War erupts over micronized wood preservatives

A WAR of words is waging in the .Cl,world of pressure treated wood. as the originator of ACQ aggressively attacks the effectiveness of newer "micronized" treatments.

ACQ stepped into the void as preservative of choice when CCA was banned from residential uses in 2003. Three years later, Osmose introduced MCQ, which contains tinier, submicron-sized copper particles that make the preservative less corrosive to fasteners. Micronized products have since displaced ACQ as the top-selling type ofpressure treated wood.

ACQ maker Viance LLC, however, claims that micronized products were rushed to market without proper testing, and that its own testing has shown MCQ-treated wood may be subject to premature decay.

"The failures of these micronized copper-treated wood products pose serious safety concerns for consumers," said Viance president and c.e.o. Steve Ainscough. "Viance is

Is Micronized Treated Wood AWPA Approved?

Among Viance's criticisms of micronized products is that they have never been subjected to proper testing by the American Wood Protection Association.

AWPA agreed that while it has studied micronized products to confirm the presence and amount of the preservatives, the association has never evaluated or approved the effectiveness of the preservatives.

MCQ manufacturer Osmose says its products utilize proprietary manufacturing technology and chemistry formulations. According to Osmose, "The AWPA procedures for preservative standardization do not provide preservative manufacturers with adequate 'confidentiality' protection. Due to its confidentiality concerns, Osmose chose to submit the MicroPro technology for evaluation to ICC-ES (International Code CouncilEvaluation Service,Inc.). The ICCES evaluation and approval process has become an industry-accepted alternative to AWPA standardiza- tion, and ICC-ES approval is recognized by all major building codes. Importantly, the ICC-ES approval process allows a manufacturer to maintain confi dentiality." deeply committed to the wood protection industry and follows a comprehensive long term performance evaluation process before bringing new preservatives to the market." unless those conclusions wcre contained within the studies themselves.

Building codes require that treated wood used in a permitted project bear a "quality mark"either an ICC-ES Report number or an AWPA Use Standard number. "It is important to note," Osmose explains, "that the building codes do not require both."

For CA-C maker Arch, its formulation is too new. "We plan to submit our dispersed copper azole for AWPA listing as soon as we have sufficient test data to gain acceptance," says Huck DeVenzio. "AWPA requires a minimum of three years of pertinent data, which is then scrutinized by AWPA membership (chemical companies, treaters, users, academics, other interested parties). We aren't quite there yet with our formulation, but we think AWPA listing is the best assurance of preservative performance."

Last spring, Viance launched an aggressive marketing campaign that includes sensational "Treated Wood Alert" ads, press releases, and personal calls on treaters and dealers to handdeliver their warnings.

Last month, Osmose filed suit to stop Viance from continuing the "negative public relations campaign intended to scare users of treated wood," because it "falsely attacks the effectiveness and safety of wood treated with micronized copper wood preservatives."

"We filed this lawsuit to protect the integrity of our company, the quality of our products, and the credibility of the treated wood industry," said Osmose president Paul Goydan. "We intend to put a stop to Viance's mischaracterizations and unfounded attacks."

According to Osmose, two weeks after the filing, it received a temporary restraining order prohibiting Viance from publishing its own broad conclusions about the results of its studies.

Osrnosc h()pcs t() rceeivc a c0ntinuing in.junction at a hearing scheduled to begin May 19.

The last straw appeared to come when Viance publicized the results of tests it hired Timber Products Inspection (TP) to perform on MCQtreated posts Viance selected fron'r one-1 cirr-.rld huilding projr'cts in Atlanta, Ga.. and Baton Rougc. La. According thc Viance. TP's findings showed unucceptuhle detcriorution on several of the posts tested.

The announcement was decried by not only Osmose, but also competitor PhibroWood, which for years had been locked in its own bitter strugglc with Osmosc ovcr thc devclopment of the two companies' micronized technolo-sics. PhibroWood's defe nse of MCQ noted that thc unsatisfactory posts were nclt treated at ground-contact retention levels and that the "report seems to support the supposition that MCQ. when treatecl to prescribed retentions, performs well."

TP also issuecl a prcss releasc to distance itself from Viance's interpretation of the findings. stressing that the posts did not represent a scientific random sampling and that its decay ratings were subjective.

Although Viance's campaign specifically targcts MCQ. it also airns to brings into qucslion other micronized prescrvativcs. such as micronized copper azolc from Arch and PhibroWood.

By exlen:ion. the uccusutions implicate most of the nation's largest wood preservers-and they're none too happy about it. Recently. l7 of the biggest treaters. including Great Southcrn Wood Preserving, Universal Forcst Products, Biewcr Lumber, ancl Hixson Lumber Sales, published an open lctter to Viance. expressinr concern "about the negative impact this campaign is havin-g on our industry."

The letter argued that "this is not about competition; this is about a sclfserving markcting crusade that thfeatcns thc reputation and questions the integrity of the entire industry."

"Thc fact that l7 treaters-some of whom don't even treat with MCQwould lock arms on this. spcaks volumes," says Universal's Dick Gauthier. "We all signed it becausc we think the campaign is damaging to thc treated wood industry as a whole. Viance has widely distributed an alarmist message based on unconventional, non-peer reviewed approaches. while continuing to ignore years of test data based on proven methods for deter rnining preservalivc pcrlbrmance. They've shouted. 'Fire!' in the the ater. while trying to li-ght the rnatch." www. lif esponouidoor.com

For rnore in.fbrntutiort on Viartr:t"s c lu tn.s, t' s t t t \t .t r e u te (l \: ( tt td u I e r t t o nt To r'1erl Oslriorr,'.r r('sp()rtse, yi.sit tttlw.lrcutctltt'tntdtrutltlottt. Tlte Mcrcluttt Muga:.itrc luts ra.t'fused trt tttct'1tt utlrertising attatkittg tctntpe t i rt g p n ttl uc t.s tu tl c o rt pu rti t'.s, nc I ud i n,q t lt e "Treuted Wood Alert" ud und pres.sure tredler.\'lctt(r.

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