Inspection and Repair: Regularly inspect your sleepers for signs of rot. If you find any, remove the rotted wood, apply a wood hardener, and fill any gaps with exterior wood filler. Treat the remaining sound wood with an exterior wood preservative.
Applying a good quality wood preservative or sealant to the ends can slow down the absorption of moisture and help prevent rot from setting in.
Minor Repairs
Remove the affected wood and apply a wood hardener to the area. This will stabilise the remaining wood and prevent further decay. For larger areas of rot, you may need to replace the entire sleeper. Taking care of minor repairs promptly prevents them from turning into major problems.
Repair any holes, gaps or uneven surfaces with a suitable exterior wood filler and treat all sound, good wood with an exterior wood preservative. To preserve the sleepers further, we would recommend treating them with an exterior wood oil or decking oil, ideally twice a year in Spring and Autumn.
Once you've removed the crumbling wood, use a wet rot wood hardener and apply it to the wood with a paintbrush. Don't be afraid to lay it on thick and leave it to soak into the wood. When the hardener is dry, the rotten wood should be healthy again.
Apply wood hardener, filler, or epoxy If minor damaged wood cannot be easily replaced, wood hardener, filler or epoxy may help strengthen the damaged area. Again, follow the directions from the manufacturer to get the best results. Shape and smooth If you're using filler, press it into the recess with a putty knife.
Yes! You can easily clean, sand, stain and finish outdoor wood yourself with this guide. How do you keep untreated wood from rotting? Treat it with outdoor wood preserver to protect it from biological growth that causes wood rot.
Softwood that is left untreated will still last around two to five years, which is why all of our softwood sleepers have been treated for longevity. We also supply hardwood sleepers, with oak sleepers ranging from 15 to 20 years and European oak sleepers lasting for 20 years.
Clear Wood Oil or Decking Oil: These products are ideal for those who want their sleepers to age naturally to a grey or silver colour while still being protected from the elements. A clear oil will nourish the wood, making it supple and water-resistant, which helps protect it from water and frost damage.
Sleepers should not be submerged in water and for the longest life, protected from the sun by shade or with UV filtering oils or finishes. Whichever you choose to work with, it's a good idea to use a good quality wood preserver on cut ends to extend the life of the timber.
One way to protect wood is to use a wood preservative, which forms a tough barrier to for moisture and rot to break down over an extended period. You can apply wood preservative using a paint brush, use a solid insect repellant like creosote or weather sealer.
Splits and cracks (known as wood checks in the industry) occur when wood shrinks as it dries. Wood shrinks roughly twice as much along with the growth rings (radially) as it does across the rings (tangentially). It is this uneven shrinkage that causes checks to develop.
Boric acid (borate) is one of the most effective fungicides for use in treating wood rot. It can be applied to wood during construction to prevent future rot, or as a treatment to stop an active decay fungus from growing.
(Chromated Copper Arsenate) – CCA Timber Treatment
Created as a fungicide and termiticide, CCA is the most popular timber treatment type used today. Applied to wood using a pressure treatment, CCA is extremely effective, cost efficient, and more widely available than its counterpart—ACQ.
When food is submerged in vinegar (i.e. pickling), the acetic acid solution raises the acidity of the food and kills off any microorganisms that would otherwise cause the food to rot. It essentially slows down the decaying process but doesn't stop it – vinegar preserves food for about 5-6 months.
Waking up abruptly can cause higher blood pressure and heart rate. Besides increasing your blood pressure, an alarm can add to your stress levels by getting your adrenaline rushing. The solution to this health-harming problem is to instead try gradually waking up to natural light.
Life Expectancy
Hardwood H4 Sleeper retaining walls can last 20 to 30 years.
When it comes to rot prevention, you should treat the post above ground and the wood post below ground. The bottom of the post is most susceptible to rot, as it's in constant contact with moisture from the ground.
Dangers of Creosote Treated Sleepers
This treatment, once common for preserving railway sleepers, contains chemicals that can harm humans and animals. People exposed to creosote risk skin irritation or more severe conditions like cancer if they're in contact with the wood frequently.
Periodically rinse off your deck using a garden hose with a spray nozzle, especially after the major pollen events. Skilled professionals may use pressure washers with wide fan tips but in the wrong hands, your deck can be damaged. Exercise extreme caution when using pressure washers.
Copper Naphthenate is an industrial strength, oil-type wood preservative with proven performance. It has clean handling characteristics with virtually no dripping or bleeding. Copper Naphthenate is commonly used to field treat cuts and holes in preserved wood made during construction.
Rot is a Real Threat for Any Wood
Pressure-treating can make wood water-resistant, but it's not 100 percent rot-resistant. Any time the wood moves, bends, or cracks, water can enter. While this may seem worrisome, the key is to keep the water away.