Wood management

[Beastije]

So I was speculating some of my tank problems may come from the wood that is in there rotting too fast or too much. I have 3 large pieces and several small ones, taking a lot of tank space. I like the wood in there and want it there, but I am also presoaking other pieces to replace these ones if it shows it is indeed faulty.
On the other forum I attend I was told my wood problem is related to not having any fish managing the wood, like if I had any sort of pleco, it would be different.
I see my tylomelania, neritina and most of the MTS hanging on the wood a lot so I assumed the wood is managed and the rotting parts are being handled, but am I missing on having one more carer? Would my tank benefit from a common small hypancistrus? I initially really wanted an otocinclus and I have the biofilm now I guess, but the tank is at 27-28° and I dont think any of the species will be able to handle it, or not longterm.
I cant find any information on what would "manage" wood best and if it is necessary, so would appreciate info if you have it

 

[Back in the fold]

I have heard of one particular type of wood that gives off a toxic fungus but I can't remember what it was called. It is a commonly sold type sold in the USA. @Byron and @PheonixKingZ were talking about it once several months ago.

 

[Beastije]

I will check, but I didnt buy the wood, I found it, and I dont see any fungus on it, or not visible one at least.

 

[Beastije]

Hmm, I just checked and otocinclus hoppei might work in my case, and there is a breeder here who has them not wild caught but home bread. Awaiting your input though, not sure adding fish is a solution I should come to lightly. Especially since I am not sure where would I quarantine

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I have heard of one particular type of wood that gives off a toxic fungus but I can't remember what it was called. It is a commonly sold type sold in the USA. @Byron and @PheonixKingZ were talking about it once several months ago.

I think it was Azalea wood/spider wood we were discussing, but I would be mistaken.

So I was speculating some of my tank problems may come from the wood that is in there rotting too fast or too much. I have 3 large pieces and several small ones, taking a lot of tank space. I like the wood in there and want it there, but I am also presoaking other pieces to replace these ones if it shows it is indeed faulty.
On the other forum I attend I was told my wood problem is related to not having any fish managing the wood, like if I had any sort of pleco, it would be different.
I see my tylomelania, neritina and most of the MTS hanging on the wood a lot so I assumed the wood is managed and the rotting parts are being handled, but am I missing on having one more carer? Would my tank benefit from a common small hypancistrus? I initially really wanted an otocinclus and I have the biofilm now I guess, but the tank is at 27-28° and I dont think any of the species will be able to handle it, or not longterm.
I cant find any information on what would "manage" wood best and if it is necessary, so would appreciate info if you have it

Some pictures of the wood would be helpful to determine what exactly is going on here. Snails usually hang out on driftwood because it’s a great place for them to find tiny bits of algae and other micronutrients.

 

[Beastije]

I am not seeing any particular problems with the wood as is, but I am having a large amount of detritus in the tank, on the surfaces and stuck in the hornwort. Given I dont overfeed and do very regular water changes including sand cleaning, I am looking for other causes and was thinking wood rotting more than it should.
I would have to lift all of it and take it out and test if it is weak to touch for example, but before I can do that I need to find some time and some shelter for all the fish that hide under it, and make sure my fan shrimps are not molting at that time either. Overall will be very stressful and a large job both for me and the fish so am putting it off. I also wanted to have some spare wood first if I needed to make a setup change.

 

[Byron]

A couple issues with wood. First, generally speaking, buying wood in a reliable fish store is safer than collecting your own. While we can say that certain types of wood are "safe" so far as the wood itself is concerned--oak, beech, maple for instance--there is always the unanswerable question of what liquid the wood may have absorbed, which can leech out weeks, even months later, harming or killing fish. If collected in water, pathogens that live in the collecting environment can be very different from those in the tropics to which our fish are immune.

Second, any wood that is soft or rotting should immediately be discarded. This is never safe with any type of wood.

Third, someone mentioned aquarium wood that is at risk for fungus...so-called "spiderwood" or "grapewood" seems bad for this, and avoid azalea. Much wood may contain a fungus, often harmless, but one of the toxic fungi--and the only way to know is for a microbiologist to examine the fungus (or when you see fish suffering)--can kill fish quite rapidly, depending what it is.

 

[Beastije]

A couple issues with wood. First, generally speaking, buying wood in a reliable fish store is safer than collecting your own. While we can say that certain types of wood are "safe" so far as the wood itself is concerned--oak, beech, maple for instance--there is always the unanswerable question of what liquid the wood may have absorbed, which can leech out weeks, even months later, harming or killing fish. If collected in water, pathogens that live in the collecting environment can be very different from those in the tropics to which out fish are immune.

Second, any wood that is soft or rotting should immediately be discarded. This is never safe with any type of wood.

Third, someone mentioned aquarium wood that is at risk for fungus...so-called "spiderwood" or "grapewood" seems bad for this, and avoid azalea. Much wood may contain a fungus, often harmless, but one of the toxic fungi--and the only way to know is for a microbiologist to examine the fungus (or when you see fish suffering)--can kill fish quite rapidly, depending what it is

I absolutely agree it would be most likely safest to buy wood from reputable source, however there has been a problem recently with anyone selling wood, and secondary the price is utterly riddiculous. To achieve this much wood in the tank as I have from a reputable source here I would pay around 120 euro at least. I cant afford it. I did keep the wood in clean water barrels for months with water changes and scrubbing in between in hopes to get the possible contamination out of the wood. I also collected wood in or near rivers and lakes that are healthy to try to reduce the risk. I will inspect the wood more closly when I have the time though and do the swap as soon as I can

 

[Colin_T]

I have never heard of wood needing anything to maintain it.

Suckermouth catfish should have driftwood in their tank so they can eat it and help their digestion, but the wood doesn't need anything to maintain it.

 

[Back in the fold]

I think it was Azalea wood/spider wood we were discussing, but I would be mistaken.


Some pictures of the wood would be helpful to determine what exactly is going on here. Snails usually hang out on driftwood because it’s a great place for them to find tiny bits of algae and other micronutrients.

Yep ! Spider wood . That was it. I remembered as soon as I saw that.

 

[itiwhetu]

I only ever use driftwood from the beach that is old and has been in the ocean for years. You must make sure there is no sap, in any wood you use. Azalea and Rhododendron wood are toxic to animals.