# Cheap Manzanita... yeah!



## angelsword

There's some really beautiful pieces on the first site you linked to. I wonder what type of wood the tree sculpture is. I can think of some much better uses for that wood than turning it into the candle holder they have a picture of. That thing looks like something from the Munsters. As long a the wood isn't treated with anything it seems like it would be fine. It makes me nervous that in one of the descriptions it says grown and harvested. It makes me wonder if they would spray their crops with any pesticides.


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## AquaticAZ

On the ones I saw it said it can be used for reptile cages so I guess it's safe
Thanks for the link! I'll look into buying some of these I was about to spend 40 on a nice piece for my 25 gal


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## AquaticAZ

Anyone got any info if this is truly safe or not?


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## angelsword

It's so cheap it's hard to resist. Maybe someone could email the company and ask if there's any chance of the wood having come in contact with any chemicals. The problem with that is you'd tip them off to the fact that there's a market for their product that's used to paying a lot more. Might end up seeing special "aquarium safe" wood that's more expensive but otherwise no different.


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## AquaticAZ

angelsword said:


> It's so cheap it's hard to resist. Maybe someone could email the company and ask if there's any chance of the wood having come in contact with any chemicals. The problem with that is you'd tip them off to the fact that there's a market for their product that's used to paying a lot more. Might end up seeing special "aquarium safe" wood that's more expensive but otherwise no different.


Yeah that's true
I guess I could try an email I mean hopefully one email one tip them off


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## robotsongs

You should totally give credit to slidewithme on r/plantedtank for showing these to you!

I mean, you didn't "come across" those sites, she helped you out.


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## wetbizquit

definately bookmarked this thread, if anyone emails the company please post the results, their both super cheap sources, planning on making purchases for a 55 gal and 90 gal if their safe, good find!! thanks for sharing


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## if_fishes_were_wishes

I've bought from bloomsandbranches before. The branchy ones that are sandblasted are gorgeous! If you love finely branched manzanita, perfect for smaller tanks, then you need this stuff  Highly recommended!

I have placed 2 orders in the past and emailed them the 1st time asking about chemicals. They said no chemicals are used and I've never had an issue. Of course, you'll get that initial slime growth on the branches at 1st, but it's safe and otos will eat it right up. Mine also darkened from white to brown over time (probably due to a piece of driftwood leaching tannins).


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## LipzyDaizy

I bought a ton of manzanita branches from save on crafts over a year ago to help my friend make center pieces for her wedding and had a few branches left over so I actually emailed them and asked if they treated the wood with anything and was told no. Just dried and sanded. Just to be on the safe side, I had a few soaking in water for a couple weeks and threw them into one of my tanks and everything seemed fine. Just the usual "snot " that eventually went away. 

Getting them to sink was a PIMA so I ended up siliconing them to pieces of slate. Oh and the smaller' twiggier pieces broke off easily so I had to trim them a bit. 

I plan on using the remaining branches I have left for my first planted tank(hopefully starting it soon!) so I'll let everyone know how it goes.


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## AquaticAZ

Ok awesome I was gonna email them but looks like it's pretty much safe which is GREAT news I definitely can't wait to start on some tanks over the summer


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## if_fishes_were_wishes

Oh, mine sank immediately - they're very dense and heavy! No problems at all with sinking.


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## AquaticAZ

Is grapewood safe for aquariums??


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## robotsongs

AquaticAZ said:


> Is grapewood safe for aquariums??


yes. I've got two very large pieces in one of my tanks. It's softer and will degrade sooner, but we're talking YEARS and a lot of my fish love pecking at it. 

I think the fact that it's so soft helps more bacteria populate it, but that's just a hunch. That tank with the grapewood though is one of my most stable.


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## shinycard255

Since I'm beginning to start a new aquarium (40B) and am hearing great things about these manzanita branches from these 2 sites, does anyone who purchased from them care to share a pic of their tank so I know how it looks?


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## tanks4allthefish

I am so glad you posted the first link. Those are some amazing pieces and the prices are great! Thanks.


