# Securing/weighting down driftwood



## Slaz

Would like to know what options I have in securing or weighing down my driftwood. The one and only option I have considered is to drill holes in the bottom and fill with molten lead; the type that is used in lakes and rivers for fish weights. Any suggestions???


----------



## danfu

I just weighted my down with some rocks...you can easily just tie a rock to it with fishing line.

Also...have you boiled it?


----------



## Slaz

Boiled and soaked in bleach. Now drying them out in the sun. This driftwood is from a dry river bed. Me thinks they have been sitting in the sun for years. No insects appeared after soaking; then boiled for good measure.
Don't know if tieing them with rocks will work. The one piece that I want to try right now is pretty buoyant.


----------



## danfu

Slaz said:


> Boiled and soaked in bleach. Now drying them out in the sun. This driftwood is from a dry river bed. Me thinks they have been sitting in the sun for years. No insects appeared after soaking; then boiled for good measure.
> Don't know if tieing them with rocks will work. The one piece that I want to try right now is pretty buoyant.


I see. Just wondering why you bleached it? What will bleaching do that boiling won't?


----------



## Slaz

Double whamy!


----------



## danfu

Slaz said:


> Double whamy!


okayee....what are we double whammying? :shock::-D 
Bleach is Chlorine...and chlorine is poison to fish...will the driftwood then not soak up the chlorine and then leach it out slowly? I don't know...just asking...;-)

The main reason for boiling...aside from killing whatever may be living on or in the driftwood...is to leach out the tannic acid which, while harmless to the aquatic life, greatly discolors the water...I've heard of bleaching...just not sure why it would be done.


----------



## Slaz

Bleach to disinfect and kill anything that may be alive in the driftwood. The driftwood was then boiled and now I will soak it in fresh water for several days; changing the water periodically. Hopefully this should get rid of the bleach. This procedure was recommended by another member on this forum.


----------



## danfu

I see...thanks for the info...I really don't know much aobut it that's why I was asking...I boiled my driftwood for several hours...changing the water several times....but ...as patient as I am....I'm not patient enough to soak it for several days...lol...so...kudos on your patience level. :thumbsup:


----------



## RussellTheShihTzu

I use desert Cholla so I would assume it's the same as wood from a dried out creek bed. Soaking is the only thing that will sink it naturally. After boiling I let the pieces soak in the tank until they sink.

Otherwise you could do the rock thing and bury the rocks (same color as the substrate) as far in the substrate as you can to keep them from being seen.


----------



## Embouck7

Bleach is an acceptable method of making driftwood safe, but you have to declorinate it after just like a waterchange. Lead will get absorbed into your water column and into your fish, heavy metals in the bloodstream isnt good. Its way better to ziptie a rock or something heavy and inert. Or you can rubber band a rock to the driftwood, by the time the rubber rots your driftwood should sink on its own, then you pull out the rubber band.


----------



## willow

just adding my two pence worth...
dechlorinate the new water every time,as tap water contains chlorine
and chloramine,amongst other stuff,so you're wanting to get rid
of it all.:-D


----------



## Slaz

Well; I guess i'm going to have to go get some rocks. As I do not use rocks in my aquariums. It will be back to the mountains to see what I can find.


----------



## willow

hi
have you got any slate ? you could always silicon the wood to the slate
then when it's dry submerge the slate under the gravel,so you'd
just see the wood.


----------



## Slaz

Good idea. I don't have any slate laying around; but what I can do, is go to a supplier/installer and scrounge some of their discards.


Thanks


----------



## willow

win,win situation:-D


----------



## RSVBiffer

Slaz said:


> Bleach to disinfect and kill anything that may be alive in the driftwood. The driftwood was then boiled and now I will soak it in fresh water for several days; changing the water periodically. Hopefully this should get rid of the bleach. This procedure was recommended by another member on this forum.


Bleaching is very iffy, boiling alone would have done the job. Wood is extremely porous and to completely remove the bleach from the wood is a very tricky process. I would not recommend bleaching wood at all having seen the results of somebody introducing wood to a tank from which they thought they had removed all the bleach...they could not have been more wrong.


----------



## RSVBiffer

Embouck7 said:


> Bleach is an acceptable method of making driftwood safe, but you have to declorinate it after just like a waterchange. Lead will get absorbed into your water column and into your fish, heavy metals in the bloodstream isnt good. Its way better to ziptie a rock or something heavy and inert. Or you can rubber band a rock to the driftwood, by the time the rubber rots your driftwood should sink on its own, then you pull out the rubber band.


The dissolving of lead in water is negligible. A common trick to ensure there is enough iron in the water for good plant growth is to introduce a couple of iron nails or screws and allow them to rust with no detrimental effect to the inhabitants. It is not something I have tried myself and I always ensure I use marine grade stainless fittings but I am assured it works. Lead on the other hand I know is perfectly safe, aquarium plant weights are frequently made from lead due to it being malleable and its stability in water.


----------



## Slaz

Didn't have a problem with the bleaching. I have the log in the tank as we speak. Been aprox 3 weeks now and appears to be no problems at this point. Hope it stays that way! As for anchoring the log; I just put a clay pot base ( very shallow ) into the tank, with the log tied down to it with fish line. Working great and looks good. I have two other logs presently being soaked in water. I check every week to see if they will remain submerged. So far, not, and it has been 3 weeks. Will keep experimenting to see how long it takes!


----------



## Embouck7

Can you find some flat river stones? You could always cut slots that are slightly smaller than stones, in the bottom of the log. Then just use a rubber mallet and hammer those rocks in the slots you made. This way its fishtank safe and those logs will never float again...

Another method I have used is a dirt bottom tank with a gravel cap, the dirt is good for plants and it also holds driftwood at the bottom. Haha I refer you to the stick in mud property


----------

