The safest aquarium wood in the world

Never before has the range of decorative wood for aquascapers been as diverse as it is today. But what is hidden behind the many different trade names and which woods are really safe for use in the aquarium?

Domestic woods are mostly unsuitable

Hardly anything seems more tempting for the procurement of the materials than the numerous woods and roots freely available in nature - but be careful! Very few domestic woods are suitable for use in aquariums, many of them even release toxic substances into the water. This also includes the common conifers, which contain resins and oils.
The aesthetically pleasing wood of the grapevine is also unsuitable for storage in aquariums. The wood swirls and rot is the result. The initial joy is quickly put to an end when the water becomes cloudy as a result of a bacterial bloom and the sensitive living beings in it become ill.

In addition to bog wood, a safe alternative are some tropical woods, which, due to the climatological conditions in their countries of origin, have the properties that are absolutely necessary for permanent storage in the aquarium.

Warning: trade names and their pitfalls

Whether moorwood, spiderwood or driftwood - just to name a few examples from the industry. In particular, the terms Moorkienholz and Moorholz (Germany) are widely used as synonymous trade names for all kinds of wood decorations in the aquascaping sector. We regularly observe that other types of wood are referred to as bog wood or mangrove wood. This approach has firmly established itself in the market environment. On the one hand, these terms are among the most prominent search terms in this sector and, on the other hand, many providers are simply ignorant.

For example, if you are explicitly looking for a real bog root, it is important to know what characterizes this wood and to what extent it differs from other (e.g. unsuitable) woods.

In the following we provide an overview of the typical characteristics of the different woods.

bog root - tried and tested in the aquarium hobby for decades   

Hardly any other wood is so prominent in the context of the design of freshwater aquariums in this country as the partly indigenous bog wood. The wood, which has been preserved in moors for thousands of years, offers a high level of safety when used permanently in aquariums. Biochemical processes in the constantly acidic soils of the moors lead over the years to a natural and pollutant-free impregnation of the wood. That makes it so interesting for the aquarium hobby, because this gives the wood the special feature that it does not rot in the water. The extremely humid and tannic-rich environment of the bogs leads to the typical red-brown color of the bog wood, which creates an unmistakable visual charm in the aquarium, especially when watered and under water. 
In the course of peat extraction in the local moor areas, among others, the moor wood obtained as a by-product found its way into natural aquariums decades ago and has been an integral part of aquascaping ever since. A real classic and one of the safest aquarium woods in the world.  

The following characteristics are important when differentiating from other woods:

- always dark brown in color

- Usually fibrous wood structure

- Often many narrow, straight gaps in the wood

- Specimens with a smooth surface have a slight sheen  

- Filigree branches bend slightly, but usually remain firmly attached to the wood with their fibers

(Bog root with the typical characteristics)

 Link to the shop: Moorkienholz

(Real bog wood in our aquariums)

Redwood and pioneer wood - the better alternatives

In addition to the classics among the safest aquarium woods (bog, mangrove and African hardwoods), two other woods have firmly established themselves in the aquarium scene over the past 10 years. We ourselves have been using redwood and pioneer wood in our aquariums for several years and have been able to observe and test them under various conditions.

What are the differences to bog wood?

For many years, bog wood was the number 1 choice when it came to designing spectacular natural aquariums with filigree woods. Today we know that there are better alternatives. 
Redwood is a very hard, stable wood. Even small pieces often have multiple branches, which are usually firm and noticeably break-resistant.
When dry, its color varies from a light ocher to a light brown to a slightly reddish appearance. When watered, the reddish color components are intensified, so that there is often a visual similarity to real bog wood. Bog wood, on the other hand, is noticeable due to its fibrous, significantly less densely cohesive structure. bog wood is reminiscent of the roots of native pinewoods such as spruce. Due to its storage in moors for thousands of years, the most significant characteristic is the dark and sometimes clearly reddish discoloration.

Similar to the popular redwood, pioneer wood (tea tree wood) is also characterized by its solid structure. The relatively hard wood is often straight and filigree and therefore looks like a stilt when it is set up from top to bottom.

Convincing in every way:

Both redwood and pioneer wood are tropical woods which, due to the climatological conditions there, have properties of extreme resistance and are therefore predestined for use in aquariums.

Both woods offer countless possibilities for the design of natural aquariums. We have personally convinced ourselves of the woods in our own aquariums for several years. We have currently been running our show aquarium for 3 years with an arrangement made from several pioneer woods. The wood has not visibly changed in the long term. 

(Redwood in our discus aquarium)

(Current aquarium shortly after it was set up - stilt-like pioneer timbers in the background)

(Redwood hardwood)

Link to the shop: redwood

Mangrove wood - one of the most popular and safest woods

The wood of the mangrove is a tropical wood. Due to the climatological conditions in the countries of origin, the mangrove wood is extremely weatherproof. This comes about in particular through the adaptation of the mangrove trees to the coastal areas. One of the special features is the high salt tolerance.
Imported mangrove wood comes from regions with intended forest use.

Due to the sometimes aesthetic appearance, the wood of the mangrove quickly found acceptance in the decoration sector and was also discovered decades ago for the aquarium hobby. Its versatile shapes and structures quickly made this wood a very popular accessory in the design of natural aquariums.
Years of testing have made this wood one of the safest aquarium woods in the world.

Distinguishing features:

- Comparatively dense, soft to medium-hard wood

- Coloring varies from light to dark brown

- Fine ramifications seldom

- Rather rough surface

(Mangrove woods have a variety of structures and shapes)

Link to the shop: Mangrove wood

Tips:

Occasionally it is described by aquarists in forums that mangrove woods soften and disintegrate. In fact, it can happen that individual pieces of wood have an unusually soft consistency and then partially disintegrate, especially in aquariums with a higher temperature (> 25 degrees). Such woods are to be recognized and sorted out by the provider.

For owners of discus aquariums and other cichlid aquariums, we recommend clarification before buying. It should be ensured that the selected mangrove wood specimen is as hard as possible. 

As an alternative, we recommend the extremely robust taiga wood to our customers.

Outwardly it is strongly reminiscent of the wood of the mangrove, but is much harder and therefore unproblematic in any case.

 
(Taiga wood, similar to mangrove)

Link to the shop: Taiga wood

Mopani and savanna woods - sinking immediately

In contrast to the vast majority of real woods, hardwoods from Africa sink immediately under water. This is a special feature, because it is not for nothing that the extremely dense and heavy wood is also called ironwood. Mopani and savanna woods have been popular decorative wood in aquariums for many years. Aquascapers use the very exotic looking wood for exclusive aquascapes in the Asian style.
Mopani and savannah woods are extremely resistant due to their extraordinary hardness. That makes them the safest aquarium woods in the world.

(African hardwood: savannah wood above and mopani wood below)

Link to the shop: African hardwood