# Oak Driftwood



## blyxa (Jan 1, 2007)

I live in Austin, Tx and want cheap driftwood. I live with protected greenbelt in my backyard. I was thinking of using oak pieces for my driftwood. I would soak it until the water turn clear after I picked it clean. How safe is oak??


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## the-single-pringle (Jan 8, 2007)

*Oak, not!*

NO!!!! Don't use oak, unless it is properly hardened, oak will rot and destroy your aquascape. Just by rule of thumb, you should probably only use wood that has been professionally treated for aquarium use (that means buying it), until you gain more experience. One of my friends in Austin got their wood from Aquadome and some branchy stuff from Austin Aquariums. He's going to take me to Austin Aquariums when I visit next time.

:bounce:


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

As far as I know there is no "professional treatment" for aquarium wood. Wood is a natural substance that is found in almost all bodies of water. Unless the wood in question is one of those that has poisonous sap, such as some tropical trees produce, I don't think there would be a problem with putting almost any wood in a tank. The problems I have heard of with wood are just the tannins that discolor the water, and occasional fungus problems.


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## blyxa (Jan 1, 2007)

I love Aqua Dome!! IMO they are much better than Austin Aquariums. Their fish collection is not the greatest but they have oddball fish. Hope you enjoy it.


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## Teeleton (Jun 8, 2006)

I have a large piece of oak in my tank (spans the entire length of my 4' 55 gallon). It was a fallen limb that had been off the tree for some time. The bark just flaked off with my hands. I think it's finally done leeching tannins. I soaked it for about 2 months, and the populated tank has been running about a month. No real problems with the wood thus far. I spotted a swordtail fry a few days ago, but haven't seen it since.

Teeleton


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## the-single-pringle (Jan 8, 2007)

*My Oak*

Seems like all of you guys have had better times with oak wood in the tank than I have. Last time I tried it, I had a beautifully gnarled piece, but it had rotting problems, or perhaps I gave up too early.


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## AndyT. (Jun 28, 2006)

Hoppy, some companies will use pressurized steam to clean the wood before selling it. That is intended to remove fungus and unwanted stuff. FWIW, I like the wood [URL="http://www.aquariumdriftwood.com]Aqaurium Driftwood[/URL] sells, but it is expensive to ship wet hunks of wood.

I'm a big fan of Austin Aquariums, but that's probably because I have been friends with its owner since long before he opened the store. He is more reef oriented than plant oriented.

With that said, Lucy, who works at Austin Aquariums, is excellent with planted aquariums. So I have no problem recommending them.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

Andy, I certainly agree that thorough cleaning is advantageous for both wood and rocks before they go into the tank. Steam cleaning sounds like overkill, but better to overdo the cleaning than to introduce unwanted organisms. I just boiled and soaked mine in boiling water, then scrubbed it with a plastic pot scrubber (not the kind with detergent in it.). But, I didn't use oak either. My concern was more with living organisms in the wood than with rotting, which will occur eventually no matter what you do. (I think).


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## JG06 (Nov 5, 2006)

A fellow I used to work for would soak wood in a tub full of water and potassium permanganate. Claimed the permanganate would eat the bad stuff out of the wood. I can't speak its effectiveness but the many friends he treated wood for used it in their tanks and I never heard any complaints.

I've used oak in terrariums and paludariums before and I don't remember disliking it. If you want to use it is a fish tank, either bake it or boil it to kill any unwanted parasites. Then, you'll want to weight it down and soak for a couple months because it will have _a lot_ of tannins it that can stain the heck out of your tank. Soaking it will also ensure that it will stay submerged when you add it to your aquarium. Then, if it doesn't rot away you'll have some good driftwood on the cheap.


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## AndyT. (Jun 28, 2006)

hoppycalif said:


> My concern was more with living organisms in the wood than with rotting, which will occur eventually no matter what you do. (I think).


I would agree. The real concern with wood choice, once you are past the cleaning/removing unwanted organisms stage, is how long will it last submerged? Apparently some types of wood will last a very long time indeed.


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