Reasons why we don't burn pressure treated wood.

[DPDISXR4Ti]

I'm pretty sure this is not a good idea, but I hate to just throw away a bunch of scrap decking and railing from a 15 year-old deck that I recently dismantled. It would be in a stove, so 99.9% of the fumes would go up the chimney. Any real harm in mixing one "log" in at a time with the regular wood?

 

[ray benson]

Lots of info on the web. This caught my eye.
Burning:Incineration of CCA wood does not destroy arsenic. It is incredible, but a single 12 foot 2 x 6 contains about 27 grams of Arsenic - enough arsenic to kill 250 adults. Burning CCA wood releases the chemical bond holding Arsenic in the wood, and just one Tablespoon of ash from a CCA wood fire contains a lethal dose of Arsenic. Worse yet, Arsenic gives no warning: it does not have a specific taste or odor to warn you of its presence. No one disputes that the ash from burning CCA wood is highly toxic: It is illegal to burn CCA wood in all 50 states. This has serious implications for firefighters, cleanup and landfill operations.
Even more astonishing, minute amounts of 'fly ash' from burning CCA pressure treated wood, can have serious health consequences. The Journal of the American Medical Association reported on a family that burned CCA in a wood stove for winter heating. Their hair fell out, all family members suffered severe, recurring nosebleeds, extreme fatigue and debilitating headaches. The parents complained about 'blacking out' for periods of several hours, followed by long periods of extreme disorientation. Both children suffered frequent seizures described as 'grand mal'. The symptoms were finally traced to breathing minute amounts of arsenic laden dust leaking from the furnace as fly ash. The family's houseplants and fish died, too, victims of copper poisoning from the same dust. Peters HA, et al: Seasonal exposure to arsenic from burning CCA wood. JAMA 25118)2393-96, 1984)

 

[ericjeeper]

I think Ray pretty much

Summed it all up for you? Is it worth the risk?

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Summed it all up for you?

Yea, I think so. :monkey:

Doing a little more digging, it would appear that CCA-treated wood was outlawed as of Jan 2004, but since this stuff is ~10 years older than that, it's certainly full of arsonic. It'll hit the trash bin for sure now...

 

[woodbooga]

We're not even supposed to bring it to the brush pile at the town dump for the reasons noted above. I hate the idea of any potential fuel being wasted and burn lots of punk and small stuff many would consider garbage. That said, I won't toss even a stick of pressure treated stuff in the woodbox.

 

[Mike Van]

To add to what Ray said, burning CCA releases hydrogen cyanide in the smoke - Some years ago as a power co. lineman [now retired] I got a facefull of the smoke from a CCA pole fire. This wasn't like a campfire where 'oh, smoke in my face' CCA smoke will just stagger you, you can't get your breath, you can't see, it just sucks. Like woodbooga said, I'll burn most anything, but not that stuff. I even hate working with it. Funny, when we first started getting CCA poles, a guy from Koppers came out ' oh, this stuff is great it's so safe' were his words. Compared to what? Plutonium?

 

[MATTYB11]

Good thread. I always knew there was arsenic in that stuff but had no idea that it contained that much. Makes me wonder how much would go airborne just from cutting. who knows in another ten years they may be outlawing the newer acq pressure treat for some other health reason.

 

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Makes me wonder how much would go airborne just from cutting.

That was actually my first thought upon reading some of this stuff, having just cut some the other day. Can't worry about what's in the past, but I'll know better next time.

 

[Geez]

Well, in addition to all that's been said already, my main concern is corrosion. The new stuff is arsenic free but MUCH more corrosive. You have to use heavily galvanized or stainless steel fasteners. I saw a pic of a 1/2" bolt that was rusted almost gone in just a couple years. Can you imagine the concentration of those chemicals in your ash? And your firebox? :jawdrop:

 

[MATTYB11]

I believe it is the copper now used in the new pressure treat that corrodes the iron. I think because they are dissimilar metals. Hot dipped galvanized nails hold up well but you can't beat stainless fasteners.

