Fire retardant wood use Increastng

E_{RE RETARDANT wood (FRT)

F* no, a new proouc[, Dur Decause it has become a viable alternative to other methods for meeting fire codes, its market is increasing.

Men have been trying to make wood resist fire since the time of the Pharaohs, when Egyptians charred the surface of lumber so it would not readily catch fire.

The fre retardant treated wood industry in the U.S. dates to the late 1800s when the Navy required its use in construction of certain parts of its warships. In the early 1900s New York City became the first metropolitan area to make extensive use of fire retardant treated wood in building construction. ln 194243 nearly 90 million b.f. of lumber and plywood were fire retardant treated for use in hangars for Navy blimps and other construction proj ects.

Since that time the demand has declined, limited partly by unaw,ueness and by problems of hygroscopicity and corrosiveness. But Dricon wood, a recent development of Koppers Co., Inc., has overcome many of the liabilities. It is said to be virtually no more hygroscopic (ikely to absorb moisture from the air) than untreated wood, even in interior environments of up to 9590 relative humidity. A mixture of organic and inorganic chemicals, Dricon does not contain ammonium sulfate, the corrosive contributing compound found in earlier formulas.

Encouraged by improvements in the product, Dily architects and homeowners are interested in using a material which wili limit fre, reduce building costs in some cases and qualify for lower insurance rates. Dealers should be making those in their community aware of the availability of FRT lumber, encouraging its use with literature, advertising and informative seminars.

New construction using Dricon can be found in many geographical areas. In the mountains of Avery County, N.C., a two-story, three-bedroom home is being built at Elk River featuring all FRT wood framing. Across the state at Ocean Isle Beach, a twostory, four-bedroom beachfront home is being constructed out of FRT framing.

A west coast development firm says it's saving approximately $l million on a $30 million condominium project using FRT wood as a fire code acceptable alternative to concrete and concrete slab. FRT lumber is being used for studs and exterior wall framing for a 224 unit retirement residence complex in Terra Linda, Ca.

Steve Dean, Dean Lumber Co., Gilmer, Tx., is building his own house out of Dricon trusses, lumber and plywood. "My insurance company tells me that they will insure my house as if it were a metal building," he reports. "That's going to save me 20-500/o every year in insurance costs. Also I found that for termite resistance, I could save 600 per foot in l0 year chemical insecticide treatments by using Dricon." (Although Dricon treating chemicals are not sold as wood preservatives, tests have shown them to have excellent decay and termite resistant properties.)

Other sales points dealers should stress include that while FRT wood will not prevent all fires, it can increase the possibility of containing a fire within a room, emits less smoke when exposed to flame, lengthens

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Story at a Glance Problems of hygroscopicity and corrosiveness eased...use lowers building costs and insurance rates...satisfaes building

codes...becomin g more popular.