# white mold/fungus on driftwood!



## Keymaker

I have a couple peices of driftwood that are starting to grow white mold or fungus on the unsubmerged top parts.


What do I do??


Thanks


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## Keymaker

I guess I'm just going to bleach them in hot water for a little bit.


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## evercl92

I've found that letting them dry completely (in the sun) works pretty well. Prob a bit cold for that to be effective there in NY.

Bleach should work. Just be sure to allow extra time for the bleach residue to leech back off in clean water.


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## Jeremy25

That's weird, i did a search before i posted and didn't see any info on this fungus. After i post i look down a few threads and you have the same stuff on your driftwood that i do. 

My two pieces of real driftwood do not have this fungus on it. The one that i bought from the reptile section of Petsmart has it though. I knew it wasn't real driftwood but i boiled it for about 5 days and it looked awesome in the tank for about 3 weeks. I think because it wasn't real driftwood that it might be some sort of sap leaking out and turning into a fungus.

Anyone else have any experience with this stuff?


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## chagovatoloco

I found a piece of drift wood on the beach, washed it and placed it in my tank. After a few months I had the same mold. I pulled it out and It smelled like it was rotten, I thought it out.


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## Jeff.:P:.

I've had that white fungus mold in two tanks on two different driftwood. It stays around for 2-4 weeks and disappears. I've read a couple times thats what it does and that what happened.



> This happens on some varieties of driftwood. Is it a whitish cloudy looking slime (basically looks like snot growing on your wood *ick*)? If that's the case, then it's pretty normal, and harmless to your fish. In a few weeks it will go away on its own, or you can take a brush and scrub it off and siphon it out (as it will clog your filter) to get rid of it. It's not uncommon with new pieces of wood that were once submerged, then dried out, and then submerged again. It also happens a lot with grapewood.


http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-19995.html



> It'll go away after awhile. Most of us have experienced it.
> 
> Someone mentioned in another thread that it's suppose to be bacteria colony I guess probably feeding on whatever stuff is on the wood.. So at least you know that the bacteria in your tank is alive and kicking.


http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum/showthread.php?t=32024


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## Keymaker

Jeremy25 said:


> My two pieces of real driftwood do not have this fungus on it. The one that i bought from the reptile section of Petsmart has it though. I knew it wasn't real driftwood but i boiled it for about 5 days and it looked awesome in the tank for about 3 weeks. I think because it wasn't real driftwood that it might be some sort of sap leaking out and turning into a fungus.
> 
> Anyone else have any experience with this stuff?


LOL

I got my wood from the reptile section of Petsmart too (I won't ever buy a product from them again). They called it driftwood too but I can tell it wasn't authentic. But it was very cool looking. I made the mistake of tossing them directly into my 10 gallon paludarium and it turned my water very cloudy and orange. You can see how bad it was here: http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/paludariums/48197-keymakers-10g-paludarium-journal.html
:heh:

Both of those pics were taken before I cleaned the wood. It's crystal clear now. 

BTW, it was fuzzy white mold, like white hairs. No slimey oozing stuff.


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## Midnight

Keymaker said:


> I made the mistake of tossing them directly into my 10 gallon paludarium and it turned my water very cloudy and orange.


I did the same thing  I got mine from PetWorld here and the same thing happened to me too (with the mold and dirty water). I was worried for a second until I found this thread. My fish are doing fine but I still think I'm going to pull it out and clean it quick.


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## ngb2322

I got some new Mopani driftwood from DrsFosterSmith about a month ago. Within a day or two, I got the whitish fungus crap. I removed the driftwood. Scrubbed the crap out of it in hot water, then let it dry in the sun. Then I scrubbed in hot water again, then let it dry again. When I put it back in, a bit developed, but it eventually just went away. I think all you really need to give it is time and it will fizzle out.


