Okay im adding a piece of drift wood. I have it soaking in a tube of water to help with any leeching. How long before I can add it and it not turn my tank water yellow?
driftwood
- Thread starter stephenray75
- Start date
Yellow, or brown, or black? Different driftwood does different things to your water... some do very little, if nothing at all. I would soak most driftwood for 5-7 days, replacing the water every day. Thats just me though.
I would soak it in hot water and if possible boil. I had a piece (now sitting in the garden) that after six weeks was still turning the tub bright orange. I have another piece that was right to go in after a days worth of soaking.
Ahhh I forgot to add that you should boil it. Thanks for adding that, coolwade! Depending on the driftwood, this could be the only way to ensure most of the colors are released properly from the driftwood. Let us know how this turns out, ok stephenray75?
The wood that now looks great in my garden was boiled non stop for about 24 hours at intervals of about 4 hrs. It was also soaked in boiling hot water for the whole two weeks (non looking forward to the electricity bill!) and was still leeching tannins that would turn the water orange in a matter of hours.
Seaman
Shrimp gumbo, shrimp salad etc...
The only thing to keep in mind when boiling the driftwood, is that some will deteriorate WAY faster in your tank once it has been boiled. Just FYI
I will admit that I haven't boiled all of my driftwood... if I soak it first and the water doesn't seem too messy, I will skip boiling altogether.
I believe in boiling it for at least several minutes. This would get rid of bugs, grubs, etc. that may be in the wood. You don't need any dead bugs ruining the tank water...
If the wood has no soft spots, there should be no real concern for it decaying, of falling apart.
If the wood has no soft spots, there should be no real concern for it decaying, of falling apart.
Well the wood washed up from the bay. It has been in the flower bed for about 2 yrs. Its to big to boil so I just through it in a tub of water.
if you cant boil it, place it in a bucket and pour very hot water in it, let it soak for a day and repeat. keep doing this until the water in the bucket stays clear for a few days and let it sit in there to absorb all the water it can so it doesnt float.