Safe driftwood

[boldtogether]

Does anyone know of a comprehensive list of safe wood to use in an aquarium? I found some rosemary bushes that have died and dried up. The branches and trunks are all knarly and twisted and cleaned up sooo awesome!! Then after a few days soaking the braches have completly sunk. I havent noticed any foul oder or weird color in the water. The wood looks very close to manzanita. I want to know if anyone has ever seen/used this or general opinions.

 

[Zander_The_RBP]

Driftwood is driftwood its all safe. AS LONG AS ITS PROPER DRIFTWOOD!! proper driftwood is the key not just some stump you boil for 2 days in a 55 gallon drum. if it is proper driftwood or bogwood the amount of weathering it has undergone will have removed all the bark and saps/resins. People mainly say conifers are the only woods you cant use in a fish tank, i disagree becuase all trees have those same saps (in varying quantities conifers just on avarage have more) i have a Huge (5 foot cut into 2 peices) peice of driftwood in my fish tank that i found at my cottage according to my dad he thinks its cedar due to the grain of the wood so if it is it must not be toxic becuase my fish arn't dead and its been in there atleast 4 months


if it still had bark on it when you got it you might want to give it an extra long soak/boil to get it to release any saps stil left in the wood but if its been dead for a while the saps have probably broken down by now and its safe

your wood also isn't from a tree so it will have far less resins in it than a tree would. had this come from a tree i would say no

 

[Muni]

As long as you boil it to release the sap and tannins then you should be right as rain.

Something to possibly look at is Grape vine. I see your in California. There are a lot of vineyards in southern cali. I'll be getting some here soon myself. Old vines have great character and have been used many times with success.

 

[Sparkyreed123]

I live in the U.K and i'm fed up of being charged fortunes for Bog, Mopani wood etc. However i do worry about just picking up wood of the beaches etc. So what your saying is that aslong as the wood is completely dryed up and then you boil it over and over, it should be fine?

I'm about to remove most of my plants and buy river rocks and slate, but not from my LFS as you pay too much. But from a builders merchants and then find driftwood. Do you have any safety tips?

 

[boldtogether]

I hadn't thought of grape vine but you're absolutely right, that would also look sweet. I even know where to get it!! BTW, it is WAY cheaper to collect rock from a building supply. I got slate roofing shingles and sandstone "bricks" for practically nothing all at a local masonry supply.The slate is thin for weight saving and is easy to shape, carefully.

 

[mdb_talon]

Driftwood is driftwood its all safe. AS LONG AS ITS PROPER DRIFTWOOD!! proper driftwood is the key not just some stump you boil for 2 days in a 55 gallon drum. if it is proper driftwood or bogwood the amount of weathering it has undergone will have removed all the bark and saps/resins. People mainly say conifers are the only woods you cant use in a fish tank, i disagree becuase all trees have those same saps (in varying quantities conifers just on avarage have more) i have a Huge (5 foot cut into 2 peices) peice of driftwood in my fish tank that i found at my cottage according to my dad he thinks its cedar due to the grain of the wood so if it is it must not be toxic becuase my fish arn't dead and its been in there atleast 4 months


if it still had bark on it when you got it you might want to give it an extra long soak/boil to get it to release any saps stil left in the wood but if its been dead for a while the saps have probably broken down by now and its safe

your wood also isn't from a tree so it will have far less resins in it than a tree would. had this come from a tree i would say no

Not all driftwood is safe. The act of "drifting" does not remove all poisons from wood even if people then boil it, etc. There are many trees that are poisonous to most any living thing. For most the poison is contained to leaves and bark, but for others the tree itself is poisonous. Elderberry and some varieties of Eucalyptus for example.

Not saying the people should not use driftwood, just pointing out they need to be cautious about what they use and how they select it.

In some areas it would not be uncommon for driftwood to contain trace amounts of arsenic which in minute amounts will kill fish over periods of time that could take years and not even be able to directly relate it to the wood.

 

[Muni]

Grape vines are a safe and attractive option.

 

[Vincentii]

I live in the U.K and i'm fed up of being charged fortunes for Bog, Mopani wood etc. However i do worry about just picking up wood of the beaches etc. So what your saying is that aslong as the wood is completely dryed up and then you boil it over and over, it should be fine?

I'm about to remove most of my plants and buy river rocks and slate, but not from my LFS as you pay too much. But from a builders merchants and then find driftwood. Do you have any safety tips?

do what i did a few years ago. find a dead oak tree and climb it and pick a nice section of branch off and saw it to size. . . take it home and scrub and throw it in the oven at the lowest heat setting to make sure its completely bone dry inside out. much better than the wood that you buy from fish shops. mines in my mates restraunt and with discus. no problems.

 

[Sparkyreed123]

Great idea! Local park is full of Oak trees. Tell yo the other good thing about Slate boldtogether is if get a thick piece you can split it, thus creating 10x as many sheets. My only fear with Sandstone is what effect it may have on the water. PH etc.

 

[mdb_talon]

Great idea! Local park is full of Oak trees. Tell yo the other good thing about Slate boldtogether is if get a thick piece you can split it, thus creating 10x as many sheets. My only fear with Sandstone is what effect it may have on the water. PH etc.

Sandstone is hard to guess what it will do to PH because it can be composed of varieties of different elements depending on where it was formed. In some areas calcite is a main component of sandstone which could affect ph. In other areas it wont have any calcite. Best bet is to put it in a tub of water for a week and test ph, etc before and after.