The UPS man struggled in the steady rain to bring the large, disintegrating cardboard box containing Zoo Med's Jumbo African Mopani Wood to my door today. Looks like the heavyweight piece was trying to punch its way out.
I wasn't sure what I'd receive, since I had bought a 'Warehouse Deal' leftover from Amazon. But for just fourteen bucks and FREE shipping, this was a smokin' good bargain. They charge $6 per pound for this same brand of wood at my local pet shop!
It arrived wrapped in protective brown Kraft paper, closely matched the description at 32" long x 12" wide x 11" tall, and weighed in at a whopping 49 pounds. JUMBO !
And what a piece of lumber! Mine resembles the ancient remnant of a 12" tall, 6" diameter tree trunk, with a generous portion of gnarly, weathered rootball. Like others' descriptions of their pieces of Mopani wood, this one is also a beautiful two-toned tan/reddish-brown. It could potentially be installed in an aquarium/terrarium or reptile tank in several different positions, and would look equally fantastic.
After considering how I might possibly maneuver it into my as yet empty 65 gallon Discus tank, I now understand why somebody may have returned this to Amazon after purchasing it. It's pretty damn BIG and HEAVY. I'd be afraid of losing my grip on the cumbersome log, and bashing the glass while trying to ease it around the center brace that reinforces the top of my tank. I'll definitely be cutting this up into two or three beautiful, interesting chunks.
Before putting them in the fish tank I'm gonna boil the heck out of each piece on the back patio in a seven gallon canning pot on a propane burner. That way I can sanitize them, and be sure that they won't develop any white slime after setting up the tank. (This may also help to more quickly release tannins now, and reduce the length of time that the wood will darken the water later, although I already plan to use 'Purigen' packets in my canister filter to absorb excess tannins...)
Seachem Purigen 100ml
I am extremely satisfied with this Amazon purchase, and will post some pictures of it as soon as I can.
12/4/12 Update:
After sawing the rock-hard stump into two pieces (dulling a couple of Sawzall blades in the process), I ended up with two large pieces, and decided to use a 30 pound chunk of rootball as the focal point of my aquarium. I boiled it a half dozen times for nearly an hour each time, followed by a thorough scrub and rinse with a garden hose between boiling sessions. Still, it leached much tannins into my fish tank, turning the water yellow/orange. My concerns about the weight of this very heavy hardwood resting on my aquarium bottom disappeared as I filled the tank with water, which rendered the log nearly buoyant, but firmly fixed in the gravel. After a month of weekly water changes and continuous filtration with Purigen, my aquarium water is finally clear. I've crammed tropical aquatic plants into the many nooks and crannies of the Mopani wood, making it look like it's been underwater much longer than just one month. The fish love swimming in, under, around, and through it.
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From the manufacturer
ABOUT US:
Here at Zoo Med, animals are our passion, and for 45 years we have made it our mission to supply in exotic pet foods, reptile products, and reptile habitats. As a company made up of reptile hobbyists, we strive to provide the supplies and knowledge needed to successfully care for reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects and other exotic pets to keep them happy.
Many of us have desk pets, and many of those desks are wedged into places inbetween the 200+ terrariums, aquariums, paludariums, and other habitats at our facility. Inside our Animal Room we house over 90 species ranging from chameleons, geckos, skinks, frogs, fish, newts, tarantulas, and beetles. Outside in our Turtle Nirvana Greenhouse, we care for 30 species of turtles and tortoises, several of which are endangered.
Whether you are an experienced reptile snake breeder or gecko breeder working with hundreds of animals or you’re looking into picking up your first pet bearded dragon, Zoo Med is sure to have what you need.
Compare with similar items
This Item  Zoo Med African Mopani Wood Jumbo |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | — | $199.99 | $17.49 | $20.69 | $57.34 | $28.59 |
| Delivery | — | — | Get it as soon as Tuesday, May 14 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, May 14 | — | Get it May 13 - 14 |
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| Value for money | ||||||
| Sold By | — | Central Pet Smart | Small Pet-US | Smartzoomart | AlotOfHome | Petco |
Reviews with images
Wood is decent, but not perfect.
I ordered this item about 3 weeks ago. It came very quickly in the mail in 2 days. I was hoping to get a 3-dimensional octopus like piece of wood but what I received was a 29LB 2 dimension piece of mopani wood with twists and swirls. I am currently soaking the wood and do plan to use it in one of my upcoming aquariums, but I am only giving 3 stars because this wood is not exactly what I wanted due to it being mostly 2 dimensional except for one part of the wood that sticks up about 6 inches as well as the wood being VERY VERY Dark and dirty and not matching with my other pieces of blonde colored mopani. Another factor that is causing me to give this piece of wood only 3 stars is that after soaking in a bathtub replacing the water with hot water every night there has begun to grow a grey moss or fungus on the outside of the wood and the wood has begun to turn grey. My picture is of the wood turning grey after being soaked in water for about a week.
