Drift Wood

[zackish]

How long should I let my driftwood soak for?
I have 2 large pieces and I have been changing the water every day.

[A340]

How long should I let my driftwood soak for?
I have 2 large pieces and I have been changing the water every day.
Why and where are you soaking it?

[zackish]

Why and where are you soaking it?

Just in a bucket with water and I had read to soak it to get all the tannite I think it's called out....

[A340]

Keep changing the water daily and soaking until the water colouration is to your acceptable liking. However, this depends on the wood and size.

[Lady Hobbs]

I let mine soak for about a week then put it in the tank to soak there. Regular water changes cleared the water. The tannins don't hurt the fish at all and gives a mysterious dark color. Very sexy, I thought.

If your driftwood is floating, it may never sink. I got bogwood but mistakenly allowed it to dry out. Now it will never sink and I must glue it to a pieces of slate and pile rocks around it to use it.

If you can pull wood from under water (bogwood) it will sink like a rock but driftwood that's been floating may never water log.


Edit: I just read you got the malaysian wood. Just add it to the tank. It won't hurt a thing.

[cocoa_pleco]

you can just clean it. the tannins look really cool if you dont wash them. else, soak and rinse for a couple of weeks

[willisrad]

I heard somewhere that boiling the wood helps it to absorb water and become less boyant, and also helps in getting some of the tannis out.

[Lady Hobbs]

It does if you have a pot large enough. Most of us don't have that. You can also pour boiling water over the wood in a large garage can or at least, the hottest water that comes from your tank. If you found the wood yourself, dump a bunch of salt in the water to kill any bugs. If you bought the wood and it's been already processed, it probably won't need that.

I just used regular household salt. You don't need to use your tank salt for killing bugs.

[fraley]

Had my driftwood soaking in a bucket for about a month and it still didnt sink! So i weighted it down with a couple of stones, now after about two months it finally stays down of its own accord.. : - )

[zackish]

I have 2 pieces of driftwood. One smaller one that looks like a miniature tree stump and a larger one about 15 inches. They both sink and I have been changing the water every day.

[A340]

I have 2 pieces of driftwood. One smaller one that looks like a miniature tree stump and a larger one about 15 inches. They both sink and I have been changing the water every day.
Keep it soaking until the colouration of the water is to your liking. Tannis won't hurt your fish, but it does murk up the water. Some people (as stated above) like it, others don't, it's a matter of personal taste. Personally, I only like it in a heavily planted tank, it really adds to the natural effect IMHO. If you have a tank with some decorations and a few plants, I find it makes the water look dirty.

You can add them into the tank at any time (as suggested above), if it still murks up the water and you don't like it, just take them out and soak a bit longer.

[marcryan11]

all of the "driftwood" we have ever used ended up leaching into our tank and discoloring it. Eventually the wood got this fluffy slime stuff all over it so we tossed it. We found some African Root at our store here. It's very dense and very pricey ($5 a pound), but it hasn't caused us a bit of problems yet.