 

[blis]

I believe it is the copper now used in the new pressure treat that corrodes the iron. I think because they are dissimilar metals. Hot dipped galvanized nails hold up well but you can't beat stainless fasteners.

atleast over here in finland the modern treated wood is treated with copper sulfide, and yes, it will eat away normal nails really quickly so stainless steel is pretty much the only alternative that will last... just that they cost about 4 times more than galvanized

 

[dazdmc]

Holy #@*+!!!
I have been burning this kind of scrap wood for ages, I get cut offs from our joiners shop and thought I was being good by saving it going to waste. Oh well, that's put an end to that then. Is it any treated wood, or just pressure treated? I have so much treated stuff at home, I am now going to have to dig it all out and make a trip to the dump.

darren

 

[Geez]

All treatments are about the same, pressure treated just gets it deeper into the wood. I feel your pain though. I work for a company that builds a lot of decks and have been saving the 6X6 cut offs for landscaping purposes. I have quite a stack and when wood was running short last winter I started eyeballing them.
Then all of a sudden the light bulb went on before I threw the first ones in.

 

[mga]

I'm pretty sure this is not a good idea, but I hate to just throw away a bunch of scrap decking and railing from a 15 year-old deck that I recently dismantled. It would be in a stove, so 99.9% of the fumes would go up the chimney. Any real harm in mixing one "log" in at a time with the regular wood?

people who burn pressure treated wood and trash in their fireplaces gives a bad rep for all the others who burn responsibly.

this is one reason why so many towns are addressing OWB's these days. please, don't do things that will make the government go after regular fireplaces or wood stoves.

burn responsibly.

 

[dazdmc]

To be honest if I had known this in the past I never would have burned it, but I like many others have been ignorant to this fact. I have just been up to the joinery shop to tell them just how bad it is and they are going to tell everyone that picks up the cut offs for burning. I don't know what the laws are in Britain, but I have not been able to find anything so far, I do know they are not usually as strict as they are on your side of the pond, but regardless of the laws I will no longer be burning any treated wood Apart from the environmental issues I have a wife and two young daughters at home that I would not want subjected to any poisons, as well as that we are surrounded by sheep and cattle fields as well as soft fruit farms. The amount of times I have sat in the garden at night with friends and had an old oil barel filled with this stuff burning away and never knew it was that bad, so thanks to the originator of the post and for the answers from the rest of you guys. I am hopefully a little wiser about it now.

cheers
daz

 

[coppermouse]

I have been looking for a way to convince my best buddy it was a bad idea, and this was just what I needed, thanks for the info.

 

[TallElf]

so just a silly question.... HOW DO YOU DISPOSE OF PRESSURE TREATED WOOD?

 

[chugbug]

How about creosote like in railroad ties , I was told it turns to an acid when burned in a stove and would be corrosive and possibly deteriorate the firebox.I would assume there would be some bad health affects also.

 

[mga]

I'm pretty sure this is not a good idea, but I hate to just throw away a bunch of scrap decking and railing from a 15 year-old deck that I recently dismantled. It would be in a stove, so 99.9% of the fumes would go up the chimney. Any real harm in mixing one "log" in at a time with the regular wood?

you should be arrested.

YOU may not be breathing in the toxins, but what about those on the outside???

burning crap in your wood burner is just more fuel for those opposed to wood burning.

dispose of it properly.

 

[Mike Van]

How about creosote like in railroad ties , I was told it turns to an acid when burnt in a stove and would be corrosive and possibly deteriorate the firebox.I would assume there would be some bad health affects also.

None of the chemicals used to treat wood like CCA, Pentachlorophenol , or creosote should be burned. While it may be some 'free heat' to some, others have to breathe the chemicals released in the smoke. Tallelf, as far as I know, it gets landfilled, unless they're burning it with stack scrubbers or the like at some trash to energy plant.