White Mold on Driftwood

There is white mold and green mold growing all over my new mopani driftwood. I had soaked for a few hours in warm water to leak some tannins and then let it out to dry. After a day or so, I checked on it but there was this carpet of white, green, and fuzzy mold all over one half of my driftwood. Will this be harmful for my fish and how do I get rid of it.

 

Hi bruh12345
Welcome to fishlore.
It is not harmful to fish. Some fish will eat it if they have to.

It will stop growing eventually. Until then you can remove the wood and wipe the fungus off by hand. Or just leave it.

It’s very common with all new wood.

 

Hi bruh12345
Welcome to fishlore.
It is not harmful to fish. Some fish will eat it if they have to.

It will stop growing eventually. Until then you can remove the wood and wipe the fungus off by hand. Or just leave it.

It’s very common with all new wood.

I don't think it's the kind of mold you think. It is dark green, and also has like a very opaque white. Like cream cheese for better context. Then there are these small fuzzy bits that looks similar to thick cobwebs with tiny gray spots dotting it. I know what kind of mold you're talking about but this is like mold that would grow in houses. I haven't even put the driftwood in the aquarium.

I have moldy mopani wood and I'm thinking of bleaching the wood before boiling it (or should it be the other way around) and I want to know how I can make it safe for my fish so they don't all die. I'm going to leave the driftwood for 10 minutes in a 10:1 water/bleach solution. Pretty sure bleach is really bad for fish and I want to put it in my aquarium. Never done this before so tips appreciated.

 

Just boil it. If you bleach it, you can toss it.

Is it actually moldy? Or is it just biofilm?

 

Bake it if you have an oven

 

I usually boil driftwood for 8 hours or so, topping off as needed and swapping water every hour. This will kill off any bacteria and remove a ton of the tannins. If you're trying to create a blackwater tank, you'd probably want to boil for much shorter period of time to preserve some of the tannins though.

 

Bake it if you have an oven

Also an option.

I usually boil driftwood for 8 hours or so, topping off as needed and swapping water every hour. This will kill off any bacteria and remove a ton of the tannins. If you're trying to create a blackwater tank, you'd probably want to boil for much shorter period of time to preserve some of the tannins though.

If you want it for a blackwater tank you only soak it for a week or so until the big biofilm bloom is gone. Boiling kills off all the bacteria and fungi you want in blackwater.

 

If you want it for a blackwater tank you only soak it for a week or so until the big biofilm bloom is gone. Boiling kills off all the bacteria and fungi you want in blackwater.

Good to know; I know nothing about blackwater tanks other than the water is dark! I wasn't aware that the bacteria and fungi were an integral part.

 

A lot more results than I expected. It's incredibly moldy and it was dry for a few days.

I usually boil driftwood for 8 hours or so, topping off as needed and swapping water every hour. This will kill off any bacteria and remove a ton of the tannins. If you're trying to create a blackwater tank, you'd probably want to boil for much shorter period of time to preserve some of the tannins though.

I thought boiling only removed some of the mold but still left a considerable amount of spores. Can I just boil it for two hours and then rinse while scrubbing it off with a cheap unused brush?

 

Good to know; I know nothing about blackwater tanks other than the water is dark! I wasn't aware that the bacteria and fungi were an integral part.

The water colour is funnily enough not a definitng attribute for blackwater.
Blackwater river - Wikipedia

A lot more results than I expected. It's incredibly moldy and it was dry for a few days.

I thought boiling only removed some of the mold but still left a considerable amount of spores. Can I just boil it for two hours and then rinse while scrubbing it off with a cheap unused brush?

So just to make 100% sure, the wood is outside the water and has now developed mold, right? That stuff will not be surviving underwater anyway.

Yep, the plan sounds good. Remove the visible mold, boil it and be done.

 

The water colour is funnily enough not a definitng attribute for blackwater.
Blackwater river - Wikipedia



So just to make 100% sure, the wood is outside the water and has now developed mold, right? That stuff will not be surviving underwater anyway.

Yep, the plan sounds good. Remove the visible mold, boil it and be done.

Do you have any tips on how to boil it? What heat setting should I use for two hours. I'll be boiling three 12" pieces of driftwood by the way.
Edit: Lid on or no?

 

Boiling water always has about 100°C. No recommendations for the setting. Do what is practical for you. I'd pobably do lid on, as otherwise you might be vaporizing spores into the whole room or appartment.

Afterwards soak for a day or two in water and make sure it stays submerged. Then give it a good rinse and you can use it.

 

Boiling water always has about 100°C. No recommendations for the setting. Do what is practical for you. I'd pobably do lid on, as otherwise you might be vaporizing spores into the whole room or appartment.

Afterwards soak for a day or two in water and make sure it stays submerged. Then give it a good rinse and you can use it.

I wouldn't worry about it submerging. I specifically chose mopani wood as its pretty heavy for driftwood and also looks good. I'll probably boil it on medium-low heat for two hours with lid on. I'm not going to waste any time soaking it for a few days as it sunk within 10 minutes when I leaked some tannins out in the first place.

 

Sorry about that you confused me by wetting the wood as you rinsed it to make it sink and then starting to dry it out.
Fungus etc is what happens to wet things that are stored damp.

You will have to rinse it again. Even using a toothbrush etc to scrub it . Do this just before you put it in a tank.

 

I wouldn't worry about it submerging. I specifically chose mopani wood as its pretty heavy for driftwood and also looks good.

I mentioned that rather because I don't know if the room in the pot would be enough and nothing peaks out.