# Adding driftwood



## Amie (Sep 15, 2010)

I collected some driftwood from the local beach and want to add it to my tanks. What would be the best things to do with it beforehand to ensure it is safe for the tanks?


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Boil it and then let it soak for a week or two.


----------



## Amie (Sep 15, 2010)

That's the kind of thing I was thinking. Any tips on knowing when for sure it's ready?

Also, what, if any, changes can I expect from my tank when I put it in??


----------



## Bill Pape (Oct 1, 2010)

Hi
Can anyone tell me what the driftwood would do to the PH or otherwise to the chemical balance of the tank?
Bill


----------



## Big Dog (May 17, 2010)

If you boil,clean it real good and soak it for a few weeks. It should be fine. Unless you got it out of the ocean where there will be alot of salt in the wood still. It should not change the PH as far as I know of. Alot of people like to get there wood sand blasted. This helps make it cleaner on the surfice. They do not just use any type of sand on it. So if you are going to do this. Make sure the person knows what he or she is doing fiirst.


----------



## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Of course there is always at least a small risk factor but I've done it a couple of times and it worked ok. I soaked and boiled it like has been said.


----------



## Amie (Sep 15, 2010)

A small risk factor of what?? What are the bad things that could happen??


----------



## korweabo0 (Dec 16, 2009)

Amie said:


> A small risk factor of what?? What are the bad things that could happen??


the only thing i can think of is probably the driftwood giving a yellow tint to the water.


----------



## Bill Pape (Oct 1, 2010)

tannins are acidic


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

No real risk as long as you boil.


----------



## Niki7 (Aug 16, 2010)

Driftwood can sometimes change the ph slightly, but not that much. I think it depends too how much wood you put in there. It is acidic so it can lower the ph. I just put a piece of African wood in there about a month ago. I soaked it for a week beforehand, changing the water every day. Some people soak it much longer but I didn't want to wait. It did change the color of my water for a couple weeks, made it orangish brown. The fish don't care though, and with water changes and time, the tank is much better. And the fish have LOVED the wood. Other thing is that plants can be trained to root into and around driftwood which looks pretty cool too. Good luck!
Niki


----------



## Amie (Sep 15, 2010)

That the idea. To make it part of the overall aquascape. Some of the less interesting ones will probably end up holding moss for me and the others I'm hoping to have plants growing around them decoratively.


----------



## Bill Pape (Oct 1, 2010)

Thank You All! I have very hard water, so I wanted to bring down the PH/alkalinity. Probably wouldn't be a permanent solution if I have to make water changes. If any of you know a reference, I am interested in this topic. Thanks, Amie, for starting the thread.

Bill from Milwaukee


----------



## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Amie said:


> A small risk factor of what?? What are the bad things that could happen??


Some people say never use wood you collect yourself others do it all the time. On the whole I agree that with soaking and boiling it is usually safe. As I say I've done it myself without any problems. So I'm not saying not to do it just some factors to consider:

If you collect it yourself you probably don't know what kind of wood it is, some woods do contain harmful substances, but if it is long dead and well weathered that is not usually a problem. 

Possible parasites etc are taken care of by the boiling.

It's hard to know about pollutants like pesticides, oil, diesel the wood may have been exposed to.

The tannins will likely make your water a little yellow but that can be removed with charcoal if you don't like it. It's also likely to lower your ph slightly but that is not usually a concern. Soft wood will rot quickly so hard wood is usually used but not always. The first few weeks in the tank it might grow white fungus or slime but that seems to go away on it's own with time.


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Bill - try this. Adding driftwood would just add to it. The size of the tank will drive how much of a change it will make.
Sera Super-Activ Peat Granulate, 500gr. - AquaCave

Amazon.com: Fluval Peat Granules, 500 gram (17.6 oz): Kitchen & Dining


----------



## Archeryfreak (Oct 20, 2010)

how big of a pot would you need to git a big one in there! lol that could be really fun!


----------



## Amie (Sep 15, 2010)

I'm using a 8 gallon bucket. A couple of my bigger pieces are sticking out so in a week or so I'm going to switch the pieces around and soak the other side. It might not do much for getting it water logged so I might have to let it float in the tank for awhile but at least it should get rid of all the little nastys.


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I use the big plastic storage containers they sell. I fit multiple huge pieces in it. This only works for soaking of course. If you want larger pieces like I do that you will have wanted them boiled, then I suggest buying the pieces from a place that does all of that for you. Apethouse, site sponsor, sells awesome pieces and they do all the hard work for you.


----------



## Alasse (Mar 12, 2009)

I only boil managable pieces, larger pieces just go straight into the tank to soak.

As i get my wood from non water sources parasites are of little concern, land parasites drown from the soaking. I source wood from nowhere near crop paddocks, water courses, rivers etc, main roads/highways. This lessens the chance of the wood being contaminated.


----------

