Get The Right Lumber From The Hardware Store

When you walk into a hardware store, you might be in awe of the aisles and aisles of tools, gadgets, and lumber. If you have a specific project in mind, you might know somewhat what you need, but when you are choosing the right lumber for something, the type of wood you get is important. When choosing wood, you can get pressure treated wood or regular wood. Which do you really need?

Pressure Treated Wood Or Not?

Pressure treated wood does last longer and it resists rotting and insect damage, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for every project. If you already know the pros and cons of both types of lumber, the exact project you are planning will help you make the right decision, along with these elements.

Moisture Sources And Direct Contact

Pressure treated wood should be your lumber of choice if the wood is going to come into direct contact with moisture. If you’re burying posts underground as supports for a deck, for example, they will have to be pressure treated. Any lumber that is touching concrete will need to be pressure treated as well. If there’s a good chance that moisture can reach the wood, it should be pressure treated. Even subflooring in kitchens and bathroom should be pressure treated since those rooms are often wet.

Contact With Pest And People

Since pressure treated wood is great to combat moisture, why don’t people just use it for the whole house? Well, there are chemicals involved and everyone wants to stay away from chemicals when they can. If you touch the wood and rub your eyes or eat with your hands, it could make you sick over time. For most indoor projects, you will want non-pressure treated wood. Pressure treated wood is often used outside as supports for a deck, but for the deck surface, it’s all about untreated wood.

Increase Safety With Sealants

Whatever kind of wood you use, you can increase the safety for you and for the wood by using sealants. You often place a sealant on a deck floor, for example, so it looks nice and the wood is protected from the rain and other elements. Likewise, you want to place a sealant on pressure treated wood to protect yourself from the chemicals involved in the pressure treatment. Luckily, you don’t have to protect yourself from subflooring since it gets covered up anyway and there’s no risks there.

Which Do You Need From The Hardware Store?

If you still aren’t sure what type of wood you need, or you want to learn more about the different types of lumber, talk to the professionals at Lampert Lumber. We enjoy wandering the aisles by your side, telling you about the various lumber options. Tell us about your project and we’ll give you our professional advice as to what direction you should go. Wandering a hardware store can give you a lot of ideas and inspiration for a new project as well. There’s always something to find that comes in handy.