The latest trend in the building of lodges with wood is to make use of square-cut wood poles.
These Square-cut wood poles are usually used in the construction industry to support structures. Whether using it as roof trusses or building a wooden walkway in the garden. These square-cut wood poles can be treated to protect it against the elements when using it outside, and to ensure a lasting structure when using it inside a home.
In this post, we will be focusing on various questions including why you need to use CCA Treated Timber in your construction projects, uses for treated square wood poles and the different sizes and lengths that it comes in!
What are square-cut wood poles used for?
Square-cut wood poles are used for many applications. We will give a brief review of the most popular uses in the construction industry:
Wood Beams 
You should use treated hardwood for wooden beams in roof structures, as they act as support to the whole roof. For this purpose, you will make use of class H3 Treated Timber. A common and reliable hardwood in South Africa is bluegum/eucalyptus wood.
Before buying your square-cut wood poles, it is important that you note that there are various different types of beams, we will discuss a few of them here:
Simple Support Beam
A simple support beam made of square wood poles is simply supported on both ends of the beam.
Continuous Beam
A continuous beam is similar to a simple support beam. Except for the fact that it has more than one supports. The one end has hinged support, while the other end has multiple roller support structures. These beams are mostly used when building long bridges/walkways.
Cantilever Beam
This wooden beam is only fixed on one end, while the other end is free hanging.
Fixed Beam
Fixed beams are simply fixed in place on both ends.
Rafters
A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members that extend from the ridge or hip to the wall plate, downslope perimeter or eave, and that are designed to support the roof deck and its associated loads.[2] A pair of rafters is called a couple. In home construction, rafters are normally made of wood. Exposed rafters are a feature of some traditional roof styles.
These square wood poles can be used as rafters for your roof construction project. H3 Treatment class will be ideal for this application.
Wood Flooring (Floor joist)
Square Wood Poles are ideal for the construction of your wood flooring.
People place the joists equidistantly and parallel to one another between the various support points to form a framework at floor level. This framework acts as a support for the floor of a home at ground level and for upper multi-level homes as well as support for additional flooring.
This method is used in decks, indoor flooring, and multi-level flooring. The wood needs to be strong and durable. Therefore, using CCA Treated square-cut wood poles are always recommended to uphold the structural integrity of your building.
Walkways
Using square wood poles for walkways adds a natural effect wherever it is placed. Therefore, if you are planning your garden design and you’re looking for materials to add walkways to your garden, we recommend using treated timber.
CCA Treated Timber is resistant to harsh weather conditions and insect attack. Consequently, it is ideal for use as a jetty, deck and various other walkways. Although the timber is treated, it can still be sealed with any paint color of your choosing. Painting the treated timber will not decrease the effectiveness of the treatment. As a result, you have free reign over the look and feel of your project, whether you are looking for a shiny finished look or a rustic natural look.
Jungle Gym
When constructing a jungle gym, you need to use strong, treated timber to ensure the safety of your children. Otherwise, you compromise the structural integrity of the jungle gym, and insects will attack the wood, leading to it rotting away due to harsh weather conditions.
Square Cut Wood Poles are frequently used in the construction of jungle gyms due to their strength and reliability.
Where can I get Square-cut Wood Poles in South Africa?
When looking for a supplier of Treated Timber, you need to ask the following questions:
- Is the timber SABS (South African Bureau of Standards) approved?
- Is the timber NRCS ( National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications) approved?
These questions are vital, as these are an indication of the quality of the treated timber. All suppliers are required to adhere to the regulations of the above-mentioned boards. Buying from suppliers who are not adhering to these rules can have disastrous consequences.
At Sabie Poles, we supply individuals and companies all over South Africa with square wood poles. We deliver nationwide.
Available Sizes of Square-cut wood poles
We have the following sizes (diameters) available: 60mm/60mm up to 200mm/200mm with a maximum length of 6m.
