Pressure treated lumber
#5
Went to the local farm & home store today for some pressure treated lumber. 2 X 12 X 12. Treated lumber was actually cheaper than standard white wood. Don't know that I have ever seen that before.
Sometimes it's better to keep your mouth shut, and have the world think you a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
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#6
Pressure treated wood now is junk. In my opinion. My brothers came up and redid 4 of my rasised bed gardens a month ago. All 4 were 4x8'beds with 3 high layers of ground toucing 1x6 decking.. All starting to rot and fall apart after8 years.. Put another layer over the original. That way, no digging needed. Doubt if I will last another8 years, but that is way below how long it should have lasted. Plus it was just over$650.00 to buy 12 deck boards 8'long and 24 12'. probably 4 times what I paid the first time.
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#7
I have purchased about 50,000 bdft of treated lumber this past year to restore bridges on the Mendota, VA Rails to Trails project.    It was important to understand the treatment process, and this, market to build economical long lasting bridges.  Some information will make sense of the observations posted.

Treated lumber will be plantation grown southern yellow pine in the East Coast (because it treats most effectively).  SYP is cheaper than western "white wood".  It costs only a few tens of cents per bdft to treat lumber.  SYP price today is less than half per 1000bdft than it was a few months ago and a third of what it was 18 months ago.  Hence, retail pricing can also reflect how old the inventory is.  

Since CCA (chromated copper arsenate) was removed from the residential market there have been numerous changes in the treatment chemicals used and the amounts used.  Service data on lumber purchased 8 years ago has no bearing on how lumber purchased today will last.  

A place like Lowes stocks lumber with two treatment levels-  UC3A and UC3B.  UC3B has twice the amount of treatment chemicals as 3A and will last much longer.  (We used UC4B on the bridges which has 4 times the treatment chemicals to provide even longer life. 

That tag on the end of treated lumber has a wealth of information.  If using treated lumber learn to read these tags.
Bill Tindall
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#8
I wonder if the white wood is old stock- bought when lumber prices were really high and the OT is fresh- and prices are down?

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