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Hi everyone,

Havn't been up here for a while. Too busy with my life cause uni and stuff.
I went fishing last week and saw some driftwood lying around. The place is like a different world, 100% mother nature.
So we picked some and thinking about putting them in my tank.

The questions are:

Are they safe to put in my tank?
For those in Victoria, AUS is it legal to pick woods from forest?
How long will they tint the water for?
How can I keep the pH constant?

Cheers,
Jimmy

Hi,
It is quite tempting to pick up some DW while out fishing.
One look at some of the pieces, and prices available
from your LFS will sure push you in that direction.

If you collect your wood from the "wilds" you need to
understand that it has become a host to numerous critters.
Most of them you do NOT want in your aquarium. So, to
prevent them simply changing homes, you have to prepare the
wood. In essence, you need to sterilize it to kill them
off. Many will boil the wood continuously for a long
period of time. Many simply scrub the stuff really,
really, well with a stiff bristled brush and then soak it
for days. If it is true drift wood, wood that has become
water logged and is truly laying on the bottom, then it
generally has already leeched out the tannins and won't
greatly affect your water color. If it is wood you have
found laying around on the trail, or has freshly fallen
into the water, then it can leech tannins for months.

On the other hand, you can purchase DW from your LFS
that has already been treated, and merely needs to be
scrubbed, and soaked to be put in the tank.

Frank


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

The wood its self should be OK depending on the creek/river you got it from. Are you allowed to collect it knowing our state laws possible not, especially if it was in a national park. Private property no problems at all at a good guess.

It will need a good cleaning and scrubbing to remove all the junk that could be in the wood. Any unwanted nasties hang it outside under cover and let it dry out completly and on those few hot days left this summer let the sun bleach it and dry it out.

Did you do any good fishing, bait or fly fishing?

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.
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You guys have trout in Aus. don't you? Maybe I should take a trip down there sometime...

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