When you use treated wood properly in a deck or landscaping, it can serve you effectively and safely for decades. Wood has long been a favorite building material, and once pressure-treated with preservative, it can withstand its natural outdoor enemies: termites and decay. That's why preserved wood has become so popular-especially the types of treated wood commonly sold at lumber outlets for backyard projects.

A detailed EPA-approved Consumer Information Sheet for proper handling and use of preserved wood should be available from your local building products retailer, or go to the American Wood Preservers Institute Web site at www.awpi.org. In the meantime, here are some tips for safe and proper use of pressure-treated wood.

The Many Uses Of Preserved Wood

Pressure-treated outdoor wood-building projects include decks, walkways, retaining walls, fences, posts, picnic tables, benches, gazebos, doghouses, bird feeders, poles and piling, playground equipment, planter boxes, tomato stakes, swimming pool side walls, sill plates, exterior stairways, soffit and fascia, docks, bridges and bulkheads.

Treated lumber and plywood can also be used inside residences where dampness and temperature provide suitable habitats for wood-destroying organisms, as in wood foundations, floor joists and underlay in bathrooms and utility rooms. Always clean up and dispose of sawdust and construction debris after construction.

When you purchase pressure-treated wood, select wood that has a clean appearance, free of surface residue.

Common-Sense Safety

Working with pressure-treated wood requires the same precautions as those observed when working with untreated wood or most other building materials:

• Wear gloves to avoid splinters.

• Be careful in lifting and moving bulky materials.

• Protect your eyes from sawdust and flying particles. When power-sawing and machining, wear goggles.

• Frequent or prolonged inhalation of sawdust can irritate throats and nasal passages. When sawing or machining wood, treated or untreated, wear a dust mask. It's best to perform these operations outdoors when possible to avoid indoor accumulation of airborne dust.

• After working with wood-and before eating, drinking, or using tobacco products-wash exposed areas thoroughly. If sawdust accumulates on clothes, clean them before reuse. Wash heavily soiled clothes separately from other household wash.

Disposal

Treated wood scraps that are not usable can be discarded by ordinary trash collection. Never burn treated wood scraps in open fires or in stoves, fireplaces or residential boilers since burning could produce toxic substances as part of the smoke or ashes. Treated wood from commercial or industrial construction can be disposed of by following local landfill rules or burned in commercial or industrial incinerators or boilers in accordance with state and federal regulations.

For more information and a brochure about preserved wood, call the American Wood Preservers Institute at 1-800-356-AWPI.

[North American Precis Syndicate]

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