Square-cut poles are treated with an envelope treatment treated to H2 – Hazard class 2 meaning poles should be used under roof and above ground. No Ground Contact. Please note that the sapwood sides of the gum poles are cut off to create a square. Due to the fact that the softwood is sawn away the moisture from the inner core may escape faster than usual which may result in timber cracking. This depends on environmental factors and the elements the pole is exposed to, but cracking will eventually settle. Wood is a natural product and will change shape or form when exposed to elements.
Make sure poles are strapped at the ends with stainless steel strapping, especially when anti-split end plates are sawn off. Take into consideration that when a CCA-treated product is cut after treatment the chemical guarantee expires. Make sure to seal your sawn wood with End-seal (available from us). For more information on square cut poles please contact one of our sales representatives.
Why treat your square wood poles with CCA?
When using wood for any construction, it is of the utmost importance that you always use Treated Timber. This will protect the wood from any natural elements like harsh sun and rain. Furthermore, it also protects against attacks from wood-eating insects that might cause structural damage.
What is CCA Treatment?
In order to preserve the wood, it gets a thorough high-pressure treatment with CCA (chromated copper arsenate). It goes through this process to ensure that it is safe to use for your specific application.
The process of treating timber starts with putting dry timber into the pressure vessel, the chemicals (CCA – Chromate Copper Arsenate) which have been dissolved in water are then pumped into the dry wood at a high pressure. The wood stays in the high-pressure vessel for a while to ensure that the wood soaks up as much as it needs to. It is then removed from the high-pressure vessel and laid out to dry.
Each chemical has a specific goal:
“The chromium acts as a chemical fixing agent and has little or no preserving properties; it helps the other chemicals to fix in the timber, binding them through chemical complexes to the wood’s cellulose and lignin. The copper acts primarily to protect the wood against decay, fungi, and bacteria, while arsenic is the main insecticidal component of CCA, providing protection from wood attacking insects including termites and marine borers. It also improves the weather-resistance of treated timber and may assist paint adherence in the long term” (Wikipedia, n.d.)
After the treated timber has dried, it is safe to use immediately. The whole CCA treatment process takes 1 – 2 days (excl drying times).
If you want a more in-depth explanation of the process you can head on over to our previous blog post where we feature an explanatory video regarding the CCA treatment process.
Different CCA Treated Timber Classes
When using CCA Treated Square-cut Wood Poles it is important to note that there are different classes of treatment. The class that you will need, depends on the way in which you plan to use the timber.
Here is a basic breakdown of the different classes of CCA Treated Timber:
- HO-i – Internal use (Mouldings, ceilings joinery, flooring, and Boards)
- H2 – Internal (Laminated Beams, Roof Trusses, Structural Timber, Ceiling Boards, Flooring, Paneling, Doors. Cupboards, Skirting, Window frames, Plywood
- H3 – External Above Ground ( Outdoor decking and beams, Garden furniture, Laminated beams, Weatherboard, Cladding etc.)
H4 – In Ground Contact ( Agricultural posts, Landscaping structures, Playground structures, Fencing, Pergolas, Carports, Flower boxes, Decking, Bridges, Stakes, Garden Edging, Transmission Poles, Treated vineyard poles and droppers etc.)
- H4V – In Ground Contact, Heavy Duty, specially Designed for Vineyards (Agricultural posts, Special heavy duty Poles perfectly suitable for the farming Industry. The H4V class was designed to last longer than a normal H4 class pole.)
H5 – In Fresh Water / Wet Soils (Piling, Retaining Walls, Slipways, Culverts, Groynes, Flood Gates, Jetties, Drains, Walkways etc. )
H6 – In Sea Water (Piling, Retaining Walls, Slipways, Groynes, Jetties, Walkways
If you are still unsure which class you will need for your construction project, feel free to contact us and our experts will advise you on the correct size and treatment class you will need for your square wood poles.
In conclusion, construction projects use square-cut timber everywhere. At Sabie Poles, we are able to supply you with SABS and NRCS approved Treated Timber and square-cut poles (H2 class – NO ground contact.)
Feel free to contact us for more information regarding this product.
