Another driftwood question...

[littletankbigworld]

Is it okay to buy freshwater driftwood off of ebay? No where around here sells driftwood larger than 12 inches, and even then it is ridiculously priced. I believe the wood comes from Indiana. It's probably from a lake. Does lake wood rot quickly? I don't know whether I should pay extra for mopani wood that is very hard and doesn't rot.

 

[OrangeCones]

All wood rots eventually. The more dense it is, the longer it takes to rot.

I've cured my own driftwood for years and have only bought one piece long ago. Just make sure what you get is a hardwood from the Indiana lake. Remove any bark if it comes with any.

 

[littletankbigworld]

Is hardwood the part of the wood under the bark? What are some signs that wood is starting to rot?

 

[OrangeCones]

Hardwood is a type of wood, coming from specific trees.

When any wood is rotting, it will start to disintegrate, becoming very soft and mushy.

 

[exhumed07]

hardwood is like ash, elm, oak, wild cherry. those are the ones I know that are not toxic. walnut is also hard wood, but is moderatly toxic. would have to dry it for a year to get rid of water and that will cause most the toxins to break down. then soak it for years to remove the rest of the toxins.

all of my driftwood I have in my tanks never has a chance to rot. my pleco stripps it before it has a chance to rot lol.