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Information for Building Material
Dealers and Retailers
Building material dealers and retailers are in the business of
providing quality products to builders and homeowners.
Smart dealers know that it's not just about making a quick
sale...it's about building relationships with other people so
they will keep coming back to buy products they can depend on,
and advice from a dealer they can trust. Smart dealers
and retailers specify wood treated to AWPA Standards because
they know that preservative manufacturers have submitted data
proving their preservative works to a body of experts in the
field, and industry standards have been developed based on that
data.
Why should I stock wood treated in accordance with AWPA
Standards?
In order for a treated wood product to be listed in AWPA
Standard U1, a person must submit a proposal for standardization
to AWPA. A data package containing all relevant
information pertaining to the proposed preservative system must
accompany the proposal. The proposal and data are made
available to all AWPA Technical Committee Members, all
Association members, and upon request, the general public.
The proposal is considered by our Subcommittees and Committees
in an open, ANSI-accredited, consensus-based process, and if
passed at all levels of expert peer review, it is published in
AWPA's Book of Standards. This degree of review is
necessary to weed out any preservative systems that may not
perform well.
Some companies claim their products "conform" to AWPA,
but have not been through the standardization process. What
does this mean?
It means someone is trying to pull the wool over your
eyes. While AWPA does develop test methods which can be used
by anyone to evaluate the performance of wood preservatives, you
must understand that these tests do not provide pass/fail results,
and that the data generated by these methods should be evaluated
by experts in wood protection in an open, consensus based process.
In fact, AWPA Evaluation Standards clearly state that they are for
the sole purpose of developing AWPA Standards. In addition,
Appendix A to our Technical Committee Regulations also clearly
states that testing in accordance with the document does not
constitute conformance with any AWPA Standard. If someone
tells you their product "conforms" to AWPA but their product is
not listed in the AWPA Standards, be wary of their claims.
How can I get my retail store listed on the AWPA Website?
First, you must stock treated wood that complies with AWPA
Standards. Next, you will need to complete a retailer
information form and send it to AWPA.
Forms are available on the
where to buy page - click here. We may need to verify
that consumers are able to purchase AWPA compliant products at
your store, then we will list your store's name and location on
our website. Your store will be listed until we receive
complaints that AWPA compliant materials are unavailable at your
store, or you notify us that you no longer carry wood treated in
accordance with our Standards.
What about products that are advertised as "tested in
accordance with AWPA Standards"?
This is unfortunately a way of “inferring” that simply
by using some of the same test methods that the results must
also be similar. Performing a test without measured results and
evaluation by a body of experts in the field really doesn’t mean anything. If it was tested in
accordance with AWPA standards and the test results were deemed good enough to
protect the wood by AWPA’s membership, then it would be in the
standards. If it's not in the standards, then claims of
testing, no matter how credible they seem, cannot possibly mean
that a preservative or treated wood product meets, conforms to,
or complies with any AWPA Standard.
Have preservatives like CCA or Creosote been banned?
No, CCA or creosote treated wood is still used, but
mainly for industrial products, such as utility poles and railroad
crossties, and for marine uses, such as piling and bulkhead.
Plywood is still treated with CCA, as are other heavy-duty uses.
For information on permitted uses of CCA, visit the U.S. EPA's
website for
CCA or their site for
creosote. Other resources on these two preservatives
can be found at the websites of the
Wood Preservative Science Council, or the
Creosote Council.
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