Cleaning Driftwood

[gabbagabbahey38]

Hello,

I've come across a beautiful, large piece of driftwood in the past year, but I've been afraid to put it in my tank, as I don't really know where it's been. I know it's been in a tank with frogs years ago. Is there anyway I can completely clean this thing so that I can put it in my tank? It's been out of water for years now. I've got a pleco and I know he'd enjoy it...

Thanks,
Alex

 

[Caprichoso]

Give it a very good scrub with hot water, rinse it down and put it in the tank. As long as it's not been stored in some dodgy place it should be A-OK and your pleckie will love it!

 

[gabbagabbahey38]

what do you mean by dodgie? It's been in a basement storage room for years...

 

[200sx]

give a scrub and to make sure boil it will make sure its safe

 

[raptorrex]

Hello,

I've come across a beautiful, large piece of driftwood in the past year, but I've been afraid to put it in my tank, as I don't really know where it's been. I know it's been in a tank with frogs years ago. Is there anyway I can completely clean this thing so that I can put it in my tank? It's been out of water for years now. I've got a pleco and I know he'd enjoy it...

Thanks,
Alex

give it a good soak. then a good scrub with hot water.

give a scrub and to make sure boil it will make sure its safe

boiling is neither effective. nor good for the wood. as with all COOKING, it breaks down the wood. but it will not fall apart, right away. just over time and quicker than if it had not been boiled. if you want to kill all possible bugs, you need a heat of OVER 150f! indeed up to the point of organic combustion .

 

[This Old Spouse]

+1

Don't boil it or it will break down eventually.

 

[Caprichoso]

what do you mean by dodgie? It's been in a basement storage room for years...

Lol, sorry, what I mean is if it's been in an area that is like a garage or something where poisonous products could have been leaking, etc..it's been in your basement so I'm sure it's fine. Scrub it and it's good to go. You could try soaking it in your bathtub if you're worried about it floating in your tank and if you want some of the tannins to release but otherwise if not, scrub, rinse and put in your tank.

 

[gabbagabbahey38]

okay, I'm soaking it in a bucket of warm water now for a while. What should I use to scrub it with? How many times should I soak it before I put it in the tank?

 

[Caprichoso]

okay, I'm soaking it in a bucket of warm water now for a while. What should I use to scrub it with? How many times should I soak it before I put it in the tank?

Do you have a bristles brush? Gently scrub with that. Soak it until it sinks and the tannins have decreased. Change the water every day. Could take a couple of weeks.

 

[gabbagabbahey38]

Well I've been soaking it and scrubbing it daily... It seems as if there's a thick black coating all over the wood. When I scrub it, the black coating starts to come off and looks like black ink on my fingers. As the wood becomes cleaner, I can see a wood color starting to show up. Is this normal?

 

[StandbySetting]

Just give it a quick rinse and remove any algae then put it in your tank.