Remedial Preservative Treatments for Wood Poles

The depletion of the pole’s initial preservative treatment (typically pentachlorophenol, creosote, or CCA) happens over time and may be a result of aging, weathering, migration, or volatility of the chemical elements. 

Osmose remedial preservative treatments help maintain the durability of your system by preventing strength loss caused by wood-destroying fungi and insects.  Combined with the remaining original preservative, remedial treatments can provide an effective defense against a wide variety of wood-destroying organisms, thus extending the useful service life many years beyond what is typically expected. (See Decay Hazard Map for utility poles as referenced by the American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) U1-23)

Remedial preservatives allow poles to retain strength by resisting wood-destroying fungi and insects as they age.

Types of Remedial Preservatives

• Preservative Pastes & Bandages are designed to prevent external decay in the groundline zone (the area with the greatest risk for strength loss).  Pastes and bandages are applied to excavated poles after existing decay has been removed. 
• Fumigants are the ideal preservative to protect heartwood and the inner regions of the pole from decay.  Fumigants produce vapors that diffuse and travel both vertically and horizontally from the application poles, eliminating wood-destroying fungi and insects.
• Solid Rods are easy-to-handle formulations of water-soluble preservatives designed to protect poles from internal decay.  When in contact with moist wood, rods dissolve and diffuse following the path of moisture to provide a pattern of protection against future decay.
• Liquid Internal Treatments are the ideal preservative to apply to internal voids and insect cavities. 

As the world’s leading developer and applicator of wood preservatives designed for in-service poles, Osmose has established R&D priorities intended to maintain efficacy against decay and deterioration while reducing the volume of active ingredients, lowering the risks to non-target organisms, and eliminating petroleum-based carriers from our product line.  Review our complete environmental commitment here.

To learn more, call your local Osmose professional.  Not sure who your local professional is?  Email poleinfo@osmose.com to find out.