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Information for Homeowners
If you're a homeowner and you've navigated to this
page, it probably means that you're not content to simply ask for
any kind of treated wood...you want to find the
product best suited to your needs, and you appreciate the value of
wood treated to industry standards - standards developed by experts in the field
of wood protection. We hope that the following information is
helpful. If you have additional questions, please be sure to
contact us.
Why is it important to have the AWPA
identification on the end tag of the lumber I buy?
The AWPA is the only ANSI-accredited standards developer that
requires a rigorous evaluation plus an open peer review of that
data where the largest collection of experts in the field of
wood protection in North America gather for
the purpose of evaluating which wood preservatives are
worthy to be standardized in the AWPA Book of Standards.
Which wood preservative systems are
listed in AWPA Standards?
In today's marketplace, there are many
wood preservative systems available to the public. It is important that those
wood preservatives reviewed by AWPA's Technical Committees and
listed in AWPA Standard U1 are selected at retentions that are
appropriate for each Use Category. The following table is
specific to Southern pine and Douglas-fir, but should be helpful
in determining if the treated wood at your local retailer is
treated with the correct preservative at the proper retention
(expressed in pounds active ingredient per cubic foot of wood):
| Code |
Preservative Name |
UC1, 2 |
UC3B |
UC4A |
UC4B |
| ACC |
Acid Copper Chromate |
0.25 |
0.25 |
0.50 |
--- |
| ACQ |
Alkaline Copper Quaternary (Type B or C) |
0.25 |
0.25 |
0.40 |
0.60 |
| ACQ |
Alkaline Copper Quaternary (Type A or D) |
0.15 |
0.15 |
0.40 |
0.60 |
| ACZA |
Ammoniacal Copper Zinc Arsenate |
0.25 |
0.25 |
0.40 |
0.60 |
| CA-B |
Copper Azole, Type B |
0.10 |
0.10 |
0.21 |
0.31 |
| CA-C |
Copper Azole, Type C |
0.060 |
0.060 |
0.15 |
0.31 |
| CuN-W |
Waterborne Copper Naphthenate |
0.070 |
0.070 |
0.11 |
--- |
| CX-A |
Copper HDO |
0.206 |
0.206 |
--- |
--- |
| EL2 |
DCOI-Imidicloprid-Stabilizer |
0.019 |
0.019 |
--- |
--- |
| PTI |
Propiconazole-Tebuconazole-Imidicloprid |
0.013 |
0.018 |
--- |
--- |
| PTI |
PTI plus Stabilizer |
0.013 |
0.013 |
--- |
--- |
| SBX |
Inorganic Boron (Formosan termites) |
0.28 |
--- |
--- |
--- |
| SBX |
Inorganic Boron (non-Formosan termites) |
0.17 |
--- |
--- |
--- |
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How can I make sure the treated wood I
buy
complies with AWPA Standards?
There are several key bits of information you should see on the
treated wood end tags:
"AWPA U1" signifies that the wood is treated in accordance with
AWPA Standard U1, the primary specification for treated wood.
The AWPA Use Category designation (for example, "UC2", "UC3B",
"UC4A", etc. - see below for descriptions) indicates the proper
usage of the treated wood product. The preservative name
or abbreviation, along with the minimum average retention (a
number such as "0.21" or "0.40") will
also be printed on the end tag. If you cannot find "AWPA
U1" and the Use Category, the wood probably does not meet AWPA
Standards.
Where can I buy treated wood that
conforms to AWPA Standards?
AWPA does not know the name and location of every building
material store, but we do have a list of those stores which have
notified AWPA that products meeting our Standards are sold
there.
Click here to view
the "Where To Buy" page.
What do the AWPA Use Category
designations mean?
The Use Categories are a shorthand method of describing the
various hazards to which wood products may be exposed. A
brief description of the Use Categories is shown, but if you
would like additional details on the AWPA Use Category System,
please download this
excerpt
from AWPA Standard U1.
| Use
Category |
Brief Description |
| UC1 |
Interior Dry |
| UC2 |
Interior Damp |
| UC3A |
Exterior Above Ground, Coated with Rapid Water
Runoff |
| UC3B |
Exterior Above Ground, Uncoated or Poor Water Runoff |
| UC4A |
Ground Contact, General Use |
| UC4B |
Ground Contact, Heavy Duty |
| UC4C |
Ground Contact, Extreme Duty |
| UC5A |
Marine Use, Northern Waters (Salt or Brackish Water) |
| UC5B |
Marine Use, Central Waters (Salt or Brackish Water) |
| UC5C |
Marine Use, Southern Waters (Salt or Brackish Water) |
| UCFA |
Interior Above Ground Fire Protection |
| UCFB |
Exterior Above Ground Fire Protection |
What kind of stain or paint should I use
to protect treated wood used outdoors?
AWPA member Sam Williams and his colleague, Mark Knaebe, both
from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin,
have published a number of excellent papers on the subject which
are posted to the FPL's website at this URL:
http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/faqs--finishing.html
In general, they recommend semi-transparent oil-based stains,
and we agree with their findings.
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