Working with Timber
Choosing and sourcing timber:
- Where possible always try to use locally grown timber - its worth finding out where your nearest sawmill is and getting in touch to ask where they source their timber.
- Try to steer clear of tropical hardwoods, but if you do feel the application must use a hardwood (eg. flooring), then make sure it is from an FSC certified sustainsble source - find out about FSC (Forestry Stewardship Council) certification here.
- Alternatively consider reclaimed or salvaged timber:
Indescriminate logging of tropical hardwoods from rainforests is well documented as presenting a significant threat to the global environment and the only really effective way to stop any further destruction is by cutting-off demand.
When working with all timber it is advisable to use a mask and goggles as the dust can irritate the respiratory system. Hardwood dust particularly beech, redwood and oak is thought to be a carcinogen with links to nasal cancer and others are known irritants. This London Hazards Center fact sheet provides more details
Timber alternatives: Particle boards (e.g. Chipboard), fibre boards (e.g. MDF) and many laminate boards (e.g. Plywood) have been very widely used as they are low-cost and easy to work. Unforunately they have a downside too as virtually all contain Formaldehyde Resins which are used to bond the constituent parts (or layers) of the board together and which continually release gases over time (off-gasing). This gas can cause irritation to mucous mebranes (eyes, nose, throat) and has been classified in the US environmental protection agency as a "probably human carcinogen".
Preservatives: The best advice for your own and the environments health is only use wood preservatives for internal work if it's absolutely necessary. Treated wood is a threat to the environment at the end of it's lifecycle and is classified as hazardous waste. When treated wood is burnt, harmful gases are emited and other residue by products produced and treated timber in landfils will leach its damaging chemical constituents into the eco-system. Externally treated timber will also release toxic and hazardous chemicals into the environment during its lifetime as a reult of contact with damp soil, surface water and rain.
If you do consider treatment necessary and for external timber here's a break-down of the good, the bad and the downright ugly from an environmental perspective:
- The Good: Boron-based (Borate Oxide) compounds which are water soluble and non-toxic
- The Bad: products containing the following: Acypectas Zinc, Ammoniacal copper quartenary (ACQ), copper citrate, copper azole & Cu or Nu Naphthanates.
- The Ugly: Products containing (you may recognise a few of these!) : Creosote, Arsenic, Permethrin, Copper chrome arsenate (CCA), Tributyl tin oxide (TTO) Chromium salts, Dichofluanid, PCP and Lindane.
Woodworm/rot treatment: Treating small scale infestations of woodworm or rot can be undertaken as a DIY task, but we strongly recommend that you take professional advice for the assessment and treatment of larger scale infestations. Most woodworm and rot treatments contain a chemical (Permethrin) which is a known endocrine disruptor and has also been suspected of being a carcinogen. Whether you are planning to use a professional contractor or to do the job yourself you should specify or purchase a Boron based treatment which wil be far less potentially damaging to both human health and the wider environment. We also recommend that you only spot treat the areas that are actually infested rather than 'blanket' treat.