. Then I soak them to get the bark off if it's hard to strip off. Next time, I think I'll try stripping bark while it is still green, I suspect it will be easier.

Using softwoods is a very bad idea. Although they tend to dry out quicker than hardwoods, they still contain enough sap much longer than hardwoods that it will create future problems. Willow is definitely part of the problem trees not to use as it will take at least 18 months to properly dry out. A healthy willow is capable of "drinking" 700+ gallons per day. Definitely stay away from ALL evergreens. This should include Larch trees as well since they are deciduous conifers.

It's a 50/50 shot when de barking wood yourself. When the bark falls off by itself, the wood has reached it's lowest point of moisture content. Generally 5-17% and considered to be "seasoned". Maples and Birch's tend to dry out quickest. Oaks and Hickory take the longest. Fruit trees, Apple, Cherry, Pear, etc, fall in between.


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[Fishfur]

I try to stick to hardwoods myself, for collected material. Maple mainly, a bit of oak.

Nice tip about bark coming off once the maximum dryness is reached. So far, that's taking more than a year stored outside, for the branches I've collected. Now they're in storage, no temp control, so I'll see when I get to the point I want to use them. Longer storage surely won't do any harm.

 

[hartgirl]

I found a bunch out by the lake that were under water at some point. The lake is very very low now (yay California drought) so I'm sure the wood is very old, but I have no idea what kind it is! I know one of the pieces had bark but it came off very easily and left a beautiful red/brown marbled color underneath. Would pictures help identify them?


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[Fishfur]

IDing wood after it's leafless, debarked, weathered and soaked is usually pretty difficult. What sort of trees are in the area ? It will most likely be one of the local species. If it's really well weathered and still nice and hard, it's probably just fine to use. I'd still soak or boil it some, just to be sure no critters are living in it, and get any dirt or whatnot off it.

 

[hartgirl]

Here is some of the wood I found after I sprayed it off initially on the lawn....if you can tell what it is, some looks harder than the rest. The wood that is a little softer you can scratch with your finger while it's wet ....is that a problem? I have no idea what kind of wood this is....


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[Brookster123]

That's some spectacular dw there! Nice work!! Can you bake it in the oven or on the driveway for a few days??

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[hartgirl]

I'm going to cut some of the large pieces and they'll probably fit in the oven ...that cool long dark piece in I think the second pic that has the awesome hollow channel to swim out of is too big so I'll probably put it the sun for a bit or put it in some long container and at least pour boiling water over it. I have a really cool root piece that will be my centerpiece (I think) in my 30 gallon that will become a 75 (or 90!) gallon ....here's a before and after pic of right when I attached java moss and now...boy does it need a trim lol


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[hartgirl]

Oops here's now...it's really dark but that's just the camera ....


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[Fishfur]

Some really nice pieces. Even if they're a bit soft on the outside, if they're hard in the middle they should be ok. If you're not sure, try poking or pushing something like a screwdriver or icepick into them or break off a small end bit. If either is easy to do, might be a bit too decayed to use, otherwise, probably they're ok. They certainly look well weathered, which is what you want.

Very nice piece with the moss on. Cool.

 

[hartgirl]

Some really nice pieces. Even if they're a bit soft on the outside, if they're hard in the middle they should be ok. If you're not sure, try poking or pushing something like a screwdriver or icepick into them or break off a small end bit. If either is easy to do, might be a bit too decayed to use, otherwise, probably they're ok. They certainly look well weathered, which is what you want.

Very nice piece with the moss on. Cool.

Thanks for the input! I've been getting a bit here and there, I've got a few rocks to go with the driftwood for cories and a red tail shark to hide in but it's primarily going to be plants and driftwood...I'm picking up a 90 gallon tomorrow so I've gotta get this stuff cleaned ASAP!


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[hartgirl]

Some of the wood that looked totally dry and ready to go leaked some horrible smelling goop (I assume some sap trapped inside) while I was boiling it. What a mess!!!


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[Fishfur]

Yuck. But that's the reason it's best to boil it or soak it for some time first. You never know for sure what you've got when you gather it from nature.

 

[hartgirl]

Very true...I just used the branches so far. And my existing driftwood


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