Online the prices are better but you are buying it sight unseen so you dont know what it will look like.
Kens has a good reputation for good sized pieces at fair prices: http://www.kensfish.com/aquarium-suppli ... twood.html
If you are interested in Manzanita, these guys are good: http://manzanita.com/aqwood.htm
I like that the larger show pieces you can see pictures of. And if you do order you can ask for a couple extra small branches that they will throw in for free.
Forgot to add this one: http://www.petmountain.com/category/408 ... twood.html
Again a sight unseen order but reviewers say the sizes are generous for the money. Make sure to sign up for their emails. They always have sales for additional money off.
Most woods we use are imported hard woods. And the woods that have been buried in bogs for many years have absorbed minerals making them heavy enough to sink (basically the 1st phase of petrification . Then someone digs these up, and ships them to the US. The process of collecting, shipping, and our specialized hobby makes them expencive.
I have a 30 lb piece of bog wood that is easily going for $200+. Anywhere from $7-$11/pound
I personally by from Kens, I have purchased 6 of their largest pieces, both the Mopani and the Malaysian and all of the pieces were good sized and shaped pretty cool
Driftwood is free. The rivers and lakes have it all along the shores. Pickings are best after the spring runoffs. Been using local driftwood from the Snake and Columbia for thirty plus years with not a single issue. Some take a bit to sink but tying to rocks with dark monofilament does wonders. My favorite are rootballs from large shrubs washed out by high water.
Yea, i hiked up to lake 22 last weekend. The lake was littered with it. I didnt know if it was safe for aquariums or even if you are allowed to remove it. I know you cant take driftwood off the beach. I found a piece on one of my other hikes and washed it off, put it in one of my aquariums, and a week later it had a bunch of white fuzzy stuff growing on it.
My problem is when i go to the Co-op, i end up spending my entire budget on fish. My last trip down was specifically for wood and hides. Ended up with no wood, 1 coconut hide and $90 worth of fish lol.
I prefer mopani wood because it tends to last quite awhile over the Malaysian wood. The Malaysian wood is good for SA. Fish as it tends to leech out tanins into the water and actually helps to keep the ph down if you have a higher ph water like myself. I collected mine from APFP 4-5yrs ago. The rest i found on craigslist over a period of time. Nice to know Kens fish has some decent prices on their wood. As madness stated above, a lot of the wood has gone up considerably in price over the years.
I agree with madness.. Ken's has a lot and the prices are pretty fair.
I also get some from Cory when he's in the area at the swap meets.. I found some really nice sandblasted manzanita at the swap meet from one of the members here(Jester?).
Mopani is pretty heavy and usually sinks from the get go.
but I've found mopani and malaysian both leach tannins( i think it depends on the cut and stucture of the mopani as some may not leach much at all)
Agreed... I've actually had two large tanks side by side with an almost equal amount of wood in each tank. One had malaysian and one had mopani in it. The tank with Malaysian wood in it turned more tanic. This is just I have observed myself and I have quite a bit of wood...