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## wetbizquit

totally just ordered some sandblasted manzanita peices from bloomsandbranches


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## Complexity

I'd love to see what you get when it comes in. I've thought of ordering from one of those places, but I've been afraid the branches would be too thin. It'll be good to find out one way or the other.


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## shinycard255

wetbizquit said:


> totally just ordered some sandblasted manzanita peices from bloomsandbranches


Please post pics of the pieces as I would love to order some for my 40B, just want to make sure the sticks aren't too thin



Complexity said:


> I'd love to see what you get when it comes in. I've thought of ordering from one of those places, but I've been afraid the branches would be too thin. It'll be good to find out one way or the other.


I agree!


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## wetbizquit

blooms and branches are awesome, shipped super fast, pretty impressed, only two little twiggys broke off and it was soooo cheap even for sandblasted









By cakenutz at 2012-07-14
and the second one








By cakenutz at 2012-07-14


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## wetbizquit

overall pretty impressed, branches are a little thin, but arent bad at all, i was planning on putting these in my 55g but i think i will use one in each of my 20g L they are quite large and im very impressed on the price..... cost me 25$ shipped for two and it got here within two days.... ( i live in utah, shipped from cali i believe) just make sure to select the shipping quote method where they email you a quote instead of selecting the only other option which is more expensive


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## Complexity

I really like those branches! I'd probably thin out some of the smaller branches, but that's just my own taste. It's nice to have more branches than you might want so you could selectively thin a few out.

Thanks for posting the pics. I may give them a try, especially for my smaller tanks!


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## echoskybound

They look great! Do they sink, or are you going to anchor them to something?


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## 99problems

Has anybody ordered the 3 pc Supplements from bloomandbranches? I can't decide whether those or two orders of smaller branches would give fuller driftwood


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## acitydweller

Chiming in that i also placed an order off http://www.bloomsandbranches.com/. thanks for the referral.


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## apisto84

I just bought 5 branches from the same place.








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## lotzodomo

I bought two branches from blooms and branches, i sawed off two smaller sections for one of my nano tanks. Boiled them for a while just incase, but a week after putting them in my tank they started growing white fuzz/mold all over


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## shift

Has anyone from Canada ordered some in? Any issue or crazy custom bills?


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## apisto84

lotzodomo said:


> I bought two branches from blooms and branches, i sawed off two smaller sections for one of my nano tanks. Boiled them for a while just incase, but a week after putting them in my tank they started growing white fuzz/mold all over


That's normal it goes away after a while.

Sent from my Android using Tapatalk 2


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## Mumford

Should you get the natural red or the sand blasted??


- Mumford


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## Cyanider

Saw this at the bottom of one of the descriptions of the Manzanita on Save On Crafts



> Aquarists- Our manzanita is untreated. Safe for aquariums.


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## Cyanider

Also, what sizes are you guys ordering? And sandblasted vs natural red (or is it just preference)?


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## assasin6547

As soon as I get my allowance I'm buying some.


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## rowdaddy

You want to go sandblasted...the red still has bark on it. The bark will have oils, exposure to chemicals, and will rot faster than the wood underneath. I guess you could sand it yourself, but if the pieces are small you could break them.

I am Rowdaddy. 
SC Aquaria

75 Community
20H Community
20L Convict "Bedroom" 
20L Growout
10gal RCS
1.5gal in progress
55 gal Paludarium/Vivarium coming soon


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## Cyanider

That's what I figured, just wasn't sure. I'm thinking of getting some 24-30" and some 18-24" pieces from bloomsandbranches!


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## marthat

Thanks for the links, will def. be getting some there


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## Fishbowling

Oh wow. I'll take one 7-foot manzanita tree, please. :biggrin:

I'm all over this...I have an empty 40B just itching for some of that.


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## shinycard255

I'm glad people are actually using these websites, completely forgot I had started this thread.


