Are reclaimed railway sleepers treated?

[lindsayb]

I read thru numerous other thread on here regarding the use of sleepers, but was unabel to find my answer...

Are railway (reclaimed / used / old) sleepers treated for white ants?
I'm not too worried about the chemical element ... which I did read so much about. More the white ant / termint element.

Also, are they able to sit directly on the soil (or will they rot)?

cheers
L

[dazzler]

No, Yes and Yes but over a long time :)

[namtrak]

I think they are generally treated with either sump oil or creosote (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creosote). Some countries have banned the re-use of sleepers in vegie gardens, where they have been treated with creosote.

They will last quite well though. If absolute longevity is the issue then why not consider concrete sleepers or blockwork?

[lindsayb]

okay my last message seems to ahve disappeared.. hmmm.

thanks for replies.

In short again,..
Longevity isn't my main issue. More the termites / white ants issue is of concern to me.
I want to go with railway over concrete purely for the appearance.

[Vernonv]

I have had termites in some old railway sleepers I use as fence posts.

[asg]

We recently had the termite bloke at our place to do his termite inspection and top up the poison tubes around our house. He was not happy that we had bordered a vegie garden near the house with railway sleepers. He reckoned that termites are liable to nest in them one day and advised us to use concrete sleepers instead.

Andrew