Bog Wood // Natural Wood

[lauraw]

Hi

Hope someone can help, i have 2 pieces of bog/ natural wood in my aquarium they have been there for about 3 weeks now. Before i put them in the tank i boiled them for bout an hour and then steeped them for 2 days. now i have noticed a brownish tinge to my water think its coming from the wood what can i do to stop this

 

[Haych]

apparently this is "tannins"

your filter should eventually even this out, but it isnt harmful to fish (so i am told)

 

[Mr Bliss]

The wood may keep leaching some color for months, or only for a week or two depending on luck. It'll also lower your pH a bit. This is only a problem if you really hate the brownish color. What you can do is take the wood out and boil it some more, like 6 - 8 hours, changing the cooking water every hour or so. Or put some carbon in your filter (this'll remove nutrients from the water column too, though).

Tannins supposedly do the same thing as the colloids included in many water conditioners: they help keep the fishes skin and gills healthy. Tannins also chelate metal ions, but it beats me whether this makes it easier or harder for plants to absorb iron, for example.

 

[DBridges]

I have a pretty big piece of bogwood in my 50 gallon tank, and I have not had any tannin problems so far (it's been in the tank a month now). I soaked it in a bucket outside for a month before I put it in the aquarium, and then I used carbon in my filter for the first week. So far, no discoloration to the water at all.

David

 

[iffles]

When I bought a piece of bogwood, i was so excited that i boiled it for 10 mins, rinsed it and put it straight in (big mistake). The next day the tank was brown and there was this white goo all over the wood, so i took it out, put carbon in the filter, scrubbed the goo off and put it in to soak for a month or so. Its still soaking to this day.... but on the bright side, its leaching virtually zero, but still turns it a bit tinted over a week or so. Hopefully it should be ready soon. carbon is meant to help remove the tanins, but for me it didn't really help (dunno why) so i just did usual water changes and it slowly got diluted.

 

[raptorrex]

Hi

Hope someone can help, i have 2 pieces of bog/ natural wood in my aquarium they have been there for about 3 weeks now.  Before i put them in the tank i boiled them for bout an hour and then steeped them for 2 days. now i have noticed a brownish tinge to my water think its coming from the wood what can i do to stop this

simple answer, you cant.(well for some time anyway) or remove the wood. oddly it seems to depend on the wood. bog wood, i find, for the most part gives off little tannins. (incidentally, tannins are not only not harmful. but may well be good for your fish. and a deffo good for inverts) but Mapani wood gives off loads. go figure .

i have never boiled or soaked any wood i have used. and whilst its true, i have had a small amount of "brown water", i have had no growth of any kind. could it be the act of boiling/soaking, that really is the cause? from my own experience, it seems it may well be. 

 

[Dave Spencer]

simple answer, you cant....

You can. Seachem Purigen.

Dave.

 

[Nick16]

yep purigen is the bees knees.

remember carbon in your filter is not good for your fertilisers (if you are dosing)

 

[three-fingers]

Meh. I'd just use carbon as a short-term solution if it bothered me at all.

Purigen is expensive and a pain-in-the-*** to use properly IME, even though it works very well.

Carbons effects on most ferts is minimal compared to the tannins it will take out.

As mentioned though, tanins are generally a good thing.

 

[Mr Bliss]

I wonder if Purigen is in fact essentially macroporous silica gel, also sold as "cat litter pearls". The advertised properties are a very close match.

 

[raptorrex]

simple answer, you cant....

You can. Seachem Purigen.

Dave.

a much cheaper option would be carbon, (oops, i now see three-fingers has made this point) but it still takes time. i doubt its effect on Ferts, is even relevant. as the carbon would/should be a short (ish) term thing.


as the tannins diminish with time. the point as i see it is, why bother? cost and time, diverted to something that does your water, no harm.