Preparing Driftwood to Decorate Your Aquarium

Driftwood can make a quite nice piece of furniture for your fish aquarium, but the first step is to get it to sink. So you have found a beautiful piece of driftwood that will be perfect for your aquarium, but you wonder how to make it sink. Sinking a piece of driftwood for your aquarium can take time, but it will sink. Below is a list of easy steps for preparing your driftwood to decorate your aquarium.

After cleaning the driftwood, try boiling. Put your driftwood inside a pot of boiling water, and let boil for several hours. Boiling your wood will kill all bacteria and make it safe for your aquarium. As the wood boils the pores open faster and allow the wood to become saturated. Boiling will not cause the wood to sink immediately afterwards, but it will speed up the process.

If you are not able to boil your piece of driftwood, don't worry, it will still sink. Place the driftwood in a container of water and either tie it to the bottom or use a weight of some type to hold it down. The driftwood will eventually become saturated with water and stay on the bottom by itself. Once the driftwood is saturated, it can be placed in your aquarium.

Make sure that your piece of driftwood is thoroughly cleaned. When a piece of wood is taken from the wild it can have many different things that could possibly be harmful to your fish. Boiling the wood will eliminate the problem. Before putting your new decoration inside the aquarium, give it a good scrub. A pot scrubber or a scrub brush works great to clean your driftwood, and remove loose pieces of bark that can make your aquarium dirty.

Do not put your driftwood in your aquarium until you allow it to soak in a separate container for at least two days. If you place it directly in your aquarium, the tartaric acid will leak out of the wood and darken your water. Tartaric acid will not harm your fish, but it will cause your aquarium water to become darker. Allowing your driftwood to soak in a separate container will let the tartaric acid leak in the container water and not your aquarium.

Store bought driftwood is nice but it can be pricey. The experience of going to your favorite stream and searching for the perfect piece of driftwood is priceless. Gathering driftwood for your aquarium can be very fun and sometimes addicting. So go ahead and look for that perfect aquarium decoration. Enjoy the process of preparing your driftwood and the final result after it is inhabited by your fish in the aquarium. Although it takes time to prepare your driftwood the final result can be very beautiful and rewarding.