Carbon and cycling

[idris]

I'm getting some wood and rocks for my new tank from sources I can't be 100% sure of (ie not LFS). It's all supposed to be clean, and I have no specific reason to think it's not, but would it be prudent to use carbon in the filter at the start of the cycing process to make sure any contaminants are removed?
If so, how long would it be worth leaving the carbon in for?

 

[Dan Crawford]

Hi, what wood are you getting? Carbon won't hurt but it won't help with poisons or toxins that come from so types of wood. It will help with the tannins and after a while it'll become biological media which will become advantageous to your filtration in general.

 

[idris]

The wood I have so far was sold as Cornish Oak / bogwood.