How long does it take for DW to sink?

Other than making sure there are no air bubbles trapped underneath, nope, you're fine. It's very dependent on the type of wood, but eventually it will sink. You could also permanently weight it down, maybe by gluing some rock to it (slate, for example).

Thanks...there is a rock I am also adding, so I might try that.

Not to discourage you, but I've had one piece of driftwood that's been floating for at least 3 months with very little improvement. But, considering that the base of it is ~6" thick, i guess it takes a while for the water to penetrate the wood.

Yeah that lil guy is gonna be floating for a while. I had a piece in my 55 gal. african cichlid tank that floated for a few months before it finally sank. My advice is to either tie it to something or put it under a rock in a way that is aesthetically pleasing until it gets fully water logged.

AzFishKid said:

Not to discourage you, but I've had one piece of driftwood that's been floating for at least 3 months with very little improvement. But, considering that the base of it is ~6" thick, i guess it takes a while for the water to penetrate the wood.

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thats a long time! i just bought a nice piece of wood but its kinda big and thick...i hope it doesnt take that long to sink.

weigh it down or flip it everyweek.

I had a piece of wood take 2 months!

Boil it, this helps release the tannins as well as help the water soak in quicker.

Just boil it, it will be water longed in like an hour. Like IWANNAGOFAST said, it also dissolves the resins in the wood which make the tannins. The heating of the air inside of the wood causes it to expand and be forced out of the wood, letting water take its place. Thats why it sinks.
As you are boiling it, dump out the water when it gets really brown, add new and boil some more. Also weigh it down in the pot so that it stays submerged and that will speed up the process. A clay brick (not cement paver like is most common now) or non porous rock (which won't explode when heated) will do fine.

If it's too large to boil, you could pour boiling water over it as it sits in a bucket. At least do this to the thickest parts of the wood since these will be the parts that take longest to soak through

You can also put it in a big roasting pan full of water in the oven at like 400*F. Its a PITA but it gets the job done.

I usually just screw a piece of slate to the bottom and I'm done.
If it's just a little light, then only a small piece of slate is needed.

Then you are done with it.
and it'll stay where you want at the right angle also.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Limestone naturally breaks into plates as well and is very easy to drill through. That is what I have used to anchor wood pieces. Use stainless steel screws though! Lots of other screws have toxic coatings or will rust in the tank.

isn't limestone bad for planted tanks? believe it leaches and makes the water hard