Watch out for the new pressure treated lumber at the big box stores

I've seen three jobs in the last two months where guys used the new ACQ treated wood for deck framing without stainless steel fasteners. It's eating through standard galvanized nails and screws in weeks, not years. A buddy in Greensboro had a whole set of stairs come loose because the Simpson hangers rusted out. The wood tags say "corrosive" but people just grab it and go. Has anyone found a good source for bulk stainless fasteners that won't break the bank?

4 comments

4 Comments

nancy1541mo ago

Honestly the bigger issue is contractors reusing old hardware from jobs before 2004. They have a bucket of galvanized nails from the CCA days and just assume it's fine, but this new stuff is way more aggressive. I saw a guy building a whole fence line with it and old nails, that thing's gonna be a mess by fall.

xena_taylor641mo ago

Used to think old hardware was fine if it looked okay. Your point about the new stuff being more aggressive makes total sense though. That fence is gonna have some real problems.

rosek731mo ago

Reminds me of a neighbor who tried to save money by using old, leftover deck screws on his new pressure-treated lumber. The heads started rusting out in under a year, leaving these ugly orange streaks down every post. He ended up having to back every single one out and replace them, which probably cost triple what new fasteners would have. Sometimes the cheap way is the expensive way.

christopher_singh921mo agoMost Upvoted

Man, you see this at the lumber yard all the time now? I watched a guy build a whole shed base with that green wood and regular deck screws, tried to tell him but he just shrugged. Came back a few months later and the screw heads were just orange powder, the whole thing was wobbling. It's crazy how fast it happens.