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Re: Driftwood alternatives



You'd probably want to pick something solid. Most of the dead stuff that 
falls down in my yard tends to be rotted out or headed that way, and would 
probably fall apart in the water after a relatively short period of time. 
You might be better off with green branches.

The biggest problem would be the wood leaching things into the water. I 
know that black walnut trees (which I have many of here) leach a substance 
into the ground that hinders the growth of nearby trees and other plants, 
something of a territorial mechanism. Presumably some of that substance may 
well be in the wood too, which would probably be something you'd want to 
keep out of your tank. Some species of pine have similar properties. I 
think Maple would probably be OK, but I've never tried it.

Unless you have no other choices I would try to stick with "real" 
driftwood. Most driftwood is fairly old and shouldn't have much left to 
leach into the water except for some tanin. If you do use local "fresh" 
wood, I would suggest boiling it to kill any parasites or other nasties in 
it and then soak it for at least several days *fully submerged*.

         -Bill


>Would it be safe to use the dead twigs that blow into my backyard as
>aquarium decorations if I soaked them a while first? I'm not exactly
>excited about having to boil/bake them, if that's necessary. Would
>certain species be better than others? I would guess that
>evergreen/needle-leaves wouldn't be a good idea...
>
>I want something less chunky and more branched than the driftwood I see
>for sale...
>
>TIA,
>William

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Waveform Technology
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