Tim-bor, antifreeze and water?

Question

When I bought the cypress for the memorial bench, the company owner gave me a bag of Tim-bor, and a recipe. 1 pint Tim-bor, 1 pint antifreeze and 7 pints of water. Mix thoroughly and spray. He says it will help preserve the natural color longer since I wasn’t planning on finishing it, instead, choosing to let it gray naturally. Has anyone heard of this recipe before? Does it work? The guy was a bit out there, so I’m looking for some confirmation.

Thanks,
David Eskow

swirt · Accepted Answer

That recipe is a bit suspicious. It is similar to what should be used for keeping bugs out of it, not for preserving color.

Also want to point out that recipes often recommend ethylene glycol which is in antifreeze, but there are a lot of other things in antifreeze too that you may not want on your bench.

Archer1955 · Answer

If I am not mistaken, the Tim-bor is used to treat wood to keep Powder Post Beetles out of the wood or to kill any that may already be inside of the wood. Since this piece of wood most likely has not been kiln-dried, it can and may have more than one type of active wood destroying insect in it. I would say that he has done you a favor!

RobsCastle · Answer

Possibly a misguided salesperson. More importantly you need to know the H rating for the timber and what to treat it accordingly after cutting. then maybe Tim-bor comes into play.

Brian · Answer

If I am not mistaken, the Tim-bor is used to treat wood to keep Powder Post Beetles out of the wood or to kill any that may already be inside of the wood. Does this stuff work on carpenter bees?

Q&A: Tim-bor, antifreeze and water?

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