Is this timber safe to work with?

Oddstag · 2024-12-13T10:15:17+0000

Hi guys, it an effort to improve certain skills I've been collecting scrap wood that I can dump my worst mistakes into. Today I found the following abandoned on the pavement on my walk home. It's a quite long 25 x 50 (I assume) roofing batten. I took the following photos of its stamps:

My intention is to chop it up and glue it up with some other scrap pine I've found to make a simple worktop, but I've not used construct grade lumber before. Has this been treated with something that is going to inflict super cancer on me if I cut, plane, and sand it with the typical PPE?

Thanks for any advice and happy holidays.

Bingy man · 2024-12-13T10:30:18+0000

I see no reason not to use It , looks like it’s been outside for a while. Usual ppe if your cutting , planing etc ..

Agent_zed · 2024-12-13T10:46:00+0000

I'm also pretty risk adverse and I have to remind myself at times that It's all a balance of probability. If you wear a FFP3 mask you will be filtering more than 99%. When people paint a fence with the same wood preserver, most people won't wear a mask so will be breathing in all those chemicals.

When you walk through a city you don't wear a mask and you'll be breathing in brake dust, Tyre dust, diesel particulates, road dust, sand particles and numerous other compounds and chemicals including pollens and other biological material.

That's certainly not to say you should be fast and loose with things like this, but more to point out that on balance wearing decent PPE whilst doing things like this you are most likely far safer than you are on a general day to day just going for a walk.

And If in doubt just go buy some timber you know is untreated and use this for a job you don't have to process so much like an outdoor log store etc.

--Tom-- · 2024-12-13T18:33:06+0000

Workshop worktop fine

Kitchen worktop maybe not

If it’s anything like wood from building sites I’ve had be prepared for embedded grit so pick your tools accordingly-e.g. use a belt sander instead of a freshly sharpened plane

HOJ · 2024-12-13T19:00:50+0000

The piece you have is most certainly tile batten and is whitewood as its stamped as WPCA (Picea Abies).

It will have been treated with a biocide, but without knowing it's genuine source, it could be a cheaper import and may be treated with Permethrin which has been reported in the trade to cause skin burns.