Habitat - Indoor :: driftwood questions

[Tokapeli]

I found an awesome peice of driftwood that would look perfect in the bottom of my tank and give the fishies a place to hide. So I took it home and rinsed it off to try it out only to find that it floats! I felt pretty dumb, I should have known it was going to float it is very light wood. It actually looked really cool in the tank even thought it floats, I would leave it in if it didnt take up so much room. The way its shaped kinda made like a shelf that wraps around the back corner of the tank, part of it floating above water and most of the shelf about 6 inches underwater. Kaya really seemed to like it too, even though she has been acting crazy and gravid lately she immediately calmed down to check out the new furniture. She was scratching her shell on it, climbing on it and diving off into the water.

Anyway, Im wondering if I cut it down so it doesnt take up so much room if it would be a good addition to the tank, she seems to enjoy having a little resting spot where she can still be submerged. I only rinsed it breifly in the shower, do i need to soak it for a few days before putting it in the tank? Will it rot or contaminate the water?

Also if i want some wood in the bottom of the tank do i need a different kind of wood, maybe something more dense like oak?

[steve]

Why don't you make a base for it? How would you use the oak (I'm not picturing it)?

[Tokapeli]

I dont think it would even need a base its very boyant, I was thinking about securing some suction cups to it so it will stay in the corner close to the glass and out of the way.

And im not sure about the oak I was just wondering what type of wood is normally used since I see pictures of sunken driftwood in tanks all the time and mine is floating. Will it eventually sink or do i just need a different type of more dense wood?

[steve]

I haven't used oak or any type of wood besides cork bark. Diamondbacks4Life has used oak before: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=31617

[Diamondbacks4Life]

First lets start out with preperation with driftwood. You need to soak it for a few days before putting it into the tank just incase it contains tannins still which will change the color of the water to a yellow to tea color but seeing as you had in your tank already for awhile you probably would of noticed it already. For the next wood i talk about soak it.

Now onto the next part. Yes, there are different types of driftwood. You unfortunately got the north american kind that floats. It will sink eventually but the problem it can take months to years depending on its size. That kind usually you have to attach it to a slat like steve said.


Now the kind you want that sink right away is an african type of driftwood. It is much heavier and will be very dark in color. You can see the difference in colors on my photos. Remember to soak that before putting it into the tank.

[Tokapeli]

cool thanks for the tips Diamondbacks. Is the base in the first pic just for stability or does it help the driftwood sink? I would imagine i woud need a pretty heavy base to sink my peice its pretty large. maybe i could make the base big enough to place large rocks on it to hold it down and cover it with sand or something.

[Diamondbacks4Life]

Base is for Sink/stability. There used to be another peice connected to the base but over time the one slowing deteriorated. When i first got it i used to have to put a rock in the middle of the base like you suggested to hold it down better.

[Tokapeli]

thanks again for the tips, ill try to post some pics when i get it setup