# driftwood discoloring the water



## trevorhoang (Oct 13, 2010)

i have bought 2 different drift woods from the pet store and they have turned my water brownish. i tryed boiling and leaving the driftwood in hot water overnite and yet after 2 weeks the water still turns a little brownish. i have raised fish for a long while so i know its not anything else. the biggest culprit is the driftwood.


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## Sharkbait (Jun 15, 2010)

You can add carbon or purigen to your filter to get rid of the tannins in the water.

This is completely natural, and does not harm your fish - it's actually beneficial to blackwater species. 

Overtime, it will fade with water changes, but adding one of the two options I mentioned will help take care of it faster.


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## qyrus (Apr 21, 2010)

It's tannis from your driftwood. You can remove it with carbon, purigen, or water changes till the wood stops leeching. Nothing worth worrying about though, some fish actually like the blackwater, low ph conditions.

Jim


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## davej (Apr 28, 2010)

That brownish color is not harmful to your fish, it is tannins leaching out of the wood. If you don't like the color just do frequent water changes. After a little while the wood will leach out way less color.


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## davej (Apr 28, 2010)

Lol three of us are on the same boat!
Hope this helps


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## Sharkbait (Jun 15, 2010)

Wow....

Don't think you can get much better than that


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## Sharkbait (Jun 15, 2010)

Oh, none of us mentioned the PH drop....

Darnit.

Your driftwood will lower the PH of your water naturally - make sure you test to keep your parameters in check.


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## effox (Apr 21, 2010)

Sharkbait said:


> Oh, none of us mentioned the PH drop....
> 
> Darnit.
> 
> Your driftwood will lower the PH of your water naturally - make sure you test to keep your parameters in check.


I'm glad I didn't have to drink and type at once. Thanks Sharkbait!


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## trevorhoang (Oct 13, 2010)

dropping the PH level? argggg.... 

thanks for all the advice guys.


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## gklaw (May 31, 2010)

With new drift wood, I soak it in hot water and changes water every day - better yet twice a day to get the tanin out. It would take 7 - 10 days depends on the wood.

I had a piece that I boiled for hours and still take days to take the tanin out.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

I've been soaking my Manzanita for 3 weeks now and it still leaches a bit of tannins. It's actually one of the reasons I want wood in the tanks, is to get some of the blackwater look, plus the plecos like it. I run Purigen and do 2x60% water changes a week and I don't notice discolouration in my tanks at all.


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## SophieThomas (May 12, 2010)

If your concerned about unpredictable pH changes, check your KH (carbonate hardness). KH acts as a chemical buffer and will prevent quick and random pH changes. If you keep it up and around 80-90ppm (double check those numbers) the buffering capacity of your aquarium will help prevent pH swings caused by your tannins.


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## anessa (Apr 26, 2010)

I don't worry about the tannins. They will disappear after a while. Regarding dropping PH, a small amount of crushed coral in a nylon in the filter is the best way to help regulate it. It is a bit of trial and error to figure out how much coral to put in.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

I liberated from root-wood from the base of a washed up tree on the Quesnel River in May. I had it in a rubbermade garbage bin in my backyard, soaking for 3 months (changing water a couple times) before adding it to my tank. Partially to sink it, partially to leech tannins out. It is STILL leeching tannins into my water. It is just something you deal with. Keep in mind if you put carbon in your filter, it WILL take out any nutrients plants need, so if you dose ferts... you are undoing what you are doing. Water changes are most effective in my opinion.


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## trevorhoang (Oct 13, 2010)

has anyone succeeded with getting the tannin out enough to keep their water clear of that brownish color? 

From all the replies, it seems like a lost battle =(


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## SophieThomas (May 12, 2010)

trevorhoang said:


> has anyone succeeded with getting the tannin out enough to keep their water clear of that brownish color?
> 
> From all the replies, it seems like a lost battle =(


I have a huge amount of drift wood in all of my tanks (4 of them) and they are all clear of colouration. Well, I recently added almond leaves to one to make a black water tank so that doesn't count, lol. It just comes down to frequency of water changes and patience. It does happen though and I am sure there is an endless supply of people willing to post beautiful pictures of their tanks full of drift wood and "tea" free


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

took about 6 months for my malysian wood to stop browning the water.


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## Discus (Apr 23, 2010)

like gklaw said... your suppost to soak drift wood in a bucket for 2 weeks... before adding it to your tank... be sure to change the water adleast once a day


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## user_error (Aug 15, 2010)

my mopani wood still leeches a little into the water after 5 years...


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## gklaw (May 31, 2010)

SophieThomas said:


> I have a huge amount of drift wood in all of my tanks (4 of them) and they are all clear of colouration. Well, I recently added almond leaves to one to make a black water tank so that doesn't count, lol. It just comes down to frequency of water changes and patience. It does happen though and I am sure there is an endless supply of people willing to post beautiful pictures of their tanks full of drift wood and "tea" free


Mmmm. Now that explains why my discus tank water is getting hazy. Forgot I added almond leaf I got from April last weekend  Thought I was overfeeding.


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## mike604 (May 1, 2010)

Just keep changing the water, but with the amount of water you have in your tank it might take awhile. Faster way to take it out and drop it in a bucket so it can leech more but you cant enjoy in lol for awhile.

Later buddy


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## Clownloachlover (Apr 21, 2010)

I have about 20 pieces of driftwood sitting in a bathtub full of water...they have been there for about 5 months now and they are still leaching tannins into the water. I change the water in the bathtub every week!


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

I have a large piece that has been leaching for a couple years. Just depends on the wood and the size in comparision with the tank volume. I've been able to get rid of the brown staining using Purigen. Very effective.


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## Jondis21 (Sep 7, 2010)

if you have big bucket put the drift wood in it,and every two days change the water for 2to3 weeks,it works on my malaysian drift wood.hope it will work on your too.


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## Discus (Apr 23, 2010)

some of your guy's water could be getting hazy not from wood but from sun light... it your tank is in sunlight algae grows real fast and it might seem like it comes from the wood... I had a tank in the sun light this past summer and you would not beleive the color of the tank after a week...


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## donjuan_corn (May 6, 2010)

Discus said:


> some of your guy's water could be getting hazy not from wood but from sun light... it your tank is in sunlight algae grows real fast and it might seem like it comes from the wood... I had a tank in the sun light this past summer and you would not beleive the color of the tank after a week...


I second that, now that I've moved and the tank isn't near the window, it's good to go.


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