IIIHawKIII

recently picked up some of this stuff at the local gigantomart.

on the tag it says it is safe for terrariums and aquariums. i'm gonna have to disagree with the latter. the tag just says to "soak it until the water becomes tea colored." it takes a helluva lot more than that.

i've boiled this stuff 3 times and soaked it for over 2 weeks and STILL HAVE SAP COMING OUT.

i'm determined to use it, it's a freakin awesome piece, but it's got a lot of sap.

anyone know of anyway to "zap the sap?" i'm assuming my fishes shouldn't be messing with any sap and it's not a good idea to have in my tank.

if i could find anywhere that sold any other driftwood that was "preconditioned", i would suggest going there and paying the extra money.

Shawnie

aww im sorry...had a feeling that wasnt going to be a good source with the sap...I have zero solutions on the sap issue but hope you find a way as you like the piece so much !

IIIHawKIII

persistence will hopefully pay off. might go to the local thrift store to see if i can find a big pot for cheap. cause this one i have to flip and roll around.

also...i've got some old rock decorations that need some sprucing up. anyone know of any paint that would work? they have just faded and don't look nearly as good as they used to.

MPrudent

Just hang in there... I bought 2 pieces and it took over a month to get everything out of the wood. I put them in a huge rubbermaid container with a powerhead running 24/7 and changed the water completely every other day and it still took over a month.

IIIHawKIII

Prudent, did you have any sap issues? i did the rubbermaid thing prior to all this sap issue. now i'm doing boilings.

Lucy

Have you considered taking it back to the store? It's advertised as aquarium safe and sap is not safe.

IIIHawKIII

yeah. i have. but i don't have the reciept any more...or the tag for the piece. but i really want the piece, so i'm gonna stick with it.

Paprika

Oh shoot. I just bought some of this and I really love it too.... I am going to boil the heck out of it. I hope it works

namehater

are you sure that its sap that your talking about and not just tannins?

i have a piece that i bought about 2 weeks ago, i boiled it quite a bit and still turned my water into tea, but tannins are relatively safe for fish (i read that it weakens their immune system). i went on ahead and added the driftwood to the tank, after about 2 days my water has a slight 'tea' color to it, but normal water changes just about clear it up.

capekate

If it is actually Mopani wood, then it is safe for your aquarium. You have to be patient and soak the heck out of it for awhile. I would get a larger pot fill it with water and let it sit outside and just keep changing the water when it darkens. As Namehater mentioned, the tannins are actually safe for fish, its just unsightly and we like to clear that tea colored water up. Ive had wood that I kept outside for months changing water from time to time.Only other option is to buy driftwood that is has been cured and ready for the tank without having to soak out tannins.

IIIHawKIII

Seriously. It's not tannins. it is SAP. it ruined the pot i boiled it it. ruined the brush i used to try and clean the pot.

it's not cured. and the bark isn't cleaned off enough and i boiled it 3 or 4 times and let it sit in a tub for 3 weeks.

search for "drift zits" on here and you can read more about my issues with it.

seriously. take it back. save yourself the headache. it's not meant for underwater. i know it says it is, but it's not.

here's a pic of what it looked like underwater. with the SAP coming out.

and it is also FULL of tannins. even after my last boiling, the water was just as dark as it was when i started.

locate some malaysian hardwood/driftwood stuff. i got some of it instead, and it's AWESOME stuff.

Attached Images

DriftZitsClose.jpg (474.9 KB, 222 views)

capekate

I dont know what to tell you if it is sap and you have growths on the wood. At this point I would IMO call it a loss and get different wood that is cured and is actually driftwood, old dried and ready to go.

IIIHawKIII

i did. i gave up. i took it back and they gave me a refund. it was like 2 months ago.

i'm just trying to tell this other member (or any others that stumble across this thread) that it is not worth the headache and it is a battle that won't be won. at least not in the time that you could save just buying a better piece.

and like i said, i got malaysian and it's just as nice looking and i just boiled it a couple times and it was ready to go.

Paprika

mine is fine, has been in for over a month with no sap. my water is fine. no fish deaths. i soaked it for a week. there's tannins in my water, but it makes it look natural. my tank is doing well. *shrug*

Shaina

Same here...I got a small piece of Mopani from a local "gigantomart" about 6 months ago and haven't had any issues.

IIIHawKIII

i took it back and the lady in the fish department was quite shocked at all the sap coming out. maybe i had a lot of bark or something on my piece.

Shaina

Did they let you return or exchange it?

IIIHawKIII

returned it for store credit.

Shaina

Good to hear -- sorry you had to go through all that first.

prairielilly

I'd think that particular piece was never properly dried out at all, still had some 'life' in it.

IIIHawKIII

well that same petco has some in one of their tanks and i can see little sap pustules forming on that piece as well.........maybe it was the piece i returned!?!? i need to take better note of that next time i'm in there. i didn't even think to look.

TedsTank

I'm glad they took it back.....they must have had a load of "green" wood. Of couse the stores don' know what is being sent. Driftwood should start with aged wood, then you only deal with tannins which regular water changes take care of.....the worst comes out during boiling.

IIIHawKIII

yeah. my malaysian hardwood was a DREAM compared to the stuff i got.

juloea

taking on my third piece of mopani wood for new tank...first two i soaked for 5 days and boiled for a few hours twice with a water change in between. i got the white fuzzy slimy coating but it is getting better. not harmful or any big deal from my hours of research and will go away. also, i changed two of three filters to help carbon soak up tannin. it is worth it though...isn't it beautiful

jay95

The thing you have to do is leave it in the toilet water tank thing at the top for about a month or so..
This way the water is constantly getting changed.
Just said this so if someone else comes across this forum and they have the same problem, they will know what to do.

Lucy

This thread is pretty old.
Personally, I wouldn't put anything in the toilet tank that was going in my fish tank.
I realize this water is pretty clean, even if that water is supposed to be clean, but there's metal parts in there that rust..etc.
Also, the tannins could very well stain the porcelain of the toilet.

IIIHawKIII

And that assumes it would fit. And the stuff I had comin out was SAP. Water won't fix that, and I definitely don't want that in my toilet.