using driftwood

"Mariachi" wrote in news:1141945494.087554.224130
@u72g2000cwu.googlegroups.com:

how long should I be soaking drift wood before putting it in my tank?
I've got a piece soaking for a week and a half. The water is still
brownish. Should i keep going until the water doesn't change colour? Or
can I put it in my tank already? Thanks in advance.

You can put it in right away. The longer you soak it, the less tannin will
be released into your aquarium water. It's harmless (except the humic
acids can lower your pH slightly), but it will turn your tank into a black
water tank.

I love black water personally. Ever since I turned my display tank at work
into one I've sold a lot more Kent Black Water Expert.

In article .com,
Mariachi wrote:
how long should I be soaking drift wood before putting it in my tank?
I've got a piece soaking for a week and a half. The water is still
brownish. Should i keep going until the water doesn't change colour? Or
can I put it in my tank already? Thanks in advance.


I'm still waiting for some gnarled bits of willow root
to sink. It's been soaking in a tub of water since july.

I'm a patient person, but I think it may be time to
screw some to some slate.

--
My only working email address is on my home page
Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org
1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net
633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net

"Richard Sexton" wrote in message
...
In article .com,
Mariachi wrote:
how long should I be soaking drift wood before putting it in my tank?
I've got a piece soaking for a week and a half. The water is still
brownish. Should i keep going until the water doesn't change colour? Or
can I put it in my tank already? Thanks in advance.


I'm still waiting for some gnarled bits of willow root
to sink. It's been soaking in a tub of water since july.

I'm a patient person, but I think it may be time to
screw some to some slate.

--
My only working email address is on my home page
Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org
1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home page: http://rs79.vrx.net
633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net

I've also heard of drilling a hole and filling it with melted metal (tin,
zinc, lead?). Could also pour some concrete in. The metal you would
need to cap with some silicone.
--
www.NetMax.tk

I live in Miami Beach, Florida, about five or six blocks from the
Atlantic Ocean, and was wondering, what about driftwood that washes up
on the shore? Is there any way to get the salt out of it, so that I
could use in in my freshwater tanks?~Dean.

Papa Red wrote:
I live in Miami Beach, Florida, about five or six blocks from the
Atlantic Ocean, and was wondering, what about driftwood that washes up
on the shore? Is there any way to get the salt out of it, so that I
could use in in my freshwater tanks?~Dean.

Give it a soak for a week or so. That will help waterlog it and remove
the salt. What little is left won't hurt your livebearers.

--
Put the word aquaria in the subject to reply.
Did you read the FAQ? http://faq.thekrib.com

On Sun, 12 Mar 2006 00:40:14 -0500, (Papa Red)
wrote:

I live in Miami Beach, Florida, about five or six blocks from the
Atlantic Ocean, and was wondering, what about driftwood that washes up
on the shore? Is there any way to get the salt out of it, so that I
could use in in my freshwater tanks?~Dean.

All of the driftwood in my aquariums comes from the ocean just down
the street from me. I give it a good scrubbing in the bathtub or
kitchen sink, depending on the size, put a weight on it and let it
soak overnight, give it another scrub with the brush and that's it.
Sometimes I add a little bleach to the soak, but I'm not convinced
that does any more cleaning than the scrubbing. Any plant or micro bug
matter than may have survived my cleaning probably won't survive
outside of ocean water. I've never had a problem with wood gathered
this way, and I've been doing it for nearly 4 decades. My biggest
concern when selecting wood from the shoreline is pollution - I avoid
stuff that has obviously picked up oil or who knows what that
discolors the wood. As you probably already know, the driftwood will
probably not sink in your aquarium. Many folks will use a combination
of boiling it and soaking it for weeks, even months, until all of the
air is driven out. I don't have that kind of patience - I attach it
with a stainless steel screw to a piece of slate, (slate drills pretty
nicely with a high quality electric drill bit), and use the slate
covered with gravel to hold it down in the aquarium. Silicone caulk
(aquarium grand) will stick it nicely to a heavy rock if you want to
go that way.

-- Mister Gardener

On Sun, 12 Mar 2006 06:22:06 -0500, Mr. Gardener
wrote:

On Sun, 12 Mar 2006 00:40:14 -0500, (Papa Red)
wrote:

I live in Miami Beach, Florida, about five or six blocks from the
Atlantic Ocean, and was wondering, what about driftwood that washes up
on the shore? Is there any way to get the salt out of it, so that I
could use in in my freshwater tanks?~Dean.

All of the driftwood in my aquariums comes from the ocean just down
the street from me. I give it a good scrubbing in the bathtub or
kitchen sink, depending on the size, put a weight on it and let it
soak overnight, give it another scrub with the brush and that's it.
Sometimes I add a little bleach to the soak, but I'm not convinced
that does any more cleaning than the scrubbing. Any plant or micro bug
matter than may have survived my cleaning probably won't survive
outside of ocean water. I've never had a problem with wood gathered
this way, and I've been doing it for nearly 4 decades. My biggest
concern when selecting wood from the shoreline is pollution - I avoid
stuff that has obviously picked up oil or who knows what that
discolors the wood. As you probably already know, the driftwood will
probably not sink in your aquarium. Many folks will use a combination
of boiling it and soaking it for weeks, even months, until all of the
air is driven out. I don't have that kind of patience - I attach it
with a stainless steel screw to a piece of slate, (slate drills pretty
nicely with a high quality electric drill bit), and use the slate
covered with gravel to hold it down in the aquarium. Silicone caulk
(aquarium grand) will stick it nicely to a heavy rock if you want to
go that way.

-- Mister Gardener

Aquarium grade, not grand.
-- Mister Gardener