Reply With Quote
You can put it into a pot and boil it. Alternatively you can weight it down in the water with some weights like rocks etc. After when it can sink by itself then you can remove the weights.
Hi people!! anyone experienced floating driftwoods before? mine were sunned for a day before introducing into the tank. but they are not sinking.. ideas anyone?
You can put it into a pot and boil it. Alternatively you can weight it down in the water with some weights like rocks etc. After when it can sink by itself then you can remove the weights.
It's simple...but no one said it will be easy
H bro kachang90,Originally Posted by kachang90
is this the same piece of BIG driftwood you mentioned that you had problems trying to find a pail big enough to soak it?
Driftwood (or in fact most kind of wood) are less dense than water initially until enough water had seeped into the porous fibre to make it equally (or even much more) denser than water, then it'll sink... You mentioned you had sunned it for a day, so I presumed that most of the water had been dried while suntanning, that explains why it does not sink as easily then...
You can try to use boiling water to pour over the DW again & then let it soak in the water overnight [also useful in removing the tanin in most DWs that will leak out & make your water appear brownish...] before introducing into your tank again, it should be able to sink better this time round... If it still does not sink initially, then do as bro kaganesti suggested, tie some weights (stones, rocks etc...) onto the DW to weigh it down, then remove them when the DW had absorbed enough water...
Hope the above helps...
yes brother beetlejuice... this is the same one i was talking about... i guess ill weigh them down as u ppl have said.. any idea roughly how long it will take before these stubborn pieces of wood get soaked?
No problem bro... Based on my own experiences, DWs that had been boiled before tends to sink faster than those without being boiled (I think it's like the 'pores' on the wood are opened after boiling, hence easier for water to seep in...) It may be fast within a few days or may take a week or two... One thing I know is the DWs is somehow ready (as in heavy enough to sink) once I can rarely spot any fine bubbles escaping from the DWs anymore... Or you can tie rocks/stones which you can blend into part of your landscape in the tank, then don't need to remove the weights lor...
Tied a weight on the driftwood will solve the problem.
If you still have floating problem after soaking, try to soak longer period.
If it still floats, tie leads weights to the wood and get off after your tank mature.
Well i managed to solve the problem folks. Anf for others who experience a similar situation here is my tip.
1)First i went searching around the markets of potng pasir for huge styrofoam boxes. There were plenty and so its was quite quick.
2)Then, i soaked the wood in those boxes overnight in very hot water(not boiling though. Scared the heat might cos the styrofoam to release chemicals into the wood).
3) The next day i brought all the wood to my friends place and soaked it in his bathtub for one night again. Cos, the boxes, although big were still not big enough to immerse all the wood fully.
4) After one night in hot water in a bathtub, i took the wood and threw it into his pond for 3 full days and wahlaa.... problem solved.
5) So my suggestion would be, don need to get a huge pail.. get a friend with a bathtub or pond.. Hahaha..
But thanks to all who kept those tips and help coming in. I actually combined various methods together..
Very good post! the only thing I can add is find an old guy who makes the street boiled noodles, and pay him for gas and time and use his cooker if the piece is large. Good luck, and please post how you chose in the end.
But the guy at the LFS said "they'll be FINE together!"
I used to have the same problem as you bro.. Fed up, I soaked the DW in boiled water for hours while I watch tv.. Hahah! Then test, and it sinks...
~~Never take someone for granted~~
Hold every person close to your heart because you might wake up one day
and realise that you've lost a diamond while you were too busy collecting stones....
I usually soak my driftwood for 4-6 weeks before adding to the maintank, so never had issues like this.
An an interim, you can add weights to the driftwood.
I boiled my driftwood overnight and placed it in my tank the next day.
to my amazment, the smaller piece actually started sinking by itself on day2, while my big piece is still floating up till now, which is the 4th day?
using a porcelain to press it down now... making my mum nag at me for using her precious porcelain
From kachang90's post, can we borrow your friend? Heheheheee
From kachang90's post, can we borrow your friend? Heheheheee
To set up a driftwood sinking business! Sure make money from aquarium hobbyists.....
Posting Permissions
Bookmarks