Rural Leisure Timber Treatment.

The BRE (Building Research Establishment) has this to say about timber :-

Timber exposed to moisture for any length of time is at risk from attack by wood rotting fungi. To obtain a good service life, it is important to select a timber species that is either naturally durable or amenable to preservative treatment.

Pine and Spruce are group one or two in the treatability tables which makes them ideal for the sort of preservative regime we use and provides extremely long life expectancy periods.

PRESSURE TREATMENT

Our decision as to how we protect our cabins for the conditions in this country which lend themselves as almost ideal for fungal infestation, was taken in consultation with TRADA (Timber research and development association).

We chose as a pre-treatment, Borax water repellant, anti-fungal agent and insect Repellant – Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 HSE No. 5687, BBA Certificate number 93/2893 (Second issue 1998). Disodium Ocoborate Tetrahydrate Na2 B8 O13 .4H2O or similar is recommended.

The benefits of this system include:-

• Excellent durability in all construction timbers above dpc.

• Comprehensive protection against both fungal decay and insect attack.

• Solvent free, safe handling characteristics; non hazardous wood waste.

• Compatible with metal fixings, glues, wood stains.

• Approved by HSE (Health & Safety Executive), BWPDA (British and wood preserving and Damp Proofing Association), and BBA (British Board of Agrement).

• Recommended by the green building digest.

• Over 35 years experience in service.

• Conforms to NHBC and British Standard requirements.

• Fully tested and compliant.

FIRE RATED TREATMENT

Present building regulations do not normally require any fire rated treatments to buildings. Normally however, buildings involving public access are required to be rated to Class O. There are many ways of achieving this yet maintaining the attractive appearance, but from a cost point of view the two best systems are pressure treatment prior to installation or more usually post of the and walls and ceiling with a clear intumescent varnish.

A building inspector will require a certificate of application which is offered by most manufacturers. It is reliant on the applicator accurately advising the supplier of the meterage to be covered and supplying vouchers of the amount of material purchased. The makers will then calculate that the correct amount of material has been bought to give enough coverage to achieve the rating and will send a certificate. The applicator will fill in his part and the compliance has then been achieved.

SURFACE TREATMENT

To ensure that the preservative remain within the timber and continue to do their job the external surfaces need to be treated with a surface finish which protects against ingress of water and UV degradation. Preparation, and external treatment with; Butinox 1 woodstain, UV resistant treatment and decay protection; Butinox 4 clear UV and weather proofing which will not peel or crack (Alkyd based). This is our recommended external treatment and the guarantee is conditional on suitable external treatment being applied and properly maintained. Internal surfaces become dirty and stained and so it is recommended that the walls and floor are varnished. We recommend preparation & sanding internal surfaces then application of a clear water based treatment for which we recommend a minimum of one seal coat to walls and a minimum of an additional mist coat to kitchen and bathroom walls, three coats of clear, water based floor varnish.