Help! Driftwood Crisis

ReefAddicted14

New Member
Hello!

I am in need of some major help. I recently upgraded my 29 gallon aquarium to a 40 gallon aquarium and I plan to make it a low tech planted aquarium. I grabbed so driftwood from my local river and am wondering what is the right way to prepare it for my aquarium?

I've done loads of research about it but thought I should give it shot here to find out what fellow fish keepers do.

Thanks!
 

rostervandross

Active Member
Hmm. If it were me I would probaly dunk and soak them in mild bleach water for a bit then bake it in the oven, rinse and soak in fresh water again. Something like that. Probably not absolutely necessary but you'll get less decay and discoloration leeching into your water. I have several pieces of wood in my tank that have become very neutral to the water over time
 

ReefAddicted14

New Member
Okay, sounds good. I have been waterlogging the driftwood until I have found a good and safe solution. I'll add some bleach and wait a few hours before baking. At what degree do you bake the wood? I know it can't be past 250 F.
 

DaveK

Well-Known Member
I fail to see why you would want to bake driftwood. That process would dry it out. The whole goal of soaking it is to get it waterlogged so it will sink.

After the bleach bath, I would soak it in a couple more changes of FW and add a double dose of Prime to the water to take care of any residual bleach.
 
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