Treated Timber - Important read

[artme]

With the wet weather and building activity I remembered a story a mate in the building game told me.

He had handled a load of treated hardwood sleepers that were wet and the again through the day as it rained on and off.

He wound up with a massive headache and very high blood pressure. This came from the arsenic in the timber.

Be Warned!!!

[glock40sw]

This came from the arsenic in the timber.

Be Warned!!!

Bullschit!
The level of arsenic in H4 treated timber is not enough to cause the symptoms you list, that quickly.
He more than likely has the flu.

This is the sort of misinformation the touchy feely brigade like to spew forth everytime the Greens get a bug up their collective butts about "saving the forests".

[echnidna]

I've handles huge amounts of wet pine direct from the treatment pl;ant and never hadany problems.

Maybe he drinks too much beer and has got the arsenic from the beer (its added to canned beer as a preservative)

[InterTD6]

I wouldn't be so quick to dispute this claim, some people can become sensitised to certain chemicals & this bloke being in the building game has probably had more than his fair share of exposure. Other chemicals which will sensitise that are common in the building game are cyanide which is emitted from those expanda foam types of fillers.
regards inter

[glock40sw]

G'day.
If you want constant exposure, do what I did for 18 years. Work the Pressure plant where the treating was done. Not only did I handle the diluted solution that is used to treat the wood, I also handled the concentrated CCA.
I had blood tests and urine tests every 6 months to check the Arsenic levels.
Some days I was actually covered in the stuff.
That was 15 years ago and I'm still kicking.

[artme]

Blood tests and doctors diagnosis.

Still want to argue?

[artme]

Just read about arsenic poisoning. The headaches are a symptom but the high blood pressure doesn't seem to fit.

Perhaps the doctor was too hasty in his judgement. Maybe there is another component in the treatment that caused the problem.

[InterTD6]

My key words were "some people". Its a bit like the guy who was next to the chernobyl reactor who was given 1000 times the lethal dose of radiation who is still alive today, but then thousands of "some people" were effected by the radiation.
There are a few out there that defy all the odds.
regards inter

[Rattrap]

It's exactly like the reaction some people can get from woods such as Blackwood. Most of us can work with it no probs but most of also know somebody who can have all sorts of adverse reactions when working with the timber.
I suffer from migraines from food, i can't drink booze, i can't drink coffee, i can't even eat bloody chocolate! I don't know anyone with all the same issues as me but that doesn't mean that some food doesn't still give me migraines
To say the the leading statement was bullschit is a pretty pig headed opinion
It was a valid & well meant thread, worthy of at least a little respect.

To to topic at hand, treated pine doesn't bother me at all but i'm very careful just the same & ALWAYS wash hands after handling when i can't safely use gloves.

[glock40sw]

Sorry, But I call it as I see it.

[funkychicken]

We treat our fencing and sleepers with CCA, so I handle treated timber a fair bit. I just make sure I wash my hands before smoko and don't give it a second thought. As long as you're not ingesting the stuff you should be fine to handle treated timber

[jerryc]

Just finished erecting trellis panels. Supplier assured me this was "New stuff" and was not arsenic based. Still wouldn't burn the waste.

Jerry

[Rattrap]

According to the community shed coordinator who has had something like 40+ years experience in the timber industry Tasmania is now the only state in Aus that still uses arsenic based treatment on pine. The reasoning behind this according to him is that it gives the rest of the states somewhere to sell off their stock piles of arsenic treatments. Don't know how valid this is as i've never had enough interest in the stuff to follow it up but i do know that we still have the arsenic based treated here. Regardless of what is used in the treatment extreem care should be taken & burning the treated pine is never a good idea.

[rotten_66]

I suffer from migraines from food, i can't drink booze, i can't drink coffee, i can't even eat bloody chocolate!

You poor bastard!!

[Rattrap]

fortunately there are some of lifes pleasures i can still indulge in but since this is a PG rated board we won't go any further.