Driftwood Dominated Tanks

check pics of my 100g on my profile page - that piece on the right only cost £15 ($30) so for the risk of killing your pets I know what i would choose.

That being said as long as you boil and submerge with some form of airation you should be able to leach most nasties out.

just my .02
 
You guys please remember that all driftwood is collected from the earth. Just because they dug it out of some swamp in malaysia doesn't make it any safter than the stuff they sell in Tennesse or Florida. If you pick wood that isn't too fresh and follow the steps outlined you will have driftwood that is better than the stuff in the stores. If there are chemicals present fragile animals wont be living in the surrounding areas. Clean wood is clean wood no matter where it came from. In that link that someone gave they even say that the best driftwood is the stuff collected locally.
 
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Try to find very hard wood so it takes longer to rot. Also tie some pieces together with something like fishing line if you have to. This makes it look like one really nice big piece with a lot of character.
 
There is a huge difference between Maylasian driftwood and that anonymous driftwood that you find locally. Maylasian Driftwood is found in the river banks of the tropical rainforests near the equator. The same place where alot of are tropical fish come from. This driftwood is very dense, sinks like a rock, has been dead in submerged water for years, and won't rot quickly. It has a beautiful dark color and the wood grain shines when showcased in an aquarium. There is a great reason why this type of wood is so popular and why people like myself have shelled out hundreds of dollars for it. Simply put, it's the best.

Most anonymous driftwood found locally is soft and won't sink. Since it's from here, a cold climate region, it's not natural for it to be in a tropical fish tank. This wood probably hasn't ever been submerged in water. It might even decompose quickly when submerged in warm aquarium water. It also has a very dull grayish color. I don't think anybody would pay big dollars for this type of wood because it's not nearly the same as Maylasian drifwood.
 
If I can, I'll take back that I said that Maylasian driftwood is the best. African driftwood is the best, and alot more expensive.
 
chefkeith said:
There is a huge difference between Maylasian driftwood and that anonymous driftwood that you find locally. Maylasian Driftwood is found in the river banks of the tropical rainforests near the equator. The same place where alot of are tropical fish come from. This driftwood is very dense, sinks like a rock, has been dead in submerged water for years, and won't rot quickly. It has a beautiful dark color and the wood grain shines when showcased in an aquarium. There is a great reason why this type of wood is so popular and why people like myself have shelled out hundreds of dollars for it. Simply put, it's the best.

Most anonymous driftwood found locally is soft and won't sink. Since it's from here, a cold climate region, it's not natural for it to be in a tropical fish tank. This wood probably hasn't ever been submerged in water. It might even decompose quickly when submerged in warm aquarium water. It also has a very dull grayish color. I don't think anybody would pay big dollars for this type of wood because it's not nearly the same as Maylasian drifwood.
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Like I said beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I think that it is great that you like that driftwood. That is the great thing about this world, there are so many different types of wood. Malayasian driftwood is nice but it is only one type of wood from the rainforest (there are many softwood trees in the rain forest and they also fall into lakes and rivers). Also I don't think malaysian driftwood is very common in the amazon last time I checked. It is all what you are going for. I ahve seen pics from the amazon and it looks a whole lot like northern wisconsin lakes actually. Logs and leafs, the colors might be slightly different but without fish or plants the environment looks very similiar. Stained water, leafy/peaty bottom and decent clairity. Oaks, walnuts, and maples are very dense wood, not as dense as the roots you are talking about but close. I like natural looking stumps, the malaysan stuff is just roots. Many amano tanks feature wood that could have come from the USA. If you like roots from asia or africa that is great, if you like long flowing peices or stumps that is fine also. I have a goal in mind and it is to make my aquarium like a flooded amazon forest. Going by the pictures it shouldn't be too hard to recreate. But we will see how it goes.....
 
Here's a pic of my favorite piece of Maylasian Driftwood. It was love at first sight when I saw this piece at my LFS.
It's now in my 190g tank. It's size is about 2'x2'x2'.
IMG_0001.jpg

It's more than just roots.
 
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OMG that is a beautiful pc. of wood! Thanks for the tip about putting the pcs. together with fishing line....what a great idea!

Kim
 
I have collected driftwood, live plants, and food for my fish locally. And, to be honest, it doesn't matter where your driftwood comes from, placing it in your tank is a risk. After two years in my tank, the horrible, aweful, nasty piece of driftwood still exhists in my tank and is almost the same color as malaysian drift wood... actually, it's a little darker and prettier than my malaysian pieces.

I'd like to know what the so-called "nasties" are. I am willing to bet there are few "nasties" that will harm fish contained within wood from a forest.


BTW, I pay anywhere from $18-$40 for a decent size piece of malaysian driftwood, and I am still putting questionable things in my tank. I also highly doubt they do more sterilizing than the average hobbyist could locally collected wood.
 
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