You saw them–those fantastic, naturally planted driftwood tanks as the core of attraction. Fish seems to enjoy them, and people who have them in their tanks love driftwood, too. You may have thought of adding it yourself.

Where is the aquarium driftwood coming from? Some driftwood aquariums come from various regions in North and South America, Malaysia/Asia, Africa; they can also come from your neighbourhood if you have the right conditions. It just depends on what kind of driftwood you’re searching for.

I take a closer look at the following regions (and the forms of driftwood you can get from them):

• North and South America
• Malaysia, Asia
• Africa, Africa
• Locally sourced (close to you!)

I also look at what makes a piece of wood “driftwood” rather than just normal wood, and why it makes a difference in an aquarium.

North & South American Driftwood Aquarium

Some common forms of aquarium driftwood originating in North and South America include:

• Spider of wood
• Manzanita’s
• The Wood of Cholla

Spider wood (dry azalea or rhododendron roots) is usually sourced from the United States. It’s called spider wood because it’s shaped like a spider with a lot of legs. It may be reddish or light in colour.

Manzanita is a small tree or large shrub that grows mainly in Mexico, and the United States, New Mexico, California, Arizona, and Texas. It’s soft driftwood, with plenty of branches or roots.

Manzanita is harder to find than many other aquarium driftwoods, which makes it a little more valuable than others.

In reality, Cholla wood is the dried-out remains of a particular species of cactus that grows in North and South America. There are a lot of small openings in the wood and it’s naturally tube-shaped. Because of this, however, it might take a while to sink in your tank. It does not leach tannins, however, as do many other driftwoods.

I’m looking at what makes driftwood from Malaysia and Asia special below.

Malaysian/Asia Driftwood Aquarium

“Malaysian driftwood” typically refers to several different forms of wood coming from Malaysia or other parts of Asia.

It’s darker than other driftwoods out there and it comes in a variety of different shapes and sizes. This type of driftwood also appears to sink more quickly than any of the other varieties available out there.

Spider wood (dried azalea or rhododendron roots) often comes from Asia, and mostly looks like a spider with a lot of legs.

Another continent local fish stores will surprise you with their driftwood. Most of us don’t think of Africa as a place with lots of driftwood!

Driftwood of Africa

African driftwood is typically taken from hardwood tree roots and is not found to be floating in the water. This type of driftwood (which does not fit the concept of driftwood) is also called Mopani wood.

Mopani wood is unusual in that it has two colours on the same piece of wood – light and very dark, with interesting patterns. Another thing to note about Mopani wood is that it can sink without first having to be pre-soaked or boiled.

It’s usually sand-blasted to extract the bark before it’s sold to local pet stores.

Finally, I’ll take a look at where you can find wood in your local area and what you need to do to make it safe for your aquarium.

Driftwood locally sourced

Of course, you can still go hunting driftwood where you live. If you want to do this just know that certain types of wood are not appropriate for use in aquariums, such as:

• Wood trees and conifers
• Walnut The Walnut
• Yes, Yew
• Lilac’s
• Cypress Cypress
• Spruce, Spruce
• Cedar: Cedar
• Ivy’s
• Chestnut horse
• Grapevine’s

Yew, lilac, and ivy are potentially poisonous to fish and should never be used in aquariums. That’s because these kinds of trees can leave harmful chemical compounds in the water of your aquarium. Pine trees and other conifers may also have inside sap and resin, which would be harmful to the fish as well.

Grapevine, while not harmful to your fish, can rot very easily in the aquarium, and normally, when anyone adds driftwood, they don’t want it to rot down to anything long after it’s added to the tank.

You should also know that before applying any “found” driftwood to your fish tank, you will need to clean it to remove the outer mould, the fungus, etc., boil it or soak it for a few days), and then dry it before it is safe to add to your tank. This method is called the “curing” of the driftwood, making it secure for the inhabitants of your tank and tank.

Now that I’ve looked at where driftwood comes from, I share what it really is and how the “driftwood” aquarium doesn’t always follow the concept of what driftwood is.

What’s Driftwood, anyway?

What makes driftwood so special as every other piece of wood?

Usually, the word “driftwood” is used to refer to any piece of wood from a tree or bush that has fallen off the tree or bush it was on and ended up in a river, a lake, or even an ocean. It was named after floating on the water current.

So a broken tree in your yard or even in a forest isn’t usually called “driftwood,” since it doesn’t float around in a body of water.

And much of the driftwood was worn down by the weather and also bleached by the sun, depending on how long it had been on the sea. A lot of times, driftwood washes onshore or gets trapped along muddy river banks, making it easier for beachcombers or driftwood hunters to get along with them.

In aquariums, however, roots (like azalea roots, also known as spider wood) are sometimes used as driftwood.

And, oddly enough a lot of the wood used for aquariums hasn’t been floating anywhere or seen a lot of weather. Mopani wood, for example, is taken from the roots of African trees.

But besides making your tank look good, could driftwood help your tank?

What is Driftwood doing?

Many people add driftwood to their aquariums because it looks amazing, but did you know that driftwood often does a few other things in the aquarium?

Provision of food for fish

Yeah, some of the fish will nibble on the driftwood in your tank. But don’t worry, it’s not going to harm the fish, and it’s even going to give them some nutrients.

Not only that, but driftwood will provide you with habitat for algae that your Oto cats and other algae eaters would enjoy.

But that’s not all driftwood does—it can increase your beneficial bacteria, too.

Provide a location for beneficial bacteria

Since driftwood has so many surfaces, it’s a perfect place to cultivate the beneficial bacteria in your tank.

Driftwood also leaches tannins into the water, which has its advantages.

Adding Tannins

The tannins naturally lower the pH of your tank, rendering the water slightly acidic. This can be good or bad depending on the kind of fish you have in the tank, and what kind of plants you have. Some fish like slightly acidic water, and you might be thankful for adding driftwood!

They can also make the oxygen in the water easier for your fish to consume, and make it easier for them to breathe in your tank.

Another advantage of tannins is that most fish viruses and dangerous bacteria do not like slightly acidic water as much as they like neutral or alkaline water, and would have a hard time surviving, which ensures that you have healthier fish.

In addition to all its health benefits, driftwood also helps fish feel more at home in your tank.

Making you feel good with fish

Since driftwood is a natural part of the world where many fish live in the wild, it makes them feel right at home in your aquarium. They may also have a variety of places to hide, depending on the form of your driftwood, which will make shy or territorial fish happy.

Summary

Driftwood for sale online or in your local fish shop comes from three major regions:

• North America and South America
• Malaysia, Asia
• Africa, Africa

If you’re willing to do some extra work, you can even search for driftwood nearby if you’re near a water source, like a river, ocean, or lake. But you should be careful to add driftwood to your tank, as certain plants can be hazardous to the tank.

These include plants such as yew, lilac, conifers, and ivy. And if you add driftwood to your tank that you’ve collected on your own, you’ll probably want to cure it before you add it to your aquarium.

Technically, driftwood is a piece of wood floating in water (usually the ocean, a lake, or river). However, the “driftwood” used for aquariums may come from roots and even land-locked trees that have probably never been anywhere near the ocean or any other body of water.

Adding driftwood to your freshwater aquarium also has a variety of advantages, including having safe hiding places for fish, making it easier for fish to access oxygen in your aquarium water, creating a slightly acidic atmosphere (which can help keep dangerous bacteria and viruses down), and even serving as a food source for certain fish.