The Kendrick gazette. [volume] (Kendrick, Idaho) 1892-1968, 1916-10-27

nondurable woods an average life of
twenty years. A thorough treatment
with coal tar creosote will make
wooden silo more resistant to decay.
less subject to shrinking and swelling
and will also make painting unneces-
sary. The treatment of any nondur-
able wood, which is used where con-
ditions are favorable to decay. will
prolong its life for many years.
For a number of years the forest
service has been conducting expert
ments on the preservative treatment
Of fence posts, poles and other forms
of timber exposed to decay.
The preservatives tested in the ex-
periments included coal tar creosotes,
carbolineums. wood tar creosotes, wa
ter gas tar creosote, zinc chloride, tar,
crude oil, paint, linseed oil. whitewash
and cement coatings. OF all the vari-
Gus preservatives tested coal tar crea-
sote has given the best results. Car
bolineums have given about the same
increase of durability under certain
conditions. The service tests upon
wood tar creosote and water gas tar
creosote have not yet definitely estab-
lished their value, but these products
apparently will give good results. Zinc
chloride is satisfactory under certain
conditions. The other preservatives
have not proved satisfactory for farm
use.
There are number of methods of APP
plying personalities to wood differing
considerably in cost and effectiveness.
The methods best adapted to farm use
are the open tank process. the cold
bath or soaking treatment. the dipping
process and the brush or painting
treatment.
The open tank process is the most
thorough method practicable on the
farm. The posts are heated for one
or more hours in the creosote oil at a
temperature of from 1870 degrees to
900 degrees r. They are then quickly
transferred to another tank of oil hav-
ing temperature of about 100 degrees
f., and are left there for an hour or
more. In the hot bath the air and
moisture in the wood expand and are
partially driven out. When the wood
is plunged into the cool oil the air and
moisture in it contract and draw the
oil into the wood. Instead of a sepa-
rate tank being used for the cool bath,
the heating of the oil in the hot bath
may be stopped and the wood and the
oil allowed to cool together, This ac-
complishes the same purpose as the
cool bath. but longer time is required
because the hot oil cools very slowly.
In the cold bath process the wood is
treated by soaking for long time in
tank of preservative at ordinary air
temperature. Since cold oils do not
penetrate wood readily, it is probable
that but few woods can be successfully
impregnated with oils by this method.
The dipping process is considered
suitable only for preServatives of an
oily nature. The wood is simply heat
ed in oil at from 200 degrees to 800
degrees F. for from five to fifteen min
utes Or longer. 1t is cheaper than the
open tank treatment, but is much less
effective
Brush treatment or painting Is con-
sidered suitable for oils only and con-
sists in applying two coats of hot pre-
sentative to the wood 1t has the ad-
vantages of cheapness and simplicity
and the disadvantage of adding less
durability than the foregoing methods
The preservative treatment of farm
timbers offers opportunity for a profit
able industry in rural communities. In
many places small wood preserving
plant can be profitably operated in con-
nection with threshing outfit feed
mill. or sawmill. or several indiyid,
uals can cooperate in establishing and
operating a plant for the treatment of
timbers used on the farms in the
neighborhOod.