Thread: Wood stamped "lyctid resistant supa 17"?

Sounds like an in-house brand from some sawmill or other: probably goes F17 and probably a lyctid resistant species. Rule of thumb is that treated timber will appear green/blue, however thats not always the case. In any case modern treatment chemicals are quite safe once the timber stops "bleeding" it off - unless you expect your kids to start eating the stuff.

I'm glad to see someone is doing an in house brand for lyctid resistant timber. The entire treatment issue with hardwoods that are naturally resistant is a crock foisted on us by a group with vested interests: there is negligible uptake of treatment (excluding Borates) by (hardwood) heartwood using any of the commercially available processes, the whole issue is just a marketing thing. Victoria at least is smart enough to allow lyctid susceptible sapwood to be used provided the sapwood doesn't exceed the limits for want and wane.

Originally Posted by Lotsawood

I have some wood with the above stamped on it, which I would like to make into a giant jenga set for my kids to play with. Does anyone know whether this means that the wood is simply naturally resistant or whether it means the wood has been chemically treated to make it resistant? (It's not green or anything, just looks like normal wood.) I assume if it has been treated it wouldn't be safe for children to play with? Or to burn as firewood? Thanks for any help anyone may be able give.

Lotsawood, Supawood 17 is is a marketing name for Victorian Ash timbers. They are naturally non-susceptable to lyctid borers. From my read of their website, Supa 17 is available both treated and untreated (with pyrethrins). It would appear that the timber is dyed red if it is treated so it sounds like your timber will be fine - not that pyrethrins are too nasty anyway.

Regards, Timboz

Thank you both for your responses!