Before I kill off my fish Is this wood safe?

[R84achey]

I have these pieces of wood that were used in my spider tank and I’m wondering if it’s safe to use in my aquarium. I have a feeling the one at the front isn’t as it’s very light and feels and possibly porous. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I know it will need to be thoroughly cleaned first x

 

[Colin_T]

no idea if it's safe, where did you get it from?

 

[R84achey]

no idea if it's safe, where did you get it from?

It was used in my spider tank so it came from a local pet store. Would you advise sticking it in water for a while and see what happens?

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I definitely wouldn’t use the flat one... is the other one brittle or dry?

 

[R84achey]

I definitely wouldn’t use the flat one... is the other one brittle or dry?

Solid and dry x

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Solid and dry x

I would remove the fake plants and keep it submerged in water for some time. If it is falling apart after you waterlogged it, then it’s best not to add it to your tank.

 

[Slaphppy7]

All pieces should be fine, just scrub well in hot tap water first.

 

[R84achey]

All pieces should be fine, just scrub well in hot tap water first.

I’m going to dump them both in a bucket each and see what happens and also test the ph of the water x

 

[Slaphppy7]

I’m going to dump them both in a bucket each and see what happens and also test the ph of the water x

Can't hurt, good idea...

 

[Ellie Potts]

I have these pieces of wood that were used in my spider tank and I’m wondering if it’s safe to use in my aquarium. I have a feeling the one at the front isn’t as it’s very light and feels and possibly porous. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I know it will need to be thoroughly cleaned first x

After soaking and maybe boiling if they're still together I'd say you're good. I'd boil them a few times

 

[Uberhoust]

No one can really tell you if a piece of wood is safe or not from a picture, we can only give you the likely hood of it being safe or otherwise. The biggest concern is whether we are introducing pathogen into our tanks, the second concern is whether the piece is going to leach material that will cause issues. Some leachate materials such as the tannic acid could be considered good.

All of that aside, both pieces look ok to me, meaning I would put them in my tank. The flat one looks to me like it is a type of bark. It is the piece I would watch. It looks well aged, but bark often has more stuff in in that can leach.

 

[Byron]

I'm on the same page as @Uberhoust here. No amount of washing/boiling/soaking is going to ensure safe wood. And boiling breaks down the fibres in all wood, causing it to fall apart/rot faster. Wash it, use an aquarium-only brush, fine. But that does not mean it is safe.

If you can remember the tag on the wood when you bought it, it should say safe for aquarium; if it is reptile-use wood, it may not be and should say so.

 

[R84achey]

I'm on the same page as @Uberhoust here. No amount of washing/boiling/soaking is going to ensure safe wood. And boiling breaks down the fibres in all wood, causing it to fall apart/rot faster. Wash it, use an aquarium-only brush, fine. But that does not mean it is safe.

If you can remember the tag on the wood when you bought it, it should say safe for aquarium; if it is reptile-use wood, it may not be and should say so.

Thanks guys I’m going to give it a scrub and a soak and then see what happens. However I am looking out for 2nd hand aquarium safe pieces. I’ve had my tank all of 6 weeks and already I’ve decided to get rid of all the tacky things and go au natural x