# Driftwood in Malawi tank?



## moi_eater (Jul 11, 2004)

I have noticed on here that quite a few people are against driftwood in Malawi tanks. I have been thinking about putting a couple branches into my 125 to grow algae on for my acei.

Any thoughts?

Reading this has had me thinking about it:



malawicichlids.com said:


> According to Konings (1995c), Ps. sp. "acei" eats algae, like many other Mbuna, but algae from a highly unusual source. It eats the algae (Aufwuchs) that grow on waterlogged wood â€" logs and tree branches washed
> into the lake. No other cichlid species is known to exploit this specific food source, which I would suggest could be called epixylic algae (algae growing upon wood). It appears to me to be only behaviorally specialized for this diet, in that it forms aggregations near, and feeds from the surfaces of, the submerged logs and branches. Anatomical specializations for this specific diet, if any, are not evident; the jaws and dentition closely resemble those of many Mbuna that feed on the algae growing on rocks (epilithic algae).


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

i dont like the appearance of driftwood in malawi tanks n2m if enough is in the tank i can lower ph levels......if its something u want algae to grow just go with any flat surface rocks......slate works very nice.


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

I see no reason to not try it if it is something you like. You should be aware that it will require some extra thought and perhaps work. I have a cedar stump in one tank. It appeals to me even though it is definitely not recommended nor is it natural for the fish in that tank. Too many times we restrict ourselves to what someone else thinks rather than what we want. Your reason seems valid to me. Perhaps you will get the proper algae and they will love it. What are the downsides? Maybe your water is stained and you have to do more water changes? Maybe the PH begins to drift and you have to correct that? Maybe guys on a forum won't like it and won't come to your house? Seems a risk I would take but then I'm not expecting any of you to drop by too soon anyway.  How much effort do you need to keep your water quality up? If it is only a matter of adding/changing more water, I would go for a try. If you struggle with keeping PH, etc. to suit, perhaps not. My cedar stained the water for a couple weeks and required more changing but the fish and I love it so it stays. By the way purists would tell me my fish are open ocean schooling fish who have never seen a stump. Who cares? :zz: They came from downtown Austin, Texas and have never seen an ocean either! Are fish in glass cages natural?


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## Cento (Mar 30, 2005)

I've ALWAYS had some driftwood in my tanks all my years of fishkeeping. Do, what suits your taste, as long as it doesn't harm or lower the quality of life of the fish (besides the fact they live out their life in glass prison :? ).

I can say that it CAN affect your water. It will release tannins and lower the pH. In my case, I've had mostly the same pieces since I started in the hobby, and so the vast majority of tanins are gone (though over a decade or so, its started to decay and crumble).

Again, it boils down to taste for the most part. I really hate castles, dragons, divers, and little mermaids in the tank, but in the end, if it doesn't harm the fish, then really, who cares?


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

Cento said:


> I really hate castles, dragons, divers, and little mermaids in the tank, but in the end, if it doesn't harm the fish, then really, who cares?


Oh... My... God... *NO* tank is complete without a little diver dude opening the treasure chest to release bubbles...

But back to the topic...

I always hear from the "purists" that Rift Lake tanks shouldn't have wood in them... But I've got to believe there are a few falled trees in the Lakes... So is it true to reality, or true to the common opinion of those who consider themselves "purists"?

I think noting that there is a species of Rift Lake fish that have adapted to eating algae off of wood... is pretty darn solid proof that wood has been common to the Rift Lakes for quite some time. Long enough for it to be a part of evelolution.

But as mentioned... Driftwood can affect KH & PH... So some precaution should be taken. But with proper precaution in place there is no reason why you "can't" add it...

I don't get the perspective of "purists" anyway... Why freak out because this Cichlid comes from one river and that Tetra comes from another... When if you hand't read that on the internet or in a book you would have never known... Not to mention I wonder how often there are small pockets of undescovered species living together in places we've yet to document...

Sorry about the rant...

But the point is... design the tank however makes you happy... and take the necessary precautions to ensure your fish are also happy...


