I'm looking to put some mini-tree looking driftwood in my tank. the petland has some spiderwood but only 2 pieces that i didn't like. I did notice that they had some brancy looking driftwood for terrariums that would work. I'm wondering though, would that wood be aquarium safe? i didn't note what type of wood it is or if it was even noted.
I'd recommend searching around online for images of different types of wood used in aquariums that look similar/identical. Below are a couple links that may be useful in finding/identifying what you're looking for. Whatever you get, make sure to boil, rinse, and/or soak it before putting it into the tank.
Just about any wood is fine as long as it's dead and aged. Never put green wood in an aquarium.
I purchase my wood pieces through Blooms & Branches. They have great prices on Manzanita and "Ghost Wood"(sandblasted larger manzanita branches). You will need to sterilize them before adding them to your tank. I like to bleach and boil and then soak in Prime. I boil mine repeatedly to remove as much of the tannins as possible. Bleach kills anything the boiling didn't. Prime makes it safe.
thanks for the tips, guys. I'll do some looking around to see if i can find anything useful around the city.
Has anyone ever tried boiling the wood in a pressure cooker? it would get to higher temperatures, but i dont know if it'd help sink the wood or not, but if i find a piece of wood of good size i may give it a try.
I've never tried a pressure cooker, could work out fine I suppose but boiling for several hours is probably all you need. If the wood doesn't sink though after that, just weigh it down with rocks for several days/weeks until it is fully water logged. It will sink eventually!
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