Driftwood..DIY style

[ColeMan]

Originally Posted by customdrumfinishes

i also have wanted to put wierd woods in my tank, only thing i have found to do is coat any wood with epoxy resin to seal it from leeching and rotting. i dont like the brown/black water look myself. this is 100% safe for the fish. go look at any diy backgrounds with concrete and epoxy resin and see there using marine grade epoxy to cover the concrete so theres no jump in ph and last forever. dont take my word go look for epoxy covered diy backgrounds in all these reef tanks

I'm not questioning your ability to successfully harbor some bizzare-o wood in your tank, especially if you seal it with resin; you could put just about anything in a tank if it were sealed with epoxy resin; pancakes, slippers... You never mentioned this before, so I didn't think it was an option. Personally, I'm not a fan of "sealed" driftwood, it just never looks quite right to me, although I have seen some pieces where it's almost unnoticeable.
Whatever the case, good luck with your project, and keep us updated as per your progress. I'd like to see some pics of the wood you've found, it sounds interesting. Maybe a new DIY thread - 'preparing weird woods for safe aquarium use'?!

[customdrumfinishes]

Originally Posted by ColeMan

I'm not questioning your ability to successfully harbor some bizzare-o wood in your tank, especially if you seal it with resin; you could put just about anything in a tank if it were sealed with epoxy resin; pancakes, slippers... You never mentioned this before, so I didn't think it was an option. Personally, I'm not a fan of "sealed" driftwood, it just never looks quite right to me, although I have seen some pieces where it's almost unnoticeable.
Whatever the case, good luck with your project, and keep us updated as per your progress. I'd like to see some pics of the wood you've found, it sounds interesting. Maybe a new DIY thread - 'preparing weird woods for safe aquarium use'?!

i was just tryin to say that if you wanna use something other than driftwood you can if its epoxy covered, you can get flat finish epoxy and you cant see a shine on it. i love the way real wood looks in the tank, just dont like the potenial ph flux,rot and tannis or high 9.99-14.99 a pound price tag on it. id love to see a pancake and slippers in a tank lmao.

[ColeMan]

See, i didn't know about the flat finish epoxy, I'm glad I learned...that explains why some "sealed" driftwood doesn't bother...I must agree with you on some of the drawbacks of real driftwood, but for me it's worth it. I may get some of that flat finish epoxy and seal a pancake and throw it in my tank for ya!

[customdrumfinishes]

yeah ask your local boat store about differnet epoxys, they have clear, amber and other colors to

[lauraleellbp]

Originally Posted by aquanut415

and unless you are using a regional common name for a plant that is not a cedar; both of these are decidious species which produce copious amounts of sap and would not be suitable for the tank.

LOL yep it's a common name- think Southern cedar swamps filled with gators and spanish moss, massive moss-covered trees with their roots sticking out of the water... most ppl who've been to the Southeast would know it? No clue what the scientific name is (suppose I could google but its been a long day). Pretty sure it's a cedar, though. Got plenty growing in my backyard.

General guidelines always have some exceptions. What I gave were general guidelines.

[DiscusIt'sWhats4DinneR]

i skimmed the articles that reccomend not using grapevine.

i have also read of a few people using it without problems.
i think it looks nice, and i will use it if there is a way it can be used without being problematic.

i am concerned about the mold, i could stick a small piece in the tank and see if the stuff i have does indeed get moldy, even after it is cooked and boiled and very very dead.

my home is located 1/4 mile south of the san juanquin river
the problem with that is that there are not many good access points; there are houses and golf courses all around the river bank. i dont really want to go prowling around the country club sunday afternoon on a scavenger hunt.

however i do know of a few places with fairly public access, and one day i may go there and collect a bag full of goodies.

anyway, sealing it with epoxy would work, but it sounds labor intensive.
mixing, letting it dry, cleaning up the mess, (newspaper, popsicle sticks, cardboard.......) the stuff gets everywhere too.

