Treated Timber advice needed

[TPoles]

Hi,

A neighbour has asked me to make her a new small door for her cellar entrance. I was thinking of making a ledge door similar to what is already there out of treated tongue and groove. However for the frame Im not sure to use.

Can I just use a regular 4x2 and trim off the rounded edges to give me a sort of PSE or will this then need treating again to protect it?

Thanks
Tom

 

[MikeG.]

Many suppliers these days don't supply "regular 4x2" any more. Many only supply CLS (which is what I think you meant........PSE is planed square edge which doesn't have rounded arrises). In theory, anything you cut or plane from a piece of treated timber should be re-treated. Cut ends are easy (there's normally a bucket of the treatment stuff, and cut ends get dipped in it briefly, then put aside to dry for a while). Brushing it individually onto longer cuts or profiling will be fine for a little job like yours, but would be a pain in the neck on a building site.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Regular 4" x 2" won't have rounded edges, that's CLS. You'd just as well use untreated timber - treated stuff is horrible to work and all the joints and cut ends need treating anyway if you want the thing to last more than months. Pay a bit more for decent timber - you'll save working time, make the job more pleasant and the end result better.