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## moi_eater (Jul 11, 2004)

Thank you all for your input, I do know that driftwood can affect KH, PH, and release tannins. I usually soak any wood I get for a long time before using it in a tank and I also use locally collected beach sand in my tank which buffers the water nicely. I do have some algae growing on the rocks in my tank, but I wanted to see the acei show some of their natural behavior as stated by that article. I may try to grow algae on a few pieces of driftwood in a barrel and then just float them, or hold them down with rocks in the tank until they eat it clean, then remove/replace it with a new piece with algae. I also have collected rocks covered in soft green algae from a local river and let them graze on it (after rinsing it very well of course!).


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## PsYcHoTiC_MaDmAn (Dec 26, 2005)

Toby_H said:


> Cento said:
> 
> 
> > I really hate castles, dragons, divers, and little mermaids in the tank, but in the end, if it doesn't harm the fish, then really, who cares?
> ...


+1, except the plastic diver part

there are photos in the Ad Konings book of sunken trees in there, with acei schooling around it

as mentioned, pH and KH need to be monitored, but most people probably wont see a difference. some people also find tannins unpleasant in the tank, my preference is not to have tannins in that tank as that isn't what the water is like in Lake Malawi. however at the same time I do like the Tannin stained waters of my Tapajos tank (I know thats supposed to be a clear or white water river. but I like the blackwater look)


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

PsYcHoTiC_MaDmAn said:


> +1, except the plastic diver part


No love for the diver dude?!?!?

I love the look of driftwood in the tank... but I hate tea colored water...

But just a word of encouragement to anyone else who feels like me, eventually the wood will completely stop leaching tannins and then you have about 10 years worth of beautiful driftwood without a bit of tannins before it starts to biodegrade to the point it's a pain in the rear.

So if you have driftwood but don't like the tannins, I highly encourage you to wait it out. I have 8 medium to large pieces in a 125 gal and the water is truly crystal clear. It was well worth waiting for...


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## buffro (Aug 17, 2005)

Toby_H said:


> Cento said:
> 
> 
> > I really hate castles, dragons, divers, and little mermaids in the tank, but in the end, if it doesn't harm the fish, then really, who cares?
> ...


+1 I simply can't agree enough there is no way that there is no wood in african rift lakes. I read an article the other day on them and it said much of the shore line in these lakes are packed with growth so much so it hangs over the egde of the lake and I thought to myself then why are so many against drift wood in an african tank then.

What it all comes down to is what YOU like if you think it looks cool than thats what you should do.


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## Bogman (Nov 7, 2007)

I have a piece of Manzanita wood in my aquarium because I like the way it looks. I figured that, unless there are no trees around Lake Malawi, there is bound to be some wood in the lake. Regardless of what I think, my mbuna don't care and my BN pleco loves it.

I presoaked my piece for 48 hours, changing the water once. The wood never discoloured my aquarium water - not that I noticed. It developed a thin slime coat in places but that lasted for only a few days. It has been in my aquarium for six months now. My pH is at 8.2 and kH/gH at 13 and 22, but I buffer my water with baking soda and epsom salt.

If you like the way wood looks, I say go for it.


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## planenut007 (Mar 21, 2009)

cedar??? lot of oil in that isn't there?


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## beaker99 (Apr 15, 2007)

I'm with Pfunmo, do hat you like. Although as stated you want to stay away from woods with possible harmful resins like conifers, evergreen. If you use a desiduous tree, one that loses its' leaves in the fall, you should be fine. 
Myself I live in Florida and use mangrove driftwood. Be careful to cure the driftwood first without any fish. Personally I bleach driftwood first and let it soak a few days until all the chlorine has dissipated. Then drain and soak for a few more days in rinse water changeing rinse water dayly. That way you can be sure to kill any bugs in the wood.


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## aFinFan (Jul 29, 2009)

I use Malaysian wood in my African tank looks great with the rock stacked around it and never seen Tea colouring from it,simply soaked it overnight in some RO and added it.Three years later water still crystal clear and fish seem to enjoy it.I would boil smaller pieces but the two I added to the tank were 2 big for that so I just let it soak note Malaysian wood supposed to soften water but my tapwater here is pretty hard never seen my ph drop under 7.8.


