Wood Aquarium Ornaments

Wooden Fish Tank Decorations

Pieces of wood in the aquarium are a completely natural ornament choice. Not only is it a natural material, it is also found in the rivers, streams and lakes where fish are found.

Aquatic plants such as java moss, java fern and bolbitis will freely attach to and grow on a wooden surface for a highly decorative effect. Such centre pieces can be grown yourself or purchased as a developed aquarium feature.

Some aquarists will recommend that logs from aquatic sources are not suitable for the aquarium decorations. This is because of the risk of aquatic disease transmission. If this is a concern, soak the log in diluted bleach followed up by several soaks in fresh water. This will annihilate any pathogens. When the smell of bleach can no longer be detected on your chosen log ornament soak it one more time to be safe.

Newer wood will leach tannins resulting in a brown water stain and a lowered pH. If managed this is not a concern, and can even be beneficial to 'black water' loving fish species. Just monitor your aquarium pH and adjust accordingly. If you find the brown stain unsightly soak the log ornament in a bucket of water. Change the liquid until no stain remains. Be patient as this may take many months.

Marine driftwood makes an ideal ornament as it's tannins will have already been leached. For this type of wood soak it several times to remove salt residues rather than tannin.

Even aged logs with no apparent water stain will slowly decay with increasing water acidity as a result. Softwood timbers will decay at an impractical rate. By choosing hardwood ornaments rather than softwood this decay will be minimised.

Dry wood may initially float when first placed in the water. Keep the wood submerged with a weight until liquid has soaked in and weighted the decoration down.

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