Zoo Med Mopani Wood Aquarium Decor

If you're looking for a natural aesthetic to add to your tank, don't go with driftwood. Not unless you don't mind an explosion of white tiny little bugs all over your tank that like to make what look like web nests in your wood. They're everywhere in my tank, I thought they might die off but I had to do a water change to impact the population. That did nothing! I even boiled the wood before! Turns out these little bugs can survive even that! Just go with rocks unless you don't mind knowing you're sticking your hand in your tank with loads of new micro friends that you can't even kill with boiling water. Other than that I guess it still looks decent, EVEN THOUGH THERE ARE WEBS.

newbie fish owner here! i needed decor for my new tank and chose to get this mopani wood instead of driftwood. i mean, it serves its purpose, so im happy with it! it looks nice, the shrimp can hide underneath of it, and my betta likes laying on it. i will note that i soaked it overnight and it still tinted my water, so it could have soaked longer. seeing as i own a betta, i dont mind a little murk, and im sure it will clear up after a few water changes. also, there appears to be some sort of white algae growing on it, but i read that thats pretty normal and will eventually go away on its own.

i was expecting to have a piece of wood that would stand up on its own in the middle of my terrarium but what i got isn’t pretty nor will it stand up without leaning on something. i wasn’t expecting much because it is just wood but i’ll unfortunately probably return it as i don’t have a use for it..

This wood does exactly what you want it to do that coloring it gives off is a medicine to Betta fish , The lack of education on your betta fish is surprising , The color of the water is what your betta thrives on and will keep him healthy Just like the leaves they sell it's actually a miracle leaf keeping away fun rot and such

The first one I ordered was nicely-shaped and attractive, definitely something that would look nice in my next tank. Encouraged by this, I ordered two more, which were both pointless, ugly chunks. They were stubby logs with obvious flat cuts all over--impossible to work into a natural-looking aquascape at any angle. While buying aquarium wood online is always a gamble, the thoughtless cut placement makes the risk on this product too high.

Expect to pay way more for something of this size at any pet store / aquarium shop! I purchased 3 med sized pieces of Mopani at $7.79 each and when I got them was presently surprised to have received 3 rather large pieces of wood, similar in size to 2 pieces I recently purchased for over $20 each at a big chain pet store. This is such a great price for what you get! These will most likely not fit into a regular sized cooking pot - if you want something that will, order smaller. If you're a hobbyist, I suggest a bigger pot and purchasing a few more! For those complaining in reviews of the dark water - you are supposed to boil these thoroughly before use and if you can't properly do that Expect to pay way more for something of this size at any pet store / aquarium shop! I purchased 3 med sized pieces of Mopani at $7.79 each and when I got them was presently surprised to have received 3 rather large pieces of wood, similar in size to 2 pieces I recently purchased for over $20 each at a big chain pet store. This is such a great price for what you get! These will most likely not fit into a regular sized cooking pot - if you want something that will, order smaller. If you're a hobbyist, I suggest a bigger pot and purchasing a few more! For those complaining in reviews of the dark water - you are supposed to boil these thoroughly before use and if you can't properly do that because your pot is too small, expect tannins from the wood to leach into your aquarium and give your water a dark color. ¯\_( **/)_/¯ Tannins are great for fish anyway as they lower ph levels and soften the water. If you still have water tinge after boiling, you can always RE-BOIL but frequent water changes (30% a week, depending) should solve this problem on its own. I like to boil them until the water has a slight tinge but isn't so bad that I can't see my fish. If you're ever concerned, test the parameters in your tank but you shouldn't have a problem with actual water quality due to too many tannins in your water. Tannin overdose is not a thing with fishes, in fact, most tropical fish would thrive in the darkened water but most people prefer to see their fish so.. 5 stars all around! … more

Ordered the medium for my 20 gallon planted tank. I was hesitant after reading the reviews but wow!!! Absolutely love it. It was so big that I didn’t have a large enough pot to boil it in. I half submerged it and boiled for 2 hours then flipped for 2 more. Afterwards I soaked in the sink in hot water for about 18 hours. May have been overkill but no issues with tannins in the tank.

So this is a beautiful piece of wood but I have literally soaked it in hot water for 4 days and cannot get the brown water to stop. I’ve boiled it I’ve baked it and I’ve soaked it. Changing the water 3/4 times a day and it literally looks like tea! I can’t wait to put it in my tank it will be beautiful. It says the charcoal filters will help but we don’t have charcoal in our canisters. :( so I guess we will keep soaking until the tea color comes out.

I think people have too high of expectations with these types of purchases. You're getting a piece of wood, a stick- adjust your excitement meter a bit. I don't have a pot big enough to boil this chunk of mopani. I cleaned out my sink well and then placed the wood in it, dumping pot after pot of boiling water until the sink was full and letting it sit until it was cool enough to touch. This did not completely remove the tannins because it needs a rolling boil for that to happen quickly. This is fine. I will do water changes frequently until my water starts to clear up, this is not an issue. I have nothing bad to say, this was a great purchase.

Wow! What a great deal! These are beautiful and quite large for being medium sized. Which is perfect for me. Other places charge far more for the same product. I initially bought one but came back to chewy to buy 4 more!