Awesome bogwood but Wont Sink

[octopus44]

I found some really cool looking roots for my aquarium!

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The problems is that it floats. Since they are roots I thought that they would sink. But apparently not

Will it ever sink? If so how long do I have to soak it for?

[Drumachine09]

Use boiling water to get the tannins out, and then keep soaking it untill it soaks up enough water. If that fails, zip-tie or silicone it to a large peice of slate.

[octopus44]

Unfortunately the wood is to big to fit into a pot. Will soaking alone do the trick? How long does this usually take?

[cocoa_pleco]

You can soak alone in a bucket, but not all the tannin will be gone, tannin is just a little brown harmless tinge, soak it for 2 weeks and it should become water lodged

[Drumachine09]

Fill your tub with the hottest water that your tap will allow.

[octopus44]

I'll give that a try. I will boil some water in big pots and pour that in as well.

Thanks

[xoolooxunny]

I'll give that a try. I will boil some water in big pots and pour that in as well.

Thanks

or you could use this as an excuse to have a bonfire, thats good at heating up water in a metal trashcan:ezpi_wink1:

[sergo]

is that cedar? it kind of looks like it.

[octopus44]

or you could use this as an excuse to have a bonfire, thats good at heating up water in a metal trashcan:ezpi_wink1:

Great idea. Any reason for a bonfire is a good one.



I'm not sure what kind of wood it is but it is definitely not ceder. I'm still working on identifying what it is. Thanks for the concern.

[octopus44]

I soaked my driftwood in some really hot water today and a thick layer of a tan jelly-like substance was coating large portions of the wood.

Does anyone know what this is? Is this common when you soak wood?

[Algenco]

I soaked my driftwood in some really hot water today and a thick layer of a tan jelly-like substance was coating large portions of the wood.

Does anyone know what this is? Is this common when you soak wood?

Did you notice any odor? That could a pine root

[octopus44]

Did you notice any odor? That could a pine root

No there is no odor. Its not pine. The tree that it came from had a smooth reddish tinted bark.

[Lady Hobbs]

The tannins will leach into the water column for a period of time and it's really not a big problem. Makes the tank look a bit like an Amazon tank which I found appealing. Anyway, after several water changes the tannins will eventually work out. Another way to get rid of the tannins if you don't want them is to soak your wood in a LIGHT solution of bleach water, rinse very well and then soak in dechlorinated water. I would also add salt to this water to eliminate any bugs that may be living in it. Any salt is fine and doesn't need to be tank salt.

Bogwood sinks like a rock unless it's been allowed to dry out completely. Once it has dried out, it needs to be soaked again and sometimes if the wood is hardwood, soaked for quite some time.

Here is two pictures of bogwood that dried out before I got it in a tank. The first piece is a long root and it's glued to a piece of slate with some rocks helping it to anchor in place. Second picture is another piece (the upright piece) also glued to slate and anchored.

I am getting very little tannins from this wood (I don't use bleach). Not all wood is heavy in tannins like the Malaysian wood is. Those heavy in tannins should really be treated if using in a cichlid tank as they can lower the pH but I find not all that much.

Problem is with the cleaning, scrubbing with a brush and treating the wood is that it will have to be dried out again in order to attached to slate. I just put mine out in the sun for a few days before attaching.

[octopus44]

So the jelly-like substance is tannin? I didn't think tannins were that thick?

[Lady Hobbs]

Jelly-like? Tannins put a glow to the tank by turning the water a darkish tint. There is no jelly-like substance. If your wood is not very aged, you could have sap in it and can't use it.

I've noticed just in the last few days my tank was taking on the prettiest color and then it hit me. That wood I have glued to the slate is finally water logging and releasing the tannins. I simply love the Amazon look. I wish it would always look this way but unfortunately it won't unless I add some Black Water Extract which I plan to get for my other tanks. Plants like it too.