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If I have placed it in the wrong topic please place it in the correct one thank you.
Keith

I have just found a large piece of drift wood for my Betta Tank.
Yes I did say Betta Tank

It is too big to boil and certainly to big to put in a oven.

I will have to use a very large clean plastic rubish bin (which I keep ready at all times)

My question is what solution do I use and at what proportion?

Also how long do I have to treat it for?

As well as how long do I soak it in just tap water after all the treatment is done?

I am in no hurry I can afford to wait several months, if necessary

I will have to turn it end for end ever day.

If in Aust please use brand names and if I can buy it at the local supermarket or at Bunnings.

Thanking you

Keith

Last edited by keithgh at 06-Apr-2005 04:20

Last edited by keithgh at 06-Apr-2005 04:22

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Have you ever or any other Aussies contemplated having your drift wood or anything for that matter Gamma Irradiated prior to putting it in the tank? chemical free.. there is a place called Steritech in Sydney - Wetherill park I think - beekeepers gamma their hive frames to prevent disease.

how big is your betta tank

Keith,

You mentioned having to turn it day by day. By this do you mean that a portion of it would not be submerged totally by the water?

If so I'm not sure you will get the effect of water logging it as the exposed section would have a tendency to dry out, even if only partially. Or if you are planning on attaching it to a piece of slate or rock even you may not get the tannins out as well as you would like.

However (slaps self in head), I think a remember that in an earlier post you were going to have a portion of the driftwood above water, so in that case disregard all I said previously.

Jim

---

Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain

fishyhelper288

The Betta Tank is being made for me it is not a commercial size. All I can say is it will be too tall for the tank.

OldTimer

Yes it is a lot taller than the proposed tank.

I can asure it will not need a slate base.

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

Hi Keith,
I'm not sure what you mean by what kind of solution to
soak the wood in. Because of its size, I would use a
very large plastic trash can, or a 55 gallon plastic
barrel. I'd keep it where you can control what has access
to it, such as indoors, in the basement, etc. That will
keep the outdoors critters (mosquitos etc) out of it.
Or, cover it if you can. I'd fill it to the brim with
just regular water, and let it soak. You could (and I
would) add an airstone for circulation, and just keep
changing the water at regular intervals.

Frank


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

Frank

It will be inside the house in a shower recess we do not use that one anyway. I can empty it easy and top it up from the shower. Running a air stone would be next to impossible as it would involve running a power lead across from another room. I could run it over head but this would not be the best either.

I was thinking of some type of liquid/powder that I could add to the water to kill any unwanted bacteria

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

Hi Keith,
I understand the restrictions, and the thoughts about
bacteria however, some bacteria will help cure the
wood, and anything that you put into the water to kill
the bacteria would be absorbed by the wood and cause
possible problems later in the tank. Regular water
changes and scrubbing the wood with a clean unused brush
might be better?

Frank


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

Hey Keith,

If you want to kill off everything inside the wood you may want to look if there are any scientific laboraties around in your neighbourhood. When I got my wood I brought it to the lab and stuffed it into the autoclave, which basically is a very large pressure cooker that boils stuff at 120 degrees Celsius. doing that for half an hour should kill everything. Though, if the piece is really big then it probably won't fit in there either.

PS I haven't had the time to properly reply to your email yet, will do so soon (I hope)

Sigh, at least don't do what Heidi is doing in Sheila's bathroom. She is soaking a large piece of driftwood for her 125g in the bathtub. We have just about decided that it will never sink. Now I am afraid that there will be a perminate tannin ring around the tub. ]

Keith, if you are concerned about bugs/bacteria, you could soak it for a few days in a Vinegar/Water solution (1parts Vinegar to every 10 parts of water). Let that sit for 3-4 days, then empty and start soaking again in pure water. Vinegar is pretty much harmless to fish, and would kill most of anything nasty in the wood.
Also Keith, I did rearrange that DW you suggested, but in a different way than we both though might work. I think it looks fabulous, I will post you some pictures either tonight or tomorrow. I also did some more rearranging of plants, and I have found some good slate for terracing, I will be cleaning up and adding in the next week or so.
-Koran.

Pugperson: Some types of Driftwood may take a very very long time to waterlog and sink. Others, Such as Hemlock, will never waterlog fully, and will always stay somewhat "floaty", as the large peice I have in my tank is. The best solution is to get the smallest possibly peice of slate you think will weigh it down (can be incredibly small in comparison to the wood), and then attach it to the driftwood using a strong fishing line. If you leave some slack in the line, you can easily bury a chunk of slate under the gravel, and the wood will still float slightly above the gravels surface.



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