Seal ends of pressure treated lumber?

[tbasc]

End grain absorbs water faster than other surfaces. Pressure treatment protects outer regions of a piece of wood more than inner. To protect the ends of siding, trim and other wood exposed to weather I sometimes use epoxy, or paint. It's tedious and most contractors won't do it even when I pay for it

Howver, I worked with Glen Salsman of Mt. Pleasant South Carolina to do trim in the basement. Within weeks, I had repeated sewer backups and the protected endgrain came through without damage.

TB

[Roger Taylor]

PT wood has good weather resistance but once cut, you will see that the chemicals penetrate only a quarter inch or so, so painting the end pieces, once they are cut, wouldnt be a bad idea, I suppose. You could use Copper Green preservative in a spray can, or brush it on if you want to buy the can.. I would avoid Thomson, as it is a poor choice, and is a weather coating and (a very poor) water repellant, not a preservative...

[tbasc]

To do much good, I think the end grain has to be penetrated and filled. A spray would not, in my opinion, put enouth material into the end grain to do much good. TB

[Roger Taylor]

OK, dip the ends and let them soak overnight! Whether you use Copper Green spray, or liquid in a can, or their equivalents in other brands, it is the least viscous coating I can imagine. It has the "soakability" of paint thinner or kerosene, both being pretty good penetrants. It is purely a penetrant, not a coating. Agreed, not much of anything will soak into PT wood, but sawn endgrain is highly absorptive. No how many brushfulls of copper green I put on my new pt

2x4 fence framing, the end pieces kept begging for more, so it must have soaked in pretty well.

[John Richards]

I don't remember where I read it but I recall reading a recommendation to "seal" the ends of pressure treated lumber when used as railing caps. I don't know if they were talking about something like Thomson water seal or something meant specifically for end grain. Any comments?

[BillC]

I put in a cedar fence and for the exposed vertical ends I just used exterior house paint. Several applications will be need.

[josh]

Ummmmmm, this is simply not true for all PT wood. Sounds like you're talking about a coated product ( UC3A , for above ground use). I've never used class UC3B, which is pressure treated, but not for ground contact.

There are different classes of treated wood, I wouldn't consider using something that is not labled "ground contact" ( UC4A & above). It's pressure treated, and not only as you describe.

[anoldfart2]

This is a very good idea to prevent the ends from getting wet. I always put a condom over the end of the posts and they are safe for all uses. A safe post is a good post !!!

[B Coonrad]

The line of PT posts/lumber on the west coast, Wolmanized, offered an end cap sealant that was painted on so as to minimize the capillary absorbtion of moisture wicking up the end grain, especially for use in fence posts buried in concrete. Yellow Wood seems to be the east coast version and I came across your inquiry while researching the same. Hope this helps...I'm sure it's not any of Thompson's products!!

[willshak]

OP question posted on home owner's hub website on August 4, 2005