Eco-Friendly Wood Treated with Non-Toxic Liquid Glass!
Loading ...Posted on: June 29, 2009
Posted in: Heating & Cooling, Video
Most exterior lumber is treated with chemicals and heavy metals so nasty that lumber yards sometimes forbid their employees from from cutting them for customers. Treated wood comes with labels warning against use around vegetable gardens or pets.
Over 60 billion (that’s with a “B”) board feet of toxic lumber has been produced over the past 40 years and it’s creating an environmental nightmare.
Finally, there is a treated lumber product that I’m wildly impressed with. TimberSIL replaces the hazardous copper, chromium, and arsenic-based (CCA) preservatives that were used in the past.
TimberSIL calls their process “GlassWood Fusion.” By adding a liquefied sodium silicate the wood becomes rot resistant, pest resistant, fire resistant and more durable. But, the wood retains its natural look and feel.
The best part is that it is Cradle-to-Cradle and Green Spec certified. The manufacturer does not have FSC (Forest Stewarship Council) certification for its wood sourcing, but it claims to use only sustainably harvested wood. We’ll talk to the folks that make TimberSIL and get back to you.
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July 3rd, 2009 at 4:34 pm
TimberSil will be our eco-friendly wood solution at Terra Verde! Great video!
October 9th, 2009 at 11:04 am
The sodium silicate mixture is basically the same readily available compound that has been used for centuries to as a coating to make natural plasters more water-resistant, and was called “waterglass”. I’ve seen instructions for making and applying it in some Natural Plastering books. But apparently the innovation that these folks have come up with that might be difficult to self-replicate is their process for heat treating the saturated wood to fix the compound in it so it can’t leach back out when immersed in water again. I’d like to learn more about that process – can anyone tell me more?
Many plants that are naturally resistant to mold, rot and insects are high in silicon content in proportion to carbon. Silicon is just not edible to most life-forms, so it makes sense this would work.
As important as the non-toxic nature of the product is the non-corrosive nature. Most other pressure treated woods are highly corrosive to all ordinary fastners except stainless steel. IF one can’t count on your fasters to endure as long as the wood, there is not much point in building w/ P.T. wood. This alone could make it worth the price and long lead time involved, but I hope they are considering expanding their operations soon, or licensing their processes to operations in other parts of the nation.
December 11th, 2010 at 10:43 pm
I am very excited about this product. I m very concerned about protecting my own health, the health of customers and the environment. I am still trying to find a distributor of this product in upstate New York state.
December 13th, 2010 at 10:33 am
Yes. This is a wonderful product. And sadly it’s a little hard to find. Go to their website at http://www.timbersilwood.com/ and contact the company. Tell them you heard about them on Greenovation.TV and ask if their is a distributor in your area. If not, you can get it shipped from other parts of the country. But, then you may have to pay a shipping fee that will add to the cost. Good luck and let me know how it goes. Matt
May 4th, 2011 at 5:44 pm
I am still waiting for a reply as to who the local lumber yard in the Albany, NY area is. This is my 3rd. request.
May 4th, 2011 at 6:56 pm
Merle – try calling Timbersil directly: 703-941-5171.
You could also try e-mailing them and asking for a local distributor: rdixon@timbersilwood.com.