# aha! driftwood



## 1fastneonrt (Feb 11, 2009)

Well I achieved my goal and that was to find cheap driftwood. Now I know you can go out to the river’s edge or the lakes shore and find a nice looking piece of driftwood for next to nothing but... 1) It is freezing in Ohio, 2) You just don't know what you are getting, and 3) Did I mention it is cold in Ohio this time of year. 
Now I have been looking at the LFS and the pieces of driftwood they have is well not worth the $30-$50 they want for them. I have looked at the gardening centers with no luck. A couple of days ago I had gone to a local craft/flower store with my mother and sister. I went with them because I was bored and they wanted to take a look around and shop for my sister's wedding, YEAH. So while walking through the aisles in complete boredom all I could think about was "what could I use in an aquarium". One aisle had poly-fil another had makeshift backgrounds and as I turned to the next aisle there it was, stretching the length of the shelf; DRIFTWOOD. They had big pieces the size of a 55gal. tank and little ones, knotty to smooth, uniformed to just plain awkward. You wanna know the best thing about this nice little find; every piece of driftwood was priced at $7.95. So without hesitation I ran up to the shelves and looked and looked and picked out a nice little piece that would fit in tank.


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## BassMan (Jan 12, 2009)

Very cool deal. I managed to also find a bundle of 20-30 pieces of driftwood on ebay for $8. I can post the seller's information if anyone is interested. (Heads up though, I soaked this wood for two weeks to ensure no floaters and limited tannins. Some I just couldn't use because it still floated).


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## dthb4438 (May 2, 2007)

Try soaking it in the hottest water you can. It seems to soak in faster.


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## tonbrencat (Jan 21, 2009)

Great find!!! No varnish or anything on it?? I would soak, clean, scrub, and test before adding to my tank, due to craft related toxins in a craft room..good luck


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## 1fastneonrt (Feb 11, 2009)

No the wood has no varnish or lacquer on it. I will be boiling it here in a day or two for probably an hour or so. The only thing that worries me just a bit is that the wood has an ever so slightly cedar smell. Cedar = softwood which is not good for aquarium use. I don't know:-k 
Although I cannot dig my finger nail into easily. I am guessing it came from Texas just by the picture on the bottom of the piece. I'll try it!


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## cturner (Jan 9, 2008)

I had cedar in my tank for over a year drilled to slate, mainly because I was too impatient to wait for it to sink, anyway I had no problems with it at all!


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## starrystarstarr (Dec 18, 2008)

thats a great find!! i havent had luck with any of the craft stores here.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Nice piece. Congrats!


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## kwc1974 (Jan 4, 2006)

I have used cedar for years in my tanks with no problems. As long as it not green wood (or fresh) and has been dried out very well, you should have not problems other than the tannins that will leak out.


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## xavierj123 (Aug 24, 2008)

I soaked my huge piece of dead driftwood found in a dry creek bed last summer for 2 or 3 months in a 29 gallon aquarium and it still floated. I finally installed ( sank ) it in my 55 gallon aquarium by placing a chunk of sandstone artistically on top of it.


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## 1fastneonrt (Feb 11, 2009)

Well here you go, in the tank for about 2 weeks. Please don't mind my lack of aqua-scaping skills.


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