ho_hum_de_dum Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 Hey all, Being the broke uni-student that I am I decided to toddle down to the nearest beach and collect some drift wood, now I am uncertain as to what I need to do so it doesnt float in my tank, lol....Any help would be much appcreciated. thanks guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
me love fishy Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 Hiya You will need to keep it weighed down in water for a long time. I would pour boiling water over it and change the water daily pouring boiling water over it for several days to kill any undesirables. I have always bought my wood from a petshop, so not the best authority on how long to soak it etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ho_hum_de_dum Posted September 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 Ah thank you for that! I bought a HUGE piece of dritfwood (me=greedy) and it didnt fit in my tank...serves me right huh? What are the tannins like if I soak it for a few weeks? Would they still be amber? Im not a big fan of brown water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 To make it sink, either leave it in water for a month or two, or boil it if you can fit it into a pot. Boiling is a good idea anyway, it will kill any nasties. Also suggest you go to rivers to collect if you can, the wood tends to be nicer shapes and drift wood from the sea will leach salt into the tank, which isn't normally a big problem but if you can avoid it it's best to. For rivers to collect from head for tramping bush spots rather than the open close to the cities rivers, again just because the wood tends to be more interesting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ho_hum_de_dum Posted September 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 Unfortunatly there are no rivers (that I know of) which are very easily accessible to me... I found some lovely pieces of drift wood that would make some very nice and comfy houses for my bubbas, just have to make sure I dont kill them with the nasties in the driftwood. I have found a gigantic bucket/laundry basket thingy ma bobby and weighed down the drift wood with some rocks and poured some water over them... Hmm, 2 months you say? Not something a VERY impatient lady wants to hear! lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jude Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 I've used driftwood from the beach. I washed it well then attached some fishing sinkers to it to hold it down. The sinkers were hidden in the gravel and it worked well. Cheers Jude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ho_hum_de_dum Posted September 18, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 I've used driftwood from the beach. I washed it well then attached some fishing sinkers to it to hold it down. The sinkers were hidden in the gravel and it worked well. Cheers Jude THAT is one brilliant idea! Smart smart smart woman! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 ooo that is a good idea I have HUGE pieces of wood in my 4ft, and I used rocks to keep them in place. After about 2 months I removed the rocks as they werent needed anymore. It will tint your water yellow as the tannins release for quite a while, its been 3 months and my planted tank still has tinted water, guess it also depends on the wood type etc etc. I just got used to it. If you have small bits, you can boil out the tannins, but where is the fun in that? I got all my bits (rocks, wood) from the Hutt River. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zev Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 Make sure the bits you collect are the darker hard wood variety, not soft light coloured pine, which will deteriorate quickly. They should be heavy, even when dry. I sit mine in a plastic bucket of water to soak, and change the water weekly, and turn them over, takes a few weeks until they don't float. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 Don't worry about the type of wood. Even if it is pine, deteriorate quickly means it will most likely still be there long after you get bored of how the tank is set up and decide to rearrange it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishboi Posted September 18, 2006 Report Share Posted September 18, 2006 Don't worry about the type of wood. Even if it is pine, deteriorate quickly means it will most likely still be there long after you get bored of how the tank is set up and decide to rearrange it. yep, have to agree there. i use my for pleco tanks and have a piece of pine in one of my tank for over a year now u differently see bits deteriorate but no so much it has reduced in size even with 100s of plecos munching on it 24/7 i've got heaps of drift wood from beaches and all i do is give them a good wash then leave them to soak until they sink which would sometime take a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meesheelly Posted September 19, 2006 Report Share Posted September 19, 2006 i got mine from the beach as well but i made sure i got a piece that was already pretty waterlogged. Soaked it for a few days, didnt get any tannin. I figured that there wouldnt be too many nasties since it had been soaking in saline before it washed up. I tied it to some rocks and waalaa! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ho_hum_de_dum Posted September 19, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2006 My pieces have been soaking since Monday and most of them actually sink, woohoo. There is one big piece of drift wood that half is floating, grrrrr. lol. thanks for all the suggestions guys ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevan Posted September 26, 2006 Report Share Posted September 26, 2006 good idea is to use a couple of filter plates or plasic roofing tie wood to this with fishing line and bury plate under gravel used to work for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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