How to Install Treated Wet Pine Decking

Being locally sourced from radiata pine plantation forests, pine decking is a renewable carbon-sequestering building product.

The timber is preservative treated with full penetration of sapwood which gives the timber excellent long term durability. Priced at the low end of the market, it's a good option for budget-conscious projects.

In New Zealand pine decking is supplied as standard to the retailers as ‘treated wet’. This means that the timber is not re-dried after treatment so the moisture content is typically very high - in excess of 30-40%.

Moisture content may vary depending on how long the timber has been in storage and where it comes from in the packet.

When timber dries, it shrinks as water evaporates out of the wood cells (shrinkage of radiata pine is around 5% tangentially). For this reason dimensional accuracy of the timber may be variable and as a rule the wider the board, the more movement you will get.

In heavily exposed areas use of a thick narrow board (e.g. 88x32mm) should be considered.

Flat sawn pine is also prone to face cracking (checking) as it weathers. Grip tread face profiles should be considered in exposed applications as the profile helps mask the cracking as it weathers. Application of a quality decking stain will help reduce this.

It is very important to follow correct installation procedures, including pre-seasoning in fillet prior to install, to ensure optimal performance.

See the Abodo Treated Wet Decking Technical Data Sheet for full installation instructions.

If better aesthetic and stability characteristics are required then a higher performance decking should be considered such as Abodo Vulcan Decking or Sand Decking.