Maple Tree Cut Down/ Driftwood ?

[Aquaman187]

We have a huge maple. Or oak tree in my backyard and I am pretty sure there is gonna be tons of cool wood but what is the process of making it fish friendly.

 

[magical trevor]

Bump....
Id be interested to find out how this is done. As i was thinking about doing it as im cheap skate lol.

 

[IainMac85]

Bump....
Id be interested to find out how this is done. As i was thinking about doing it as im cheap skate lol.

same here bro!! plenty of trees have fell up balloch park in that last storms, think oak and beech are some of the better ones to use

 

[Haveagojoe]

I think there is only one answer and thats time.

 

[IainMac85]

I think there is only one answer and thats time.

would u care to elaborate plz?

 

[Erik]

It's going to need plenty of time to dry out unless there are dead dried out pieces on the tree.

 

[IainMac85]

ahhh right i see, i thought haveagojoe meant that it takes time to prepare the wood, ie skinning the bark off and possibly steeping it in water, i didnt realise u had to wait for ages for the wood to dry but now when i think about it it makes perfect sense, thanks would i be correct in saying that hardwoods such as beech and oak are ideal candidates for in a tank? and softwoods should be avoided? cheers

 

[OldMan47]

I have used apple wood from my own trees after letting the wood age for about a year. I am not sure what shorter period would have been successful but I can say that I saw no bad responses to a year old wood sample. I simply killed a branch, I girdled it, that I thought would work and left it in place on the tree until I harvested it the next summer. The wood that resulted was nicely air dried and easy to attach to a slate piece so that it would sink well. It has been in a tank now for about 5 years with no negative results.

 

[hanny93]

Beech and Oak are ok to use in aquariums (im goinjg to look for some tomorrow on the dogwalk!) but you must make sure the bark is completely stripped off.


It would be good maybe to dry it out for 12 hours on a low heat in the oven just to dry out any sap left.