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## smiller

Cyanider said:


> Saw this at the bottom of one of the descriptions of the Manzanita on Save On Crafts


Aquarists- Our manzanita is untreated. Safe for aquariums.



But it appears you can not select a specific piece.


"This is a natural branch. We cannot specify exact width and height on each because each is unique."


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## apisto84

I started a thread on fishlore about it a month ago. I stumbled on this thread just seeing if anyone else was using these sites. I thought I had a super aquarium secret  Now if only aquarium wood sites would stop ripping us off :banghead:

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## assasin6547

I purchased one from saveoncrafts.com, it's very nice. I don't know if it will sink though, haven't filled the tank. Even if you don't get to choose you can still buy 2 or 3 for the price of 1 from somewhere else. Pics are in my journal "10 Gallon CRS Minimalist". And shipping wasn't too slow, it took about 5 business days.


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## 10gallonplanted

Just purchased a big branch! Awesome links guys. You can get one shipped for less than the branch itself from other driftwood suppliers!


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## FisheriesOmen

I shoulda bought mine on here instead of Ebay....


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## babydragons

FisheriesOmen said:


> I shoulda bought mine on here instead of Ebay....


My thoughts exactly. Oh well... Live and learn and then get loves hehe..


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## shinycard255

BUMP (for more to see this)


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## du3ce

which site is it better to buy from? saveoncrafts or bloomnbraches?


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## Shawn123

Not to high jack the thread but you can get great manzanita/rocks/etc... On the for sale section on this forum. I got some manzanita from plantbrain this week and it is awesome. Just type his username in the "search this forum" under the for sale thread and you will see the thread pics of all different sizes and prices. There are also some people selling cool rocks, just have to search because the threads get back a few pages until they are reported/bumped.


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## shinycard255

Shawn123 said:


> Not to high jack the thread but you can get great manzanita/rocks/etc... On the for sale section on this forum. I got some manzanita from plantbrain this week and it is awesome. Just type his username in the "search this forum" under the for sale thread and you will see the thread pics of all different sizes and prices. There are also some people selling cool rocks, just have to search because the threads get back a few pages until they are reported/bumped.


Understandable, but these prices for manzanita are cheaper than what people sell on the S&S... and the shipping is cheaper too


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## Janizary

These are perfect for moss trees! Great find!


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## Jessicafish

Perfect for the 10g I'll be setting up soon!!! I actually saw that saveoncrafts had manzanita a few months back but I figured it was treated with chemicals... Great to know it's not!!


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## concepts88

Is the white fuzz on the branches toxic to fish and shrimp. Otos eat it when it is cycling ?


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## shinycard255

concepts88 said:


> Is the white fuzz on the branches toxic to fish and shrimp. Otos eat it when it is cycling ?


No, it will go away over time


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## Sgtreef

That saveoncrafts sure does not like explorer as crashed it every time visited.
Even with a search still the same there.
But the second one looked good.


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## TankYouVeryMuch

Do most craft stores carry branches? (Like hobby lobby or michaels?)


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## shinycard255

TankYouVeryMuch said:


> Do most craft stores carry branches? (Like hobby lobby or michaels?)


They might, but you also got to make sure they aren't chemically cleaned. If they are, then don't put it in your tank. These 2 sites that I listed aren't


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## BriDroid

Thanks for this thread, I just ordered from saveoncrafts, two of the 18-24" sanded branches for $27 shipped. 

I'm going to redo my algae farm and want all new hard scape, great deal!


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## s3rca

Post pictures when they come in!


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## larams67

Just got two of the 18"-24" pieces from saveoncrafts. They are pretty killer looking. For the price I wasn't expecting pieces this nice. I'll try and post a couple pics later tonight.


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## s3rca

Awesome. Looking forward to it. I'm hoping to make an order in the next couple days.


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## AlGee

How about an update from those that have had these in their tanks.


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## hunterlook

AlGee said:


> How about an update from those that have had these in their tanks.


They're safe, ordered from save-on-crafts recently and it was a decent looking piece of wood and hasn't caused any parameter issues.


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