How to clean & sterilize branches too big for oven

[winic1]

Collected some nice willow wood, baked most of it, but two of the branches are too big for my oven. Don't want to cut them, planning on enlarging our goo-boys' home, want the longer branches to cross levels for them.

can't go get more later on, trees were cut down (one broke in a big storm, on town property, so they took both down. haven't found more willow in a place I can legally get to, where I know they don't spray anything.)

So what do you do with branches that are 3 feet long? (a meter).
We're joking about suspending them over a campfire.....but all that smoke can't be good...suspend over a pot of boiling water on the campfire and steam them...?

Obviously not thinking sanely at this point. More realistic suggestions?

[NightwishRaven999]

Some may be concerned about the absolute safety of the wood, but the appearance of the branch is often a good indicator as to whether or not it is fit to go in the cage.

Is there any appearant fungi/mushroom growth on the bark ? Is the wood soft or soggy ?
I have collected branches over a meter in length and never had issues, even though they were not heated or boiled.

Other than a good scrubbing, I have little to offer as far as suggestions.

[ava]

The branches I took from my garden had little insects all over them, but I washed them with hot water (hot as the tap would allow, anyway) and after that I didn't spot a single one. I think they should be fine if you wash them with hot water, just so long as you get into all the nooks and crannies, and check them after.

[blossombrooks]

I put my long branches in the airing cupboard after a good scrub. I always thought the wood had to be dried out first?! But not sure on that 100 percent? It takes ages for it to dry but I always err on the side of caution. :-)

[winic1]

um, I'm a yankee.....what is an airing cupboard?

[littlesqueek]

The hot press, I think that's what you call it, or just the cupboard with the water heater.

[fred]

I have never sterilized branches in any way and only cleaned the large ones by giving them a scrubbing. With German degu owners, branches (with leaves) are considered food as much as cage interior and are therefore given as they are. I haven't heard about any problems there. As Jordan said, if the branch looks healthy and without insect / fungal / mould infestation, it should be fine.

[winic1]

the thick bark chunks have lichen on them. otherwise, everything looks clean and healthy, no mushrooms, no rot, no soft spots.

thanks, littlesqueak. Never heard of "the hot press", but have seen water heater, etc in a closet type setup. My house, hot water heater and furnace are down in the basement or cellar (depending on what you want to call it, some parts of the USA "cellar" is only used for a dirty, old-fashioned underground storage place, not simply the underground foundation part of the house), not closed in, so they're not making a warm dry place since they're not closed in a small area.

Suppose I will just leave these big branches hanging in a clean dry place for a while to make sure there are no bugs. Am working on getting hubby to help me come up with a bigger better goo home than what we have, when we do, then we will need them. Birthday and Christmas are coming up, soon....

[nicola27]

Wow. Loving this advice!! My boyfriend wants to get a branch into our cage for them to climb on/sit on/chew/whatever but they are EXPENSIVE in P@H and he was worried about 'cleaning' it - but if we can just give it a good scrub and dry it out then BOOM! Sorted I guess we just have to make sure we get a safe type for them!!? x

[NightwishRaven999]

@ nicola27
Many woods are safe for degus to chew on...these include, Birch, Aspen, Weeping Willow, Kiln dried Pine, Hazel, Hawthorn, Hazelnut, Pear Tree, Apple Tree, Plum Tree, Oak, Cherry and Bamboo.