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## sharpwhit (Dec 2, 2008)

Not only will your Acei like the wood, if you have a Bristlenose or other Pleco, they will require it.

I have a Malaysian driftwood stump in my 72g. I soaked it in a 5-gallon bucket for about a week, changing boiling water laced with salt, epsom salts and baking soda. It did a great job of leaching the tannins. Plus, I monitored the PH in the bucket just to see the effect in such a small, extreme water sample.

I buffer my water and have a buffering substrate, but I have seen no effect on PH. And in only 6 months, I have not had any discoloration. With weekly water changes, I'd be surprised discoloration could add up unless you had a ton of wood. Of course, I have much more rock than wood. But some is a natural part of the ecosystem.


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## bertolli (Aug 18, 2009)

sharpwhit said:


> Not only will your Acei like the wood, if you have a Bristlenose or other Pleco, they will require it.


I kind of doubt that, my BN does fine and i have no wood... in my tank


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Someone above questioned using cedar in a tank. While cedar is known to have oils in the wood, it has not been a problem to me. So much of what we do or don't do is often based on hearsay or part truth blown up to be a major problem. I tend to take a lot of info as preliminary until I've tried it. I wanted the twisted, gnarly look of the cedar stump. I had it, I had the spare tank with fish that had been somewhat forced on me, so why not try it? Heck, they were brackish water folks and I half expected them to die before I learned what to do anyway. This tank with all the questions it has brought with it, has been the most rewarding, fun tank I have ever owned. It is the first tank that I felt free to do most anything I wanted without regard for any "non- believers" standing nearby. Not that I don't respect you guys opinions, but I sure am having fun doing it my way for a change.


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## Riceburner (Sep 3, 2008)

Don't know...I have some great looking pieces that I'm not sure what they are. Might be from the cedar family as they look like they might be. Tried it in my new world tank and the fish stopped eating after a week or so. Had a lot of tannins even after soaking for a month+ and the water got tea coloured really fast after each water change. Didn't want to risk it any longer and took it out, WCed and fed peas and garlic. They eventually recovered. Was it the wood or just a coincidence? Can't say, but they were doing fine before and after, so I'm not going to chance it again with them. I could always set up another tank and experiment with some Convicts.


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

To me what you describe doing is the way to go in this hobby. No need to go completely nuts and off the deep end but no need to deferr on something we want to do just because it might not work out. While I like to take good care of my fish , I recognize that I'm already pretty well messing with their day when I put them in a tank. From there it is only a matter of judgement what else is permitted. By the way, are you sure it's legal to feed peas and garlic? That would sure make me stop eating.  
I eat cows, chickens, and pigs as well as fish so what I do in a tank is not bothering me much. I just have to watch carefully so that it doesn't get out of control. I might wind up roasting the neighbors dog on a stick..


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## wheatbackdigger (May 11, 2008)

bertolli said:


> sharpwhit said:
> 
> 
> > Not only will your Acei like the wood, if you have a Bristlenose or other Pleco, they will require it.
> ...


Sorry for my ignorance, but why is driftwood required for BN's? Most my tanks do not have driftwood, but all my tanks have BN's. My Acei totally ignored driftwood, when I used to keep them.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I think it's true that some pleco's require wood in their tanks, but do not believe it's true for ancistrus (BN).


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## PsYcHoTiC_MaDmAn (Dec 26, 2005)

DJRansome said:


> I think it's true that some pleco's require wood in their tanks, but do not believe it's true for ancistrus (BN).


Panaque need wood (also not a sp you want to put into an acrylic tank, unless you dont want to be able to see in cause of the scratches)

other Loricariidae also benefit from wood. so wouldn't go amiss to add it anyway.

almost always find my ancistrus on the bogwood,


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## moi_eater (Jul 11, 2004)

wheatbackdigger said:


> My Acei totally ignored driftwood, when I used to keep them.


Was algae growing on the driftwood?


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## JustinChase (Sep 22, 2009)

I have a little chunk in my 745 gal tank, and the Malawis like it, they dug out all underneath it and now use it as a hide out. They seem to enjoy swimming around, under and thru it.


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