Driftwood and Rocks

[Falconwithaboxon]

Hello guys,
I am starting to decorate my new tank. All I have currently is the sand. I'm am doing heavily planted with driftwood and rocks. I was wondering if I could use any wood for the driftwood, so long as I clean it right. I live next to a couple rivers and a large lake so I have a lot to choose from, so lots to choose from. I live in Southeast Michigan if that helps at all. If I need to be careful, where might I buy some for not much money? I would love to go to the local fish store but it's just too expensive.

I have a similar issue with rocks. I can find stuff around me very easily but not sure if that would be safe. If not safe, anywhere that is rather cheap? The cheapest rocks at my local fish store is $12 a pound, which seems insanely high.

Thank you!

 

[Wills]

You can scavenge wood and rocks but you have to be careful. Wood is the hardest to do as you dont know what pollutants its been exposed to and they can soak into the wood only to be released in your tank later. Rocks are a bit easier you just have to give them a good scrub and to be extra careful you can do a vinegar test on them. Put a few drops of vinegar on the rock and if it fizzes its no good but if it just runs off or settles like water then you are probably ok.

Wills

 

[FishNturt808]

If the wood is small enough it’s a good idea to boil it first. Not only does that kill all the stuff already living on the wood, but it also helps remove some of the tannins that will otherwise turn your tank a tint of yellow/brown. Which I guess has no ill-affect on the fish, just your viewing pleasure

 

[Fishmar]

if you're near Roseville check out Flower Barn Sea World they have decent driftwood selection usually.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I'm pretty unscientific about this, but I've had good results. Here's what I do: If the wood is on land, I don't use it unless I know it's a non-toxic species, and unless it's been dead long enough to have lost all its bark. For driftwood, if the wood has been in the water long enough to be waterlogged and/or bleached, and lose all its bark, I figure it has probably leached out whatever toxins might have naturally been in the wood, so I don't worry about it. But really, pine resin is the most toxic thing going in our wood, so it isn't a huge problem.

Wills raises a good concern about man-made toxins, though. That isn't an issue where I get my wood, because the water is clean, but in MI it might be.

I don't boil my wood. If it was in the water, I give it a good scrubbing with a wire brush and let it bake in the sun for a couple weeks to kill off any aquatic critters that might be hitchhiking. If it was on land, I rinse it off and pop it in.

Same thing with rocks. I either run them by my geologist friend or give them the vinegar test to make sure they're chemically inert (we have a lot of granite around here, and it's great). Then, if it's from the creek, I give it the old scrub-and-sun treatment and we're good to go.