Sterilizing driftwood

[tjnelson44]

A while back I found a really nice piece of driftwood in the San Fransisco river in Arizona. I left it in the back of my truck in the sun for a few weeks and it completley dried out. Should I still do something to sterilize it, and if so, how should I do it since it is too big to boil?
Thanks in advance,
Trevor

 

[Terje]

Any bacterias that could be on the driftwood will be transfered to your tank if you put it in. Bacterias in generall don't die of freezing nor dry conditions. They just don't reproduce. When given the right environment, they will start to reproduce again. Most other microorganismes have probably died.
I think you should get it completly sterilized. Better safe than sorry. :wink:
It might be an option to steam it.

 

[crimsonrain]

i put mine in a part bleach mixture, but mine was from a pet store. i just soaked mine for a few days in bleach then soaked it for a week

 

[cootwarm]

Here is a link to a post about this from last year:
http://forum.apistogramma.com/viewtopic.php?t=1124&highlight=driftwood

Michael

 

[tjnelson44]

Thanks everybody for the tips. I think I may just soak it in a bleach solution then pour boiling water on it.
Trevor

 

[Randall]

Drift Wood

Thanks everybody for the tips. I think I may just soak it in a bleach solution then pour boiling water on it.

Hello Trevor,

My concern with using bleach is that the wood will absorb it like a sponge and then leech it out into your aquarium. Crimsonrain writes that he soaked his wood for a week after bleaching it. This probably addresses the potential leeching problem.

Good luck!

Randall Kohn

 

[tjnelson44]

Randall,
Thank you. I will be sure to soak it for a week or two after the bleach.
Trevor

 

[crimsonrain]

Yeah, I soaked for a week while rinsing the bucket and putting fresh water. Change the water completely as often as possible. I actually soaked and then washed it in boiling water then stuck it back in clean water. It gets alot of the tannic acid out too. You dont need that much bleach, I heard about a 1:20 bleach/water ratio. Use about 1/2 cup-1 cup for a 5 gallon bucket. I think thats what i used.