Driftwood Prep

[flyhawk]

i found a piece of wood i really like and want to put in my aquarium
it is soaking in water and alot of tannins and all the bugs are out of the wood
its been in the water for about 4 days, and is almost water logged
should i put in bleach?
there is a little bit of bark left on the piece that is really hard to get off. should i worry about it?
How long should i soak it for?
not to sound impatient but i want to start on my aquarium project!!!(excited)

 

[flyhawk]

i dont mind tannins, just throwing that out there.

 

[the biffster]

i used to put in the water
but out side with a brick
on top of it it floated i
used to leave it for a few months
that way if its been in salt water
it will leach out of it you
could bleach it but i wouldn't
just soak it and boil it or is it shop bought
or is it proper drift wood of the beach

 

[flyhawk]

its a root and stump from tree
i am going to scrub with boiling water then poor the rest over it and keep soaking.
like i said it is nearly waterlogged

 

[the biffster]

its a root and stump from tree
i am going to scrub with boiling water then poor the rest over it and keep soaking.
like i said it is nearly waterlogged

yeah that would be ok i like
to keep changing the water myself
do you know what tree it was

 

[flyhawk]

oak probably
, maybe elm

 

[afishdude]

As long as it is not pine you should be ok. I usually bake it in the oven at 200 for a couple hours before I soak it. This will kill any bacteria in it, and dry it out completely. Once you soak it, it would be pointless to put it in the oven. DO NOT bleach it, unless you want an extremely light colored piece of wood.

Make sure all the bark is off it, I usually sand mine with some 300 grit sand paper after soaking to remove the outer skin of the wood. This will bring out the natural grain and make it look much better.

 

[flyhawk]

ok thanks

also there seems to be some white stuff growing on the side of the wood in some spots?