Mopani Wood

[Haveagojoe]

I managed to bargain down the price of a hefty lump of Mopani wood in my local MA, 5kg for a fiver not bad, so whats the best way to sort the leeching out or is just a waiting game, I've got it in a container and I'm changing the water every 4 or 5 hours but it dosn't seem to be leeching but I know as soon as I put it in my tank it will turn the water brown, so any ideas.

 

[soybean]

No need to change the water every 5 hours! It won't speed it up. If you're really bothered and don't want any tannins in the tank (although it's totally harmless to the fish and easily removed through water changes), leave it to soak for a few days and just change the water every day until the worst seems to be out.

 

[phishyphil]

+1

 

[jacko32]

leave it to soak over night if theres still no tannins in the water tomorrow then it most likely wont leech not every piece does it

 

[Mowbz]

As above, changing the water wont stop it, and some bits will continue leaching tannins for months. Some believe it nenver stops, its just such tiny amounts you dont see it.

Some fish atually prefer it, ad i quite like it too, but if you want to minimise it, leave it in for about a week and do a full water change. The amount it leaches decreases over time, and the first week or so is the worst of it.

Either that, or soak it first...

 

[minnnt]

I have to disagree somewhat... The use of hot water will remove them quicker as the water will go brown within a few minutes. Cold water will do pretty much zilch to it. As to how long it would take you to remove the tannins... probably about 6 months. lol. I just leave mine now, just soak it so it stands a better chance of sinking and thats it. Carbon in your filter will remove some, water changes will remove the rest over a period of time. But most fish prefer them and they can often give the ideal conditions for a black water setup.

 

[BigbruiserAl]

Minnnt is correct, the hot water will break down the fibres allow more tannis to come out in a shoter space of time. Bucket of hot tap water, change the hot water 24 hrs and do it for 3-4 days that will take out the worst.

Do NOT boil it it will leach for months if you do

 

[minnnt]

And cost you a fortune in gas and pans

 

[KISSfn]

My Mopani barely leeched at all. It was good to go after 2 days. Tank remained crystal clear after adding.

 

[thisguyek]

i was quite leary when i bought my hefty piece of wood. I didnt want my tank water turning colors at all... I soaked it for shy of 3 weeks, changing water every day. I heard hot water brings it out quicker, but never bothered with it.

long story short, when i added it to my tank, it still discolored the water.... BUT I COULDNT BE HAPPIER WITH HOW IT LOOKS!!!

After that, I made a gametime decision to add live plants, therefore changing to a different light perfect for plants. The combinations of these things has made for a beautiful tank! Its actually inspired me to change up my 10gal (once my 55 is sorted) to do the same. Excepet this time i dont plan on soaking the wood. rinse and dump straight in!!

It all comes down to personal preference though! Eventually the coloring will stop/minimize, but it may take months as others have stated. If your looking for a natural/planted looking tank, i wouldnt worry about it one bit!


hope it helped!

 

[soybean]

Come to think of it, I didn't soak the last piece of mopani I added at all. I scrubbed it with a nail brush in the sink and just plopped it in, haven't had much discolouration at all.

 

[Haveagojoe]

Well its in now and it hasnt leeched at at all, the ottos seem to like it they sort of just lie around on it, anyway thanks people for the advice.