[customdrumfinishes]

Originally Posted by lauraleellbp

LOL yep it's a common name- think Southern cedar swamps filled with gators and spanish moss, massive moss-covered trees with their roots sticking out of the water... most ppl who've been to the Southeast would know it? No clue what the scientific name is (suppose I could google but its been a long day). Pretty sure it's a cedar, though. Got plenty growing in my backyard.

General guidelines always have some exceptions. What I gave were general guidelines.

your probably thinking of cypress knees sticking out the water? maybe

[247Plants]

Why not go up into the Coarsegold area? It isnt that far from you and Im sure you can find a bunch of stuff in that area....

[aquanut415]

Originally Posted by lauraleellbp

LOL yep it's a common name- think Southern cedar swamps filled with gators and spanish moss, massive moss-covered trees with their roots sticking out of the water... most ppl who've been to the Southeast would know it? No clue what the scientific name is (suppose I could google but its been a long day). Pretty sure it's a cedar, though. Got plenty growing in my backyard.

General guidelines always have some exceptions. What I gave were general guidelines.

well what good does a common name do anyone, especially when you still dont know what kind of tree you are really referring to? but you are pretty sure its cedar? if the tree you are telling people to seek out is a cedar, its a softwood conifer and is not suitable. your general guidelines in this case aren't even generally correct. infact you contradict yourself within the few posts you made in this thread alone.

[nonamesleft47]

In the east there would be eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), eastern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis) and bald cypress(Taxodium distichum), I think lauraleellbp was refering to bald cypress. They are refered to as soft woods in a lumber aspect but are not nearly as soft as say pine species. Also bald cypress is virtually indestructable and will last longer than anyone knows underwater. The only tree commonly refered to as yellow cedar is an extreme northern tree (Alaska, northern Canada)(Chamaecyparis nootkatensis) is the scientific name.

Any of the three are safe as I have used driftwood from them all (yes I have hauled driftwood from Louisiana and Minnesota to Kentucky). The bald cypress grows in swampy areas in the south and the white cedar fills that niche in the north. I don't have personal experience with western cedar so I can't comment. Also, the above comment is based on long dead driftwood, not green wood.

Any driftwood that isn't epoxy impregnated is going to decompose over time, it's what wood does, it doesn't matter if it's "iron" wood from 2,000 miles away or grapevine from your back yard. I use bristlenose plecos in all of my tanks and they eat this layer down (coming out as sawdust on the other end). Eventually (years) the wood will be eaten down to nothing and you can replace it with another piece. I've tried sealing wood with epoxy but prefer the benefits of leaving it unsealed over the shine of sealed wood, and the pain it is to seal it. I've got a boat full of wood in my driveway so it isn't like I can't go pick out another piece.

DiscusIt'sWhats4DinneR-take a trip to the river, I'm sure you'll find alternatives for your grapevine with alot less work. Look at a map of the river, below dams, on the outside of sharp bends, anything that constricts flow will gather driftwood by the tons. Good luck on your hunt.

[DiscusIt'sWhats4DinneR]

it would be awesome to go on a driftwood hunt
i plan on doing it one day soon. plus who knows what kinds of plants or rocks i may find.

anyway, i looked out in the bins. we use the wood for a restauant/catering business. we keep it in old produce bins out in the parking lot, 3 parking spaces worth. anyway the wood is low now and i couldnt find too many interesting pieces of grapevine, ive got a lot of big cut logs (presumably from almond trees) that look like firewood that are only good to be burned although what i did find was very dead. a guy comes to deliver a load every month... so when he comes hopefully he will bring grape. then i will have something to look for.

otherwise whenever i see a fit opportunity im goin to the river. there are many areas i could go looking, including yosemite, if i can find the time.
i work 7 days out of the week!

[customdrumfinishes]

they have some awsome pieces of grapevine at my pet stores in the reptile ailes, its kinda cheap and looks neat but it doesnt say aquarium use like other woods do!