Where to find Driftwood for free?!

[bettafantastic]

I have heard some people saying they find driftwood in swamp areas. Want to know if singapore have any? Anyone spotted ''free'' driftwood?Care to share?? I know places like malaysia have right? Thanks

[cdckjn]

i am interested too.

[bettafantastic]

I guess no one knows right?? Never mind, will go searching by myself

[David Moses Heng]

I guess no one knows right?? Never mind, will go searching by myself

not a good idea unless you have deep pockets...

[fotoudavid]

aiyo a few dollars compare to few hundreds...... think twice bro.

[accordztech]

how about along rivers? Im setting up my new tank and there is no way im paying 50 bucks for a piece of driftwood.

[stormhawk]

50 bucks for a piece of driftwood is daylight robbery. Then again, a small piece of gnarled wood that takes ages to sink, can be sold for $13 SGD at some LFS.

In any case, do not try to collect driftwood on your own from the forested areas in Singapore. You do not know what is present in your driftwood, or the possibility of finding pests hiding in there. I once picked up a piece of driftwood in a local LFS, only to find a cockroach egg case in a hole in the wood...

Plus, it is difficult to find a small sized piece, because the majority are large pieces which need sawing to be cut down to sizes that might fit your requirements. Takes more work, and time, just to get the "perfect" piece you want. Also, if you collect the wood from estuarine areas, you need to understand that it might be saturated with saline water, which can cause problems in a freshwater tank. Plus we lack forested streams to go driftwood hunting here in Singapore unless in the protected areas. If you pick up the wood from the Central Catchment Area or any other protected areas, if the rangers catch you, be prepared for a fine... not worth it IMO.

[accordztech]

haha, im in california uSA...I wonder how they are here. Shoot im going to go into my backyard tomorrow lol

Yea they sell driftwood here for 3 bucks a pound. And some of those pieces are heavey. For this small piece I paid 8 bucks for. And then driftwood for my new 55 gallon will probably hit my wallet hard.

And They dont even sell that good looking ones here. They are more just bigger logs.

[stormhawk]

Ah, sorry I missed out the bit where you are not from within this region.

Where you come from, you are blessed with a large land mass and areas that are still relatively forested, so it is no surprise that you have access to a fair bit of driftwood. Though like you said, they're mostly just logs and pieces leftover. 50 USD for a piece of wood does seem like daylight robbery, but hey, everything has a price and it takes time to collect the driftwood from the streams etc. It might even be leftover wood from the logging industry.

[cdckjn]

Last Sat, I was at a beach, I hear some chain saw noise. I saw two chaps cutting trees branches amongst the bushes, I did that is how we can get "dry driftwood" for free. They were sawing branches from the dried up trees.

I don't know if that is a good idea as dried up trees near the beaches would also become "drift wood" as they are sun dried in the dry air for a long time. The only problem is that they are not water-logged, they may take a long time to sink.

[stormhawk]

The problem with such wood is that they might contain fungi or mold spores, that might survive underwater. Unless you are willing to treat the wood beforehand, it's probably less work just to buy driftwood from the LFS.

[bettafantastic]

The problem with such wood is that they might contain fungi or mold spores, that might survive underwater. Unless you are willing to treat the wood beforehand, it's probably less work just to buy driftwood from the LFS.

Hmm...after so much discussion, I think best to buy from LFS.

[eddy planer]

[fisbike]

Sometime can see some wood along beaches, but dont know if suitable for use or not. I think use it at your own risk.

[wynx]

Sometime can see some wood along beaches, but dont know if suitable for use or not. I think use it at your own risk.

I suppose if you soak it with fresh water long enough, it might be usable after all

[Blue Whale]

>"< hmmm.....

Post Post Post:

[Blue Whale]

1st piece is basically a new piece of driftwood, nothing much to comment bought in Jan 2010 at a LFS near to Sim Lim Tower. Forgot price.

2nd pict from left name No. 1, 2, 3, and 4 on the right.
1. This is where algae are encourage to grow and serve as a snail attractor for hunting of snails. 5 years old
2. This is usually not used alone but with the rest of the drifties. 5 years old
3. This L shape drifty is very unique in the sense that this is use to negate the water flow but at the same time there are pockets like cups along the way up, good for putting hc or moss. 5 years old.
4. This is the same with picture 3.
Picture 3 is a very large piece, center is hollow hence is the favorite hidding ground for most of my fishies. It could be position upright or just lay left to right. Very configurable piece. Usually not much algae due to it's unique shape. This piece is 6 years old, bits broke off at times. Sharp areas might seem dangerous but is used by the fish also to deter other fish from coming in once it occupies the resting ground.

I still have other pieces but the current ones have been rapped with newspaper into the storeroom for future use.

[Blue Whale]

A bit more on free Driftwoods.

Some LFS people thought of "picking" then dip it into a tankfull of black water. Works? Well, I didn't actually follow, for hassening the process.

My method. If you are looking M or L size, best that you just buy off the shelves. How about S size. LFS owners would be selling plants tied to driftwoods, yeah? Now assume you know which are aquatic and which are not just from the root of the plants or if you are able to identify the plant types. Putting a Non-aquatic plants just look pretty but do not last in the tank. So what happen thereafter? Cut the fish strings away, throw the plants away, then clean up that driftwood. Just to make sure, wind dry it. Then sun bathe it. That should clear up and put a immediate break on decomposing stuffs. Thereafter, wash again then put it to good use.

How does S size matters? Now 3 long piece can easily form up a U shape. Whilst a M size could form the top cover and there you have a hidding place for the fish to rest if your tank is having strong current. And no, you don't have to glue it, just stag them will do.

[bettafantastic]

Anymore people want to share where to find driftwood for free?
Happy new year

[globalcookie]

50 bucks for a piece of driftwood is daylight robbery. Then again, a small piece of gnarled wood that takes ages to sink, can be sold for $13 SGD at some LFS.

There are driftwoods costing above $100 a piece, eg, large driftwoods, nice shaped driftwood, etc. Is that daylight robbery?