Safe wood

[French47]

Hi to All, Can anyone tell if there are any British hard woods that can safely be used in tanks, I am thinking along the lines of dead branches that can be picked up after a storm, if they can be used should they be coated with varnish or resin or would soaking surffice. I would like to create a biotope, but the cost of bogwood in the quantities that I would need is out of the question.
Thanks

[MatsP]

As a general rule, it's OK to use "hardwood" - that is branches of broadleaved trees [as opposed to conifers with "needles" - so although willow has narrow leaves for a "leafy" tree, it's still a hardwood - you may well know this perfectly well, but I'm explaining it in case there are others trying to determine what is a "broadleaved" tree].

As to treating them, as long as the wood is thoroughly dried out, just brush off any loose stuff, and put it in the tank. Some people say to remove the bark, boil it, etc. Boiling will indeed kill bacteria, but there are so few bacteria that will live in water and without water, and the ones that are also harmful in that group is so vanishingly small chance that it's not worth the trouble [never mind the fact that boiling a 4ft long branch may take a slightly bigger pot than even most professional kitchens will have].

Certainly, do not varnish or treat the wood with anything chemical.

--
Mats

[French47]

Cheers Mat,
I shall now start collecting wood for my next project.
Thanks once again.

[sidguppy]

still, a word of advise!

not all hardwoods are harmless.
the 2 species that you can use without any problems are oak and beech.

fruit trees are also hardwood (cherry, apple, pear),
but the ones related to peaches, apricots and almonds are quite poisdonous and branches or wood of the walnut tree will depopulate an entire tank within hours or less!
just so you know

leafy trees are less polluting than conifers, but i'll gladly toss in a pine root than anything from a walnut....with pine I can safe my fish before it goes horribly wrong.

stick to oak and beech and you'll be fine.

another thing; if you have a small tank, go easy with any kind of "fresh" wood.

we generally use bogwood in our tanks for a reason.
fresh wood is still full of a wide variety of substances and if the waterviolume is small, your waterparameters go haywire.

so if you want to use 'fresh' wood instead of bogwood that's aged for millenia in a peatbog, start with small amounts.

[Mike_Noren]

this has been discussed a number of times before, e.g. here and here.