Laboratory and outdoor water repellency and dimensional stability of southern pine sapwood treated with a waterborne water repellent made from resin acids

Abstract

Abstract A major consumer concern regarding lumber in above-ground exposure such as decking is the poor dimensional stability that leads to warping, splitting, and checking. One method to increase dimensional stability is to treat lumber with a water repellent. A waterborne water repellent made from the resin acid abietic acid or a commercial source of resin acids, tall oil rosin or TOR, was tested using southern pine sapwood. In laboratory water-swelling tests, the waterborne abietic acid provided water repellency that was almost equivalent to that provided by wax, while no water repellency was observed with solventborne resin acid. Wood treated with waterborne TOR also provided good water repellency in laboratory tests and fair water repellency at up to 13 months of outdoor exposure, but the laboratory efficacy was partially reduced by a water leach. The dimensional stability (cupping and checking) and mold growth on TOR-treated lumber in above-ground exterior exposure was better than for untreated boards, but not as good as for wax-treated lumber. Analysis of the wood in southern pine tree trunks of 14 or 29 years of age of various diameters and sampled at the bottom, middle and top showed that the resin acid content in southern pine wood is quite variable. This may explain the wide variation in natural water repellency and decay resistance previously observed with untreated southern pine sapwood.