Fungus On Bogwood

[johnatkin]

Not sure if this is the right place to post this but...

My tank has been up and running now for about 8 months. I put 3 pieces of bogwood (which had been soaked thoroghly and scrubbed into this tank when I set it up. In the last 2 months a white cottonwool like fungus began growing on it. Nothing else (plants, rock etc.) is effected by this fungus. Initially I just hoovered it off when doing water changes but noticed that the faster I was removing it the faster it was coming back.

Last week I removed all 3 pieces from this tank but I have a Royal Plec in that tank so had to replace one of the pieces for him to live under so I put a piece in from my other tank. I soaked all three pieces of the fungused wood in methylene blue in a bucket (very strong solution) for about an hour and scrubbed all the fungus off.

I then replaced this in the tank and added a strong air-stream from an airstone/light as someone told me fungus does't like oxygen (don't know if this is true or not). The problem is after about 3 days it has started growing back again. The only piece unnafected by this fungus is the piece I had added from the other tank for my Royal Plec which was bought from a different supplier and is much darker wood.

I read on a different site on the internet, someone else who had exactly the same thing happening. Someone told this other person that a lot of the wood bought for fishtank use isn't really bogwood but comes from the dessert and that it isn't dead wood and this fungus starts growing from re-hydration and there is nothing you can do other than to buy proper bogwood/driftwood.

This may sound like a crazy idea but would putting it a bleach/water mix for a period of time kill this off and can you get all the bleach out of the wood safely after by soaking?

Any ideas/help appreciated.

 

[DarkEntity]

I had the same problem with 2 pieces of wood which in the end i binned, i tried boiling, bleaching, baking the lot to no avail. It was imo a bad bunch of wood that wasnt treated properly prior to you buying it.

I replaced the wood and have had no problems since.

 

[CEB]

I don't know, but I suspect that the wood will absorb the bleach, then leach it into the tank.

I soaked my bogwood for ages before adding it to the tank. Maybe the chlorine in the water I used killed off any spores, maybe not.

I take mine out and scrub it with a washing up brush (not the one I use for washing up though). That might help.

 

[DarkEntity]

Nope, if you do a very weak solution its fine.

 

[CEB]

Nope, if you do a very weak solution its fine.

Sorry, I stand corrected.

 

[johnatkin]

Thanks for the replies. Do you know why it's taken so long before it started doing this? Is it worth trying bleach or do you think I'm best off starting again with new wood? Do you have any advice on what to look for to avoid this again when looking for some new wood. I do need wood for my Royal Plec. He's not happy with what's going on but touch wood he's still healthy. Don't want to keep upsetting him messing with his homes?

 

[DarkEntity]

In my case i tried all of the things i mentioned and nothing worked. So i repalced the wood and no more problems.

 

[johnatkin]

Yeah, think it's worth getting rid. The other bit I took from my other tank that is now in the same tank with the fungussed wood has no signs of fungus at all and the bit I put in the other tank that came from that tank is starting to grow fungus on it. All 3 pieces that have fungus came from the same shop, the other 2 bits came from a different shop.

I have kept tanks for 15 years during which time I had a few years off (relationship breakdown) and I have never seen this before. I had a 6 foot tank, 2 four foot tanks and 2 three foot tanks, all had bogwood in and none of the wood has ever done this.

Is there a problem with bogwood now?

Thanks to you all for your help. Gonna replace the wood tomorrow.