But a lot of people wonder — does pressure treated wood rot?

Doing so will stop your treated wood from rotting!

Allow the deck up to 24 hours of drying time. Having said that the telephone poles would have cost more and been treated at likely much higher pressures to infuse the treatment deeper into the pores of the wood. Thanks, Sharon! Protect all the vegetation and structures around your working area so that stain does not sprinkle on them. However, this is not enough. Pressure treated wood is used for fences, posts, decks, picnic tables and more.
Water here, wood there, and before you know it you have rot, Krinstin! If you just recently received your wood from the hardware store or your local lumber supplier, it will definitely need some time to dry out before painting. The Trex Transcend decking is being installed. Some of these protectors can also contain a fire retardant, which can be useful and help keep you and your family safe. What you must remember is that pressure treating makes the wood resistant from rot and pests, however, it will not make wood resistant to water. Getting into contact with water allows fungi to penetrate the cracks and facilitate the rotting of wood. If properly maintained, these structures can last half a century or more. The chemicals that are present in the wood react with the nails resulting in oxidation.

The go on and on about how the wood is so much more energy efficient.

I think the only danger at this point is collapse from extreme snow load.

The Forest Products Laboratory and other research groups have provided information that treated wood stakes placed in the ground can remain without any signs of rot for more than 40 years! Treated wood or pressure treated wood looks great, is easy to work with and it’s long lasting. In the process of pressure treating wood,chemicals are used.

Cleaning helps keep the surface free of dirt, molds, and mildew so that you apply your finish on a clean surface with no contaminants. Pressure treated wood used in the construction industry has been treated in the past with the chemical known as chromated copper arsenate (CCA). One question though, is, If you want your treated wood to last for years when used in the outdoor environment, ensure that you protect it with.


thank you! And I don't know the quality of the wood initially put there, but it was one of those decks from "kits" companies, so I suspect it was a lesser grade. These chemicals were added during the pressure-treating process so you don’t have to periodically maintain your wood. Occasionally we overlook it and forget about it once we have it installed. What you must remember is that pressure treating makes the wood resistant from rot and pests, however, it will not make wood resistant to water. Why Are There So Many Stink Bugs in My House? With that, you get the flexibility of applying darker colors later.

You can decide to go to your local shop or order the stain that you are going to use for your project online. This versatile wood has many useful qualities, but hardness isn’t one of them. You can use painter’s tape to cover and protect them. How to Prep Your Plants Before You Bring Them Inside for Winter, 13 Ways to Get Your Lawn Ready for Cool Weather, 25 Plants and Trees for Winning Fall Color, What to Do With the Leaves Piling Up in Your Yard, 10 Cute Birdhouses Under $75 That Will Attract Nesters to Your Yard, 10 Best Tools for Picking Up Leaves in Your Yard, Attract a Host of Pollinators With a Backyard Pollinator Garden Perfect for Containers, How to Build a Hoop House to Protect Your Vegetables, How to Make a Scarecrow to Frighten Unwanted Critters From Your Garden, Cozy Up Your Front Porch With Farmhouse Style for Fall, I Keep Worms in My Living Room and Here’s Why, A Home for Your Veggies: Make a Raised Garden Bed. I’ll also add that I was part of a giant class-action lawsuit a few decades ago involving a major window and door manufacturer and a paint company. According to a report by the Ohio State University, the materials needed for replacement and repair damage due to decay account for close to, If your deck boards are rotting, there could be a few explanations to this. Poke beams and columns to ensure they’re not getting soft. Pressure treating does make wood rot resistant. Any pressure treated wood rot is usually due to a fungal issue. How Long Does Pressure Treated Wood Last?

This causes the pressure treated wood to decay and soften which then turns into rot. These microorganisms eat away wood, weakening the structures, resulting in fatal collapsing of buildings and other wooden structures. If you have a pressure treated deck this can be a harder problem to avoid. Also, it’s important to think about what kind of paint you’re going to use on your pressure treated wood. I can see why Kathy chose to highlight your post this week...great job! Once you have washed the wood, give it enough time to dry before going on with the subsequent steps. Usually, one layer is enough to do the job just the right way. This maintenance practice will help keep your treated wood safe from rotting!eval(ez_write_tag([[250,250],'woodcritique_com-box-4','ezslot_3',109,'0','0']));eval(ez_write_tag([[250,250],'woodcritique_com-box-4','ezslot_4',109,'0','1'])); One such high-grade sealer that you can use for your pressure treated wood is Ready Seal.

If you have a source for old wooden pallets and plan to repurpose the wood to build raised beds or other garden structures, try to make sure they were built with heat-treated lumber, not pressure-treated lumber, which could contain substances that can leach into the soil of your raised bed. The rot occasionally “blooms” and produces cobweb-like strands that hang from the rotting wood or yellow-colored lumps of fungal growth. CLICK HERE to Get Tim's FREE & FUNNY Newsletter.

The chemical treatment guarantee mentioned that it was formulated to resist termites and other wood-destroying insects. that will offer protection and enhance the durability of your treated wood. All rights reserved. The fungi that cause this are very small organisms that move into the wood and feed on it over time. But knowing this is a possibility, I added lots of special timber screws to help make the deck stronger. Pressure-treated wood can still be affected by water when it is soaked or splashed.

A higher grade sealant, however, will guarantee your pressure treated wood prolonged protection; the cost, however, can be a stumbling block. How long does Pressure Treated Wood take to rot? Fortunately I was able to negotiate a very fair settlement. You must also remember to inspect your deck regularly for you to identify early signs of deterioration. Subscribe to the FREE Ask the Builder newsletter to receive professional advice for your home. This type of fungus does not need much moisture to grow. The pressure-treatment process drives such preservatives deep into the wood fiber. Here are some of the key things that you need to know, even as you prepare to stain your deck. My house was built in 1988.