New Mopani Wood Question

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tekonus

...meh?
Nov 20, 2008
471
1
16
Long Island, NY
I picked up a piece of the mopani wood from drfostersmith with a few other things when I bought the setup for my new 10g freshwater setup. I'm currently doing fish-in cycling (i know, shame on me) with 2 White Cloud Mountain Minnows. Also in the tank are about 10 strands of some reddish green Rotala (i forget the exact name) and a single banana plant. I keep the temp @ 75, the ph is 7.2 and I'm at work right now so I don't remember the recent ammonia/nitrite/nitrate numbers, although the cycle is doing its thing and I'm keeping it in the best shape I can with frequent water changes.

The tank has been setup for about a week. Now... after all the explaining here is my problem. Everything is acclimating very well... plants already look like they are growing etc. The only problem I have is my driftwood is growing patches of a white/colorless fluffy fungus looking substance. My faucet has a special hot water knob that puts out 190 degree water instantly, so when I first got the wood I soaked it in a pot of that water overnight, no boiling. A few days later the fungus appeared.

When I saw that I took the wood out and scrubbed as much of the fungus off with just hot water and my bare hands. Then I boiled the wood on the stove for 2 hours until it was almost so brown I couldn't see the wood in the pot anymore. I then emptied the water, put fresh water in, flipped the wood over for good coverage, and reboiled for another 2 hours. The water didn't get as brown that time. I then let the wood air dry for almost 24 hours before I put it back in the tank. 24 hours later I see the fungus forming again.

Did I do something wrong? Should I have boiled it longer? Is there something wrong with the wood? Will this hurt my fish/cycling process? Or was it perhaps caused by the cycle in the first place? Any help or advice would be greatly appretiated.
 

spunjin

Manzanita Supplier
Aug 7, 2008
386
0
16
Ridgecrest, CA
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The fungus is harmless. Just leave it and when your tank is cycled the fungus' life cycle will end in about 7 to 10 days. Common thing with driftwood.
 

tekonus

...meh?
Nov 20, 2008
471
1
16
Long Island, NY
So there is no need to take the wood out and scrub it every 2 days like I have OCD? Whew... It is kinda unsitely, but as long as its harmless and will go away...
 

irishspy

There is a stargate in my aquarium.
fungus is common for the first few weeks, but should start to go away on its own.
:iagree:

Same thing happened with a piece of Mopani wood in the Betta Palace -- it was looking pretty fugly. :crazy: While it was going away on its own, after I added 3-4 amano shrimp to the tank, more than half was gone in a day and the rest a few days later. Those guys were little lawnmowers! :headbang2:
 

Zaffy

Why would ******* be censored?
Jul 21, 2008
444
1
18
Canyon Country, Ca.
So there is no need to take the wood out and scrub it every 2 days like I have OCD? Whew... It is kinda unsitely, but as long as its harmless and will go away...
Yeah, scrubbing it over and over again just makes it come back over and over again.
 

chenya

AC Members
Apr 29, 2006
100
0
0
Central IL
I have several pieces. I only soaked mine (no boiling) about 24 hours before introducing to the tank. I never had any of mine develop the fuzz, but have seen it develop on some other types of wood that I have. Just be patient. It will soon go away. Like others have said shrimp, snails, and fish will help take care of the problem.
 
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