Floating Driftwood - HELP!

[CammieTime]

So I bought a big expensive piece of driftwood at my LFS...but it floats! How do I get it to be water logged so it will sink and stay put in the tank?

[Wahter]

How large is it? Can you put it in a pot and boil it? Or if it's too large for a pot, get a large clean tub and soak it in there.

It takes time to get them waterlogged - depends on the size and type of wood.



Walter

[dbfzurowski]

Like Wahter said, boiling would be best. If it doesnt fit in pot, boil half for few hours then flip it to boil other half.
Boiling is good as it will disinfect the wood.
Also, you can screw it down or tie it down inside your tank.

What I've done in past with bigger woods is I took an old marble tile, drilled a hole in it using a carbon tip drill(Home depot) and screwed the wood to it. Cover the tile with gravel/sand/whatever.

Soaking in tub might take weeks even months.

[yeutinh]

Stick it on a big piece glass or rocks by glue, it will sink 100%. Boiling is good idea but sometimes it still float.

[Disgirl]

I have had success by just putting a large good looking rock on part of the wood to hold it down for as long as it takes to water log.
Barb:)

[DonMD]

I have also used a square of plexiglass, available at home depot, and some stainless screws. Drill a hole in the plexiglass, and pre-drill the driftwood one size smaller than the screw size, and screw up into the wood.

As I have sand substrate, this works well. The sand holds the plexiglass down against the bottom of the tank. Good luck.

[Yassmeena]

I have had success by just putting a large good looking rock on part of the wood to hold it down for as long as it takes to water log.
Barb:)

Ditto - by far the easiest way! When it's waterlogged, just remove the stone - presto!

It usually takes a couple of weeks.

Yasmin

[Tito]

I just let my 2.5' piece float for two weeks - then it went down! LOL

Also when I got a whole bunch of manzanita last year it took two weeks as well.

If you don't mind it - let it float and it will sink in a couple of weeks.

[exv152]

So I bought a big expensive piece of driftwood at my LFS...but it floats! How do I get it to be water logged so it will sink and stay put in the tank?

Another method is to take a piece of slate, drill a hole in it and screw it to the wood, then cover the screw with silicone. I've tried siliconing wood to stone and it doesn't really hold.

[packerkid]

i got a large piece of drift wood, and I agree that if all else fails, a piece of weight holds wonders.. Although it may take a while for it to become water logged =).. Thats my 2 cents
rob

[scottishbloke]

To sink my Malaysian driftwood, I used a very tall and very deep 13 gallon Rubbermaid trash bin which I filled with boiling water (it was too big/long to be boiled in a pot on the stove), put in the wood and then used two heavy rocks (themselves sterilized by boiling first too) to hold the wood down. To help stop airborne dust, mold spores and bacteria etc from settling on the water I put the lid on loosely to cover the surface. For the first few days I emptied it out and refilled with boiling water daily, then twice per week, checking how buoyant the wood still was; after 4 weeks, the wood had sunk, the tannins had leached out completely, and the water was clear. You can do this with any big tub that will accommodate your lump of wood, but make sure the water covers all the wood (branches that poke out may develop mold) and keep the lid on (this helps stop small children falling in and drowning too :laugh:). A big thick lump may take much longer to sink- branchy wood sinks faster because it has a far higher surface area vs volume for water absorption.

Just my $0.02- but everyone will likely agree, boiling the wood in some way is needed to ensure any single-celled nasties and various other parasites are killed to prevent potential disease issues. Discus are not cheap :(

Colin

[zamboniMan]

Take it out and screw a good sized piece of slate onto it then you don't have to worry about waiting for it to water log.

[Patr1ck]

If you boil it, make sure that you boil something else in the pot like lemons or something afterwards, otherwise what ever you cook in it next will have a driftwood flavor to it. I did this with mashed potatoes.:vomit:

Pat

[exv152]

If you boil it, make sure that you boil something else in the pot like lemons or something afterwards, otherwise what ever you cook in it next will have a driftwood flavor to it. I did this with mashed potatoes.:vomit:

I've had mashed potatoes with garlic and chives, but I've never tried them it algae...lol