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## Forgotten Path

Keymaker said:


> LOL
> 
> I got my wood from the reptile section of Petsmart too (I won't ever buy a product from them again). They called it driftwood too but I can tell it wasn't authentic. But it was very cool looking. I made the mistake of tossing them directly into my 10 gallon paludarium and it turned my water very cloudy and orange. You can see how bad it was here: http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/paludariums/48197-keymakers-10g-paludarium-journal.html
> :heh:
> 
> Both of those pics were taken before I cleaned the wood. It's crystal clear now.
> 
> BTW, it was fuzzy white mold, like white hairs. No slimey oozing stuff.


I wouldn't decide not to go back to PetSmart so quickly... After all, you are the one who didn't think to soak your wood. Judging by your pictures, you bought the Mopani wood, which IS aquarium safe (after soaking). I work at PetSmart, and that particular product makes no claims to be aquarium safe, or to be pre-soaked. Your paludarium looks excellent, btw.  Great job! When I see a paludarium like that it makes me want to make one (even though I have nothing to put in it...).


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Keymaker,

I will agree that it is not uncommon. I boiled my 3 pieces of Mopani driftwood for about 30 minutes, dried it completely, and put it in my tank. One piece developed fungus, the other two did not. The fungus seemed to grow in areas of the driftwood that were soft and possibly starting to decompose prior to being "harvested". I took the one piece out of the tank, removed any loose, damaged, or soft wood and then re-boiled it. Some fungus came back, but nowhere near as much as before. I just left it. After I added my Corys and Ottos they took care of what was left.


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## WhiteDevil

Petsmart is a retailer, that driftwood you got isnt marketed under the top fin name(petsmarts house brand)

I buy nearly everything from petsmart including my fish and alot of my plants, in 4 years I have only had 5 fish from them die, two were dead in the bag, oh well bad batch of fish, they gave me 5 more, they died, got 5 more they are the size of my 3yo corydoras now and these buggers arent but 6 months old.

Ive given managers back fish ive had from them for years for their personal tanks, and they are still thriving.

All these woods they sell are still "Alive" in the centers, they have not gone thru the drifting process fully, usually just a hot tank and a dry out, package and ship.

The orange look is fine, its just tannins, 100% natural and 100% beneficial to the fish living in those waters. I have a blackwater tank( tannin rich water) and I have no issues with any of the fish, not even stress in that tank. Bigger,Healthier and stronger then their siblings in the clear water tank.

I like your tank, it looks real nice.
I will take a pic of mine soon as all of the plants I recieved a few weeks ago from a member on here have taken off, less the dwarf sag(destined not to have it as a carpet I guess) and need to update. 

I have some ZooMed Mopani in there, some good old potomac river driftwood and some I found on november 2nd that is in the tank( I call it northern Illinois manzanita) I dont soak mine as long due to wanting the tannins in the tank. IDK, I prefer dark tanks makes it look more natural.


I have this fungus mungus on the new DW now, after reading the thread I think I will just let it settle naturally. I am sure to have a mutiny on my hands if I start removing the wood that the fish have taken a hearty liking to.


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## flashbang009

The white fungus is usually a result of harmless bacteria leeching out of the wood, and the fungus is a type of algae that grows and eats the bacteria. It will disappear in a few weeks, i currently have it on a piece that i pulled out of a local creek. No reason to worry.


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## Newt

Rubbing alcohol will most likely kill it and you could use a Q-tip. It would be safer than bleaching.
H2O2 - Hydrogen peroxide is another choice.


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## princeice

Flourish Excel got rid of mine within a couple of days.


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## fishyj

I had this in my discus tank. I put in some bushy nose pleco's and problem solved. They love feeding on it and kept it very clean.


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## alsilley

IMHO The mentioned methods all work, from The naturalistic approach to the chemical ones, but in my case H2O2 seemed to worsen things because it somehow penetrated the wood and leached more organic material to be decomposed by this fungus... The remaining moss in the wood is infested and big spongy white balls all over... Has anyone tried excel spot dosing?


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