Driftwood

[bristlenoseitplecoman]

Hey all! I have been thinking about getting driftwood. I had to get rid of my root because a cory cat got stuck in it. I have heard that it is beneficial to most fish and that it will soften your water a little. I have 180+ hardness and 8.2 Ph so any little bit would make my amazonian fish happier. I have seen it at my LFS but I am unsure of it and it is expensive( It is at the mall). I have also seen alot of it around the edges of lakes and it is natural and free. I have also seen it online. My questions are should I get driftwood and where?

 

[Aqua Tom]

Driftwood. bogwood, mopani wood etc are all excellent additions to a tank. They give the tank that "natural" look. Personaly I would not buy any but I would not get any from your local river. If its from a river you just dont know whats lurking upstream, mecury plant or paint manufacturers etc.
Get a bit from you local woods or forest, pick up a dead piece thats on the floor & chuck it in a water butt or tank for a few weeks, you will have to strip the bark before it goes in the tank.


Tom

 

[Primous]

Ebay usually has some good selection some of which will be pre soaked/used and sink automatically.

 

[bristlenoseitplecoman]

I live in the Black Hills A national forest and the lake is in the middle of it so i think it would be safe for my tank or else the government has not been protecting the forest enough.

 

[Aqua Tom]

I live in the Black Hills A national forest and the lake is in the middle of it so i think it would be safe for my tank or else the government has not been protecting the forest enough.

Ok, but I would still be a bit wary. After all it is a piece of your local aquatic wildlife, (you dont know what will be living in/on it), that you will be introducing into the enclosed enviroment of your tank.


Tom

 

[gearhead65]

I live in the Black Hills A national forest and the lake is in the middle of it so i think it would be safe for my tank or else the government has not been protecting the forest enough.

Ok, but I would still be a bit wary. After all it is a piece of your local aquatic wildlife, (you dont know what will be living in/on it), that you will be introducing into the enclosed enviroment of your tank.


Tom

This^^^^^

However, if you do get one in the forest, lake, etc, make sure you boil it.

 

[bristlenoseitplecoman]

I was going to boil it no matter what to sterilize it and get rid of the tannins. In the mall pet store though the pieces have cobwebs on them and are on the floor. Should I still go there and just boil it longer? What does This ^^^^^^^ mean? Also will my BN pleco nibble on it like they say it will?

 

[Jayladd]

My clown pleco shreds mine to bits so I'm sure yours will love it too. Makes a hell of a mess though. My pleco eats wood as part of its diet though, won't eat any veggies or algae wafers I put in! Not sure about BN pleco I'm afraid.

 

[hanny93]

Dont boil the wood, this will cause the wood to break down even quicker and will foul your water when you eventually put it in.

You also said that you wanted to get rid of tannins.
The only way to do that is to pour hot water over the wood, scrub scrub scrub and then leave it in a bucket, changing the water daily or twice daily. this will reduce the amont of tannins in your wood.

MOst plecos eat wood

 

[Louiseness]

As far as I'm aware BN plecos (and clown plecos) NEED wood to help their digestive system function correctly (I used to feed mine the SERA wafers which have wood added actually). So yes, your pleco will eat it and it will be beneficial for it.

 

[bristlenoseitplecoman]

With the piece of wood i am looking at I don't think I could boil it but I will wash it with hot water to get rid of the tannins.