Using Bogwood From Brackish In Fresh Water?

[kev_kb]

Hi all,

I used to have a brackish tank with some pieces of bogwood in it. The tank is no longer and the pieces of wood have dried out. I now wish to use the wood in a fresh water tank, if I soaked them in water for a while would they be ok to use? I'm worried about the salt being absorbed by the wood.

Does anyone have any ideas about this?

Thanks

PS I have this is the right part of the forum for this question.

 

[nmonks]

Bogwood from a brackish tank will be just fine in any freshwater aquarium.

How big is the piece? Visualise the ratio of that volume compared with your tank. Even if it was solid seawater, it would still be (I would assume) a tiny proportion of your aquarium, and would thus barely effect the salinity in the freshwater tank.

If you were really paranoid, leave it in a bucket of water for a day or so, drain off the water, and that'll be fine. Lick the wood if you want, just to check it isn't salty anymore. But seriously, salt isn't going to hide inside the wood waiting to jump out and eat up your fishes.

Cheers,

Neale

 

[AMS]

Wonderful response nmonks, but licking the wood in a bit strange

I know this is off topic, but why do some people reccomend not keeping bog wood in brackish aquariums? Aside from the tannis (which really wouldnt have any effect on a well buffered brackish tank) I just cant see any other reason.

 

[nmonks]

AMS --

People sometimes say not to use bogwood in brackish water tanks on the assumption that the tannins will acidify the aquarium. Since most (though certainly not all) brackish water fish are acid-intolerant, the logic is sound.

However, assuming you have fairly salty water, and use some type of calcareous buffer in the filter or aquarium (coral sand, for example), then one or two pieces of bogwood will have minimal effect. Moreover, salt water buffers pH changes as well, so your regular 20% water changes each week should easily counteract any acidification in the aquarium due to the wood.

A lot of brackish water hobbyists use bogwood in tanks to create the mangrove swamp effect. The tannins colour the water nicely, and things like monos and scats look really nice in slightly tinted water. Glassfish positively thrive in such conditions, and their subtle markings become much more apparent.

Obviously, you do need to monitor pH on a regular basis, and in theory at least it would be risky to use a huge amount of bogwood in a small aquarium maintained at a low salinity and without regular water changes or any buffering filter medium.

In short, there's no real reason not to use bogwood in a brackish water tank.

Cheers,

Neale