SUBSTRATE & HARDSCAPE

Driftwood

Bogwood and branch wood that leach tannins, lower pH and anchor epiphyte plants.

Setup stage Substrate

Unplug before servicingHands out of the water firstDrip loop on every cableTest before you dose30 ppm CO₂ ceilingCycle before stocking

Substrate

Specification
Common types	Malaysian, Mopani, Manzanita, Spider
Density	Sinks after 1–4 weeks soaking
Tannins	Heavy to light, depending on type
pH effect	Slight, toward acidic
Preparation	Boil or soak 1–2 weeks
Attachment	Cotton thread, gel superglue, fishing line

Technical parameters
Waterlogging time	1–4 weeks
Boil duration	30–60 min to reduce leaching
Tannin tint	Clears with carbon or water changes
pH shift	Typically 0.2–0.5 lower
Safe for shrimp	Yes, once waterlogged
Lifespan	Effectively permanent

Driftwood does three jobs at once: it provides the branching structure that makes a Nature-style aquascape read as a forest, it gives rhizome plants like Anubias and Java fern something to attach to, and it releases tannic and humic acids that soften water and tint it amber.

That last effect is a feature in a blackwater biotope and a nuisance in a bright Dutch tank. Different woods leach differently: Malaysian driftwood and Mopani release heavily for months, while well-aged Manzanita and Spider wood leach much less. All of them float until waterlogged, which takes one to four weeks unless you weigh them down or pre-soak them.

The structural advantage is that wood is the only hardscape you can attach plants to above the substrate line. Anubias and Java fern must not have their rhizome buried — it rots — so wood and stone are not just decorative, they are the mounting surface those plants require.

Safety and welfare

Never collect wood from a riverbank or a beach and put it straight in a tank. It may carry pollutants, pesticides or organisms, and you cannot identify the species.
Boil or soak new wood. It reduces the tannin load, waterlogs it faster, and kills anything living in it.
Superglue gel is safe underwater once cured, but let it cure fully before immersion. Never use solvent-based glue.

Using it well

Boil it, then soak it in a bucket with a weight on top. A piece that still floats will drag your aquascape apart on day two.

Tie moss and Anubias on with cotton thread. The thread rots away in a few weeks, by which time the plant has rooted itself.

Position wood so the branches point toward the front corner, not straight at the viewer. It reads as depth rather than as a barrier.

Mounts these on

AnubiasJava fernMossBucephalandra

Worth knowingRhizome plants rot if buried. Wood is the correct mounting surface for them.

Note. Parameters are conventional ranges across the category, not the claim of any one manufacturer. Nothing on this page is for sale and no outcome for any plant or animal is guaranteed. Simulator output elsewhere on this site is a simplified model, not a measurement — confirm everything with a test kit and the equipment's own instructions.

Driftwood

Using it well

Mounts these on

Works alongside