# using manzanita wood



## brownietrout (Feb 5, 2009)

I was lucky enough to find some manzanita wood at "Michaels" craft store today and was wondering is it necessary to sand off the bark or can it be used as is? I hate the thought of having to sand all those little branches by hand but I don't know anyone with a sandblaster. HELP!
Thanks


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## TAB (Feb 7, 2009)

Got a compressor?

http://search.harborfreight.com/cpi...e=1&resultsPerPage=50&resultsPerPageBottom=50

they are not great, but they would work well enough for small jobs.


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## brownietrout (Feb 5, 2009)

don't want to buy a sandblaster! Just need to know if i can use it as is, but thanks


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## Pinto (Mar 22, 2008)

i thought manzanita was smooth all around.
You just got to clean it and make to soak it.
(i think)


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## arowanaman (Jun 14, 2006)

I use it and I can go collect it myself where I live. and using it myself in all my tanks at the moment also. all I do is soak it in my backyard pond for one month this leaches out all the tannins. Then I get a tooth brush as brush off all the dead bark that is almost slime rinse off and coat with a bunch of phyton Git to make sure it is clean for the tank. If you cannot get Phyton Git I also use muriatic acid and soak it in it which kills any organisms and plant life. this way you can keep the smallest of branches undamaged.


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## brownietrout (Feb 5, 2009)

Wow arowanaman, that sounds like a lot of prep and living up here I sure don't have a pond to soak it in since they are all frozen! Would boiling it do the same? this wood has been dry for a long time and I dont think there would be anything living in it that would survive boiling and cause problems in my tank. I will try the boiling and see what happens, if it works I will let everyone know how it went.
Thanks for posting your experiance with it, I appreciate the information.


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## Valthenya (Feb 11, 2009)

some people say to boil it would be fine


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## cs_gardener (Apr 28, 2006)

I've collected wood locally although it was not manzanita. I boiled it then soaked it until it sank (some of it took a couple months). Then I scrubbed it with a brush to remove any gunk on it if it felt slimy. If your wood ends up feeling clean when your done boiling/soaking it you should be fine.


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## FishandTurtleJunkie (Apr 14, 2007)

Wood that is cut down while alive with bright red or orange bark may cause problems for your tank. Let it dry out for a few weeks outdoors and then remove as much bark as possible with a wire brush and boiling. If you started with dead wood, it should be fine once boiled for a few hours.


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## brownietrout (Feb 5, 2009)

thanks!


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## Kozy (Feb 16, 2009)

I used some manzanita that was previously sand blasted and put them in three different tanks with varrying results. One tank basically looks like everything is moldy, one had a little then went away and the third had no problems at all. 
The main difference between the three is the amount of Carbon in the tanks. The first had zero, and when I put some in it started dissipating (this tank also has a lower pH). The second had a normal amount and the third I added extra.
So bumping the carbon may help aswell.


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