Look For a Treatment Brand When Using Treated Timber

treatment brand wrap

By Timberlink

You should always look for a treatment mark or brand when purchasing treated timber especially if the timber will be used in a load bearing application where product failure has serious implications. Not only does the brand give you detail about the treatment, it is also an indication of quality, as by applying a treatment brand, the manufacturer is claiming it has been treated to Australian Standards.

A good tip when building with treated timber, is to keep or photograph the treatment tags as proof of where and how the timber was treated. You will need this info if you have any issues with the timber later on. 

Where is the treatment brand?

It can be stamped on the timber, burnt into the timber or be on a tag attached to the end of the timber. It will always follow the same format as this is specified by the Australian Standard.

The brand consists of three groups of numbers/letters. These tell you who treated the timber, what chemical was used, and the level of treatment which is called the H level.

timberlink treatment mark


The Treater Code

The first three numbers identify where the timber was treated. The code in the example above ‘853’ is our Bell Bay Mill code. If you want to find out who treated your timber, a searchable list of all treatment plant numbers is maintained by the TPAA.

The Preservative Code

The next two digits are the preservative code. This tells you the preservative that’s been used on the timber. The ‘64’ in the example above represents LOSP. You can look up the most common treatment codes in the table below. For a more comprehensive list of timber preservatives, download this TPAA guide. Note that not all preservatives can be used for all H levels.

Preservative NamePreservative CodesH Level Treatment Suitable For
Synthetic PyrethroidsBifenthrin 73, 75

Permethrin 70, 74

H2
Light Organic Solvent Preservative – LOSPPermethrin 64;

Imidacloprid 59, 60

H3
Copper Azole

(brand name  Tanalith E)

58H3 – H5
Alkaline Copper Quaternary – ACQ90H3 – H5
Copper Chrome Arsenate – CCA01, 02, 03, 14, 15, 16, 31, 32, 33, 34, 38, 40, 43, 51, 55H3 – H6

 

The Hazard/Treatment Level

The final ‘H’ number tells you the level of treatment that’s been applied to the timber, also called the Hazard Level. This indicates the hazards the timber is protected against and therefore where you can use it.

You can use a higher level of treatment than the table states but never a lower number. A higher treatment level usually means more preservative has been applied to the timber and therefore the timber is likely to cost more.

There are six Hazard (H) Classes but only levels H3 to H6 can be used outside. The most commonly available treatments in Tasmania are H3 or H4.

Hazard Table

Hazard ClassWhere the treated wood may be usedWhat the timber is protected against
H1Inside above groundBorer susceptible hardwoods
H2Inside above groundTermites – Not a risk in Tasmania
H3Outside above ground, periodic wetting but where the timber can dry out; some leachingInsects, termites and moderate decay
H4In or on the ground subject to severe wetting and leachingInsects, termites and severe decay
H5In or on the ground subject to severe wetting and leaching, with or in fresh waterInsects, termites and very severe decay
H6In contact with sea waterMarine borers and decay

 

Copper Chrome Arsenate (CCA) – Labelling Requirements

Any CCA treated timber sold in Australia, must also be marked as “Treated with Copper Chrome Arsenate”. This can appear on the treatment labels fixed to the ends of the timber or on the stamp branding along its length. For smaller end-section timber products, labelling individual pieces isn’t practical, the packaging must be labelled.

Learn more about using treated pine in our blog.

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