River wood safe to use?

[MainMann]

Hello all!
So for all of my Ts I've been using cork bark that i purchase from a trusted seller, but recently I've collected a bunch of log pieces from the bottom of a river near a waterfall. From the looks of it, the wood has been underwater for quite a long time.

It hasn't fully dried out yet, but i plan to use the wood one day for my arboreal T. So better safe than sorry, so i must ask, if i disinfect and treat the wood correctly, would it be safe for usage? And i have the gist down on how to treat and disinfect, but I'd love to hear tips and tricks from other keepers!

Thank you in advance, Maman

 

[cold blood]

Drift wood is fine, but the dry stuff is what you want..not waterlogged wood....water is the biggest enemy of wood to be used in an enclosure....it could literally be years before that wood is usable.

btw, wood doesnt need to be sterilized, just thoroughly dried.

All the wood i use is collected from beaches.

 

[Gogyeng]

You need as dry as possible otherwise you are asking for trouble. Mold is a real problem here in uk.

 

[MainMann]

Drift wood is fine, but the dry stuff is what you want..not waterlogged wood....water is the biggest enemy of wood to be used in an enclosure....it could literally be years before that wood is usable.

btw, wood doesnt need to be sterilized, just thoroughly dried.

All the wood i use is collected from beaches.

Ah i see, it actually is a little water logged oh well, I'll see what i can do, hopefully i can get all that moisture out! Thanks dude!

You need as dry as possible otherwise you are asking for trouble. Mold is a real problem here in uk.

I see, it's very2 humid here in Indonesia which makes mold a bit easier to catch, but it also makes keeping substrate moisture just right a whole lot easier as well!

 

[Teal]

I believe you can speed up the drying process by placing the wood in an oven on low for awhile? I have heard that other keepers do this, but I have never tried it myself.

NEVER disinfect/clean naturally collected materials... if you don't trust the area, don't collect from it. ALL of my enclosures (100+) have naturally collected materials off my ranch that went straight from the ground to an enclosure.

 

[sourpatchkid]

I put my driftwood in an oven at 180 F for 1 hr and leave it in the oven overnight. That should kill unwanted insects and mites.

If you want sterility, then it needs to be in an autoclave or pressure cooker at 121 C for 45 min. This would be overkill, but it’s the standard definition of lab sterility for microbial culture.

 

[viper69]

I believe you can speed up the drying process by placing the wood in an oven on low for awhile? I have heard that other keepers do this, but I have never tried it myself.

NEVER disinfect/clean naturally collected materials... if you don't trust the area, don't collect from it. ALL of my enclosures (100+) have naturally collected materials off my ranch that went straight from the ground to an enclosure.

Heat dries anything, including wood. I've done it. Of course wood and cork bark do smell up the house a bit.

 

[Teal]

Heat dries anything, including wood. I've done it. Of course wood and cork bark do smell up the house a bit.

I wasn't questioning whether the oven would dry the wood I was questioning if there are parameters to what should be dried in an oven.

 

[MainMann]

I believe you can speed up the drying process by placing the wood in an oven on low for awhile? I have heard that other keepers do this, but I have never tried it myself.

NEVER disinfect/clean naturally collected materials... if you don't trust the area, don't collect from it. ALL of my enclosures (100+) have naturally collected materials off my ranch that went straight from the ground to an enclosure.

Oh yes, i do intend to use an oven to dry out the wood, because leaving the wood to dry out in the open here will take foreeever.

And as for sterility, i am about certain that the wood is safe since i took it from a pristine river, no pollution or plastics at all! Thank you!

I put my driftwood in an oven at 180 F for 1 hr and leave it in the oven overnight. That should kill unwanted insects and mites.

If you want sterility, then it needs to be in an autoclave or pressure cooker at 121 C for 45 min. This would be overkill, but it’s the standard definition of lab sterility for microbial culture.

Ah i will do the same! And since the wood is a bit waterlogged, i might dry it out on my roof in the sun after it spends the night in the oven.

And as for sterility i don't have a pressure cooker, but I'm quite confident that the wood is safe for usage after it dries out! Thank you!

 

[cold blood]

Find dry driftwood, dont use the water logged wood.

 

[viper69]

I wasn't questioning whether the oven would dry the wood I was questioning if there are parameters to what should be dried in an oven.

Hahahahahah I was wondering what you were talking about hahahaah