So, I've been searching for that perfect piece of drift wood for as long as i can remember and today, my search paid off as i pulled this amazing piece of wood out of a local lake which i now plan to put in my planted discus tank. I had great plans for cleaning it hoping to make it perfect when my friend says " so i suppose the wood is boiled-salt bathed- clean in the wild?" which made me think.. why clean the wood? my real question is, in a fishes natural habitat ( in this case my discus) conditions are terrible and dirty lol. so why is it necessary to clean the wood?; other than tannins which i don't mind much anyway. Thanks for any replies, just curious is all.
Driftwood question
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it could bring in diseases, parasites, and unwanted hitchhikers. it is always better to be on the safe side, especially with discus considering they are prone to disease
So, I recently heard from a local discus breeder that its generally safe to take wood from local lakes and put it in with discus based on the fact that the water temp (87 degrees) kills off most stuff paired with the fact that I've a UV sterilizer... is this true?
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Cleaning Local Driftwood
Hello Devon. Here's the skinny on finding and using local driftwood: If you live in a dry climate, all you need to do is to get a high pressure nozzle, attach it to a garden hose and spray down the wood. Leave it out in the sun until dry, then into the tank it goes. I live in Colorado and have picked more than my share of driftwood and rocks for my tanks. Believe me, the noon sun around here will kill any bacteria that survives the dry climate around the local rivers.
If you live in a more humid climate, then the wood can potentially have bugs and such on or in it. In this case, just get a large squirt bottle and fill it with organic apple cider vinegar and give the wood a good dose of the vinegar. Then, a good hose down with the pressure nozzle and out in the sun for a few days should take care of anything living in or on the wood.
B
Hello Devon. Here's the skinny on finding and using local driftwood: If you live in a dry climate, all you need to do is to get a high pressure nozzle, attach it to a garden hose and spray down the wood. Leave it out in the sun until dry, then into the tank it goes. I live in Colorado and have picked more than my share of driftwood and rocks for my tanks. Believe me, the noon sun around here will kill any bacteria that survives the dry climate around the local rivers.
If you live in a more humid climate, then the wood can potentially have bugs and such on or in it. In this case, just get a large squirt bottle and fill it with organic apple cider vinegar and give the wood a good dose of the vinegar. Then, a good hose down with the pressure nozzle and out in the sun for a few days should take care of anything living in or on the wood.
B
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