bogwood problems?

[njbower]

Hi

I'm in the process of running-in a small aquarium (27 litres) for my flat. I setup about 12 days ago As part of the decor, i bought a piece of bogwood from my local aquatics supplier - (and the info that came with it said it was safe to use in a task, merely to rinse before placing in the tank).

Understandily the water was cloudy for a first 2-3 days and then everything started to clear and look fine. However, over the last few days the water has again gone very murky and taken a rusty-brown tinge (i'm assuming from the bogwood?). Yesterday I noticed that there was a fair amount of sludgy looking algae growing on the surface of the wood....and only on the wood.

My question is, will this murkiness clear? I haven't used real plants however but the filter seems to be working fine....so i'm assuming the water is sufficiently oxygenated. How long does it take to get clear, clean-looking water?



Any help is appreciated

Cheers

Nick

 

[Mr Miagi]

Water can take months to clear if the colour we are talking about is indeed tannin from the bogwod.

Try boiling the wood in a large container to remove tannins. They release much faster in warmer water! Alternatively you could pre soak the wood in a bath of water for several weeks frequently changing the water. Another method is top add activated carbon to your filter or a bag in your tank to extract the tannin.

Hope i helped some!

 

[njbower]

That's a massive help, thanks!!



Nick

 

[canarsie11]

Also fish seem to love it

 

[One_Trick_Pony]

yeah the only problem is it looks unsightly doesn't harm fish as i undertsand

 

[njbower]

That's always good to know. The reddish murk that i've currently got would mean that fish would be hard to spot if i'd put them in now!! I'm going to run-in the tank for plenty more time, and give my bogwood a really good soak in hot water for a while.



Nick

 

[Rich T]

They way I get round this is to buy the wood which the lfs already has in a tank

My local Pets At Home store has all of its wood and wood/rock with plants in all in there fish display tanks so its pre soaked and doesnt give off any colouring.

I picked up a large piece of bogwood today with three well established plants growing out of it for £25. Yes its a little pricey but it takes away the hassel of having to boil it and soak it yourself

Looks really nice in my tanks too

 

[boxman]

Boil it will get rid some of the tannins.

I found using a product called polyfilter (filter wool) removes all tannins - I have a large piece of bogwood in my tank and never had problems since using that product.

Hope that helps.

 

[Teelie]

They way I get round this is to buy the wood which the lfs already has in a tank

My local Pets At Home store has all of its wood and wood/rock with plants in all in there fish display tanks so its pre soaked and doesnt give off any colouring.

I picked up a large piece of bogwood today with three well established plants growing out of it for £25. Yes its a little pricey but it takes away the hassel of having to boil it and soak it yourself

Looks really nice in my tanks too

I can tell you right off the danger of catching a disease from the fish is high so you're trading one problem for another. That said, PetCo here has the same deal, only they just have plants on wood in their tank so there's less chance of disease. I intend to buy some soon for three of my tanks.

 

[njbower]

Thanks for everybody's help.



Nick