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What methods would i use to make driftwood found from my local river safe to put in my oscar tank. i dont want any nasties and i want it to be safe for him, if its not safe i dont want it in there.

boil it of bake it... sun drying works, but not all nasties would be killed... bake it on a cookie sheet for say about an hour or so, or boil it for a couple hours to leech tannins as well. if you boil it it will stay in a sinking ability, if you bake it you will need to soak it for a long tiome before it will sink again. (if it is wet when found)...

i am sure there may be another way(s), but those are the obnly ones I know of

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

about how many hours would i need to boil it for like 2-3hrs?

two hours should suffice, any longer would/could start the wood to decompose/break rigidity of the dead cells in the wood. just make sure the wood doesnt start getting soft! to be safe check it every ten minutes or so... if it goes soft its no good and as good as trash. also make sure you scrub the outside after you boil it to take off all the physical nasties that accumulate...

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

The key to wild caught driftwood is to make sure it comes from a safe location. If they allow fishing along that river I'd think it's fairly safe. Be sure to rinse and scrub it outside first, check it over for any soft spots or holes that might be someones home.

When it comes time to boil, pick a day you can do it with the windows open. I've noticed mine gives a rather strong smell .

^_^

"I've noticed mine gives a rather strong smell"

Ewwww !

Boil then bake. Lather, rinse, repeat


The Amazon Nut...

Baking gives a smell too though

boiling and baking are only to kill the hitchhikers and you really shouldn't need much more than 15-20 minutes. The rest is just soaking to remove tannins or get it to sink.

^_^

With boiling all you will succeed in doing will be two things break down the already old timber, and just clean the outer and may be a little on the inside to give it a full safety cleaning it would have to be done under pressure so that it would penetrate 100% of the timber.

No it is not safe unless it is a crystal clear mountain stream with no chance of any pollution at all then I would say it "COULD" be OK

To be honest I would not worry about it just get a 100% safe piece of DW from your LFS to be on the safe side.

I know too many rivers where you can fish BUT not eat your catch.

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Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Larger pieces can also be boiled in a metal trash can on cinder blocks. Thats what I did with the four foot piece I pulled from a local lake. The trash can and cinder blocks will be ruined, but a lot cheaper than buying a piece that size from the LFS. I was pretty lazy about scrubbing so I bought a wire brush drill bit and went to town.

What does that mean, Bob? "Till the cows come home." Where have the cows been?

Ok so ive boiled the DW and and there seems to be a brown sappy substance that came out of it as it boiled.I presume it could be pine but i do not know, maybe someone could help me. anyways thats not to big a deal, the big deal is ive scrubbed some off but some still remains and i want to know if this would be safe to put into the oscars tank?
Thanks

what temp would i bake it on?and how long

That brown substance sounds like it could be either gum or sap this means the wood is still green and unsuitable for a tank.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info
Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

the wood would still be green if its like an 8 by 2 inch peice which was in the water for probably months to a year then air dried in my girl friends garage for over a year? there is no way by continually baking and boiling i can get all the sap out?

just got done reading an arcticle on curing "green" or any driftwoo for that matter. it says to pace salt in the water as salt will help to dry out the would and draw the sap out. does anyone have any insight on this or perhaps added salt before?

go ahead and try it, then place the wood in a bucket for two weeks then check the water quality readings... that way you can tell if it will interfere with your water quality...

oscars are hardy fish, you might not have a problem... but dont take that for granted...

maybe post the recipe/instructions to cure it so some of us can see if it is practical.

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

the wasnt a real recipe it just said to add a few tablespoons to the kettle to help it cure

does it way it makes it aquarium safe?

can you show us the link?

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

cant find the website as i did it well earlier in the day.

Hi,
The only time I put "Driftwood" in my tank, I purchased
it from a local LFS. The company that had packaged it had
also processed it for use in an aquatic environment.

Here is one of many sites that I found when searching
"Curing driftwood for aquarium use."

http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Haupenthal_Driftwood.html

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Frank thats dosnt say anything about suring "green" wood...

was helpful, but not to the actual problem at hand sorry

Cichlid Kid, i would suggst abandoning the piece and go buy a piece from th LFS, i know it costs alot, but you dont have to worry bout killing any of your fish either!
once agian sorry...

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"