worth the trcuble?

Wholesalerssay...

Growing market good margin item for dealers more profit . added dollars . these are common answers to the question "Why should a dealer add fire retardant treated wood to his inventory?"

Amy Curtis, vice president of Curtis Lumber & Plywood Co., in Alexandria, Va., feels that the market is increasing, especially in areas where there is a great deal of urban revitalization and city building going on. Her company sells FRTW to chains such as Lowe's, large yards such as W. T. Galliher and Brothers, Inc., Springfield, Va., and numerous independent dealers.

"More and more dealers are buying FRTW as commercial and multi-family dwellings such as town houses go up in their areas," she says. "While FRTW is a specialty item, its market base is growing. It's a good product which is being more widely carried."

Darrell Childress, president of St. John Wholesale Co., Inc., Jacksonville, Fl., also says "FRTW is an area that is growing." His company sells to lumber dealers in Florida and south Georgia.

Both wholesalers stress the need for the dealer to be comfortable with the technical aspects of FRTW. They are equally adamant about the necessity of buying only legitimate FRTW manufactured by a reliable company and guaranteed by the proper UL label. "These materials will satisfy building codes," Childress explains, "while materials treated with sprays and other coatings will not."

Producers of qualified materials are able to give the dealer the technical support he needs." Ms. Curtis says.

Childress agrees that the manufacturer and the wholesaler can help the dealer gain any knowledge he needs about FRTW including the importance of identifying inside or outside use since there are two types of material, interior and exterior.

Some dealers carry FRTW in inventory even though it needs to be stored under cover. Others order on ajob basis. The most commonly sold items are 2x4, 2x6 and 12'CD plywood.

The industry says . .

"Yes," is the answer from wholesalers, licensed manufacturers and the companies behind them who are responsible forthe fire retardantchemicals.With so,me slowing of single family home building, contractors are swinging to multi-family and commercial construction which, according to most codes, must use fire retardant treated wood.

There are two types of FRTW. One is treated to meet specifications for interior, weather shielded applications. The other is suitable for outdoor use and can be used as siding, soffit, fascia and construction lumber. Both interior and exterior FRTW should be what the industry calls a state-of-the-art or second seneration fire retardant. This means thi wood has been treated with chemicals which produce a product with low hygroscopicity and corrosion characteristics.

All fire retardant treated wood should meet classification and labeling requirements of the Underwriters Laboratories. An FR-S rating from that agency denotes a surface burning characteristic rating of 25 or less for flamespread, fuel contributed and smoke development. All fire retardant treated lumber should be kiln dried after treatment to a maximum moisture content of I97o with plywood kiln dried to a maximum moisture content of 157o. FRTW which meets these requirements carries a UL label spelling out its classification.

Wood preserving companies producing FRTW are licensed by the manufacturers of the fire retardant chemicals to use their materials and processes. They in turn identify the product with a registered trade name provided through the licensing agreement. Although there are numerous treaters involved in producing FRTW there are only a handful oftrade names. These include NCX (exterior) and Dricon (interior) both from Koppers; Flame hoof LHC from Osmose; Exterior Fire-X, Exterior Fire-X Blue and Pro-Tex (interior) from Hoover Tieated Wood Products and D-Blaze (interior) from Mineral Research and Development Co., which is now known as Chemical Specialties, Inc.