Borax for Wood Treatment and Preservative | Stops Fungus, Insects, Wood-rot
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ค. 2024
- With Felix Benítez
In this video we take a quick look and how to simply and easily apply a treatment of Borax to protect your raw wood. Borax is most widely known for its use as a laundry additive due to its anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties. You can find it in your local grocery store in the laundry section or order it online. We chose it because it's non-toxic, and not dangerous to work with or apply and is water-based.
Borate wood preservatives are composed of naturally occurring minerals that protect wood from fungus, termites, and other wood-decomposing organisms. They are recommended for use in damp conditions and high-humidity. They are often used where, even though above ground, they may be subjected to standing water.
Wood preservatives come in three categories; oil-based, water-based, and fumigant. There are also three types of exposure for wood; Earth contact, air contact and water contact.
With this project we're dealing with air-exposure and water exposure (mainly from high humidity in the air), so we have the option of using the lowest toxicity solutions such as borax, a water-based application. There are both advantages and disadvantages as with any wood treatment solution.
The advantages of boron-based preservatives are the absence of hazard from fire or explosion; after treatment the wood surface is still clean, paintable and devoid of objectionable odors and off-gassing; it's safe for interior applications; it is leach-resistant.
However, borax and other boron-salts do not protect the wood from extreme weathering, so they are best used in more protected applications such as interiors.
It might also be of interest to note that there are boron applications and solutions for existing wood that is experiencing water and/or insect infestation damage. There's an item called a BOR8 Rod -- glass-like solid rods that contain a water-diffusible borate wood preservative. Holes are drilled in the area of damage and the rods are inserted. When the wood has reached a moisture content that will result in decay (about 25%), the rods dissolve and the borates diffuse following the path of the moisture which stops further decay and protects the damaged wood from termites or other insect infestations.
Another solution for already damaged wood is a copper and boron mix (i.e Hollow Heart CB Concentrate) which is applied by injection, sprayed on or brushed on.
Awesome tips! Thanks so much for the content.
Hi sir thankyou very much
I found this and my husband is thrilled to find a solution to protecting his woodwork . Thought the video was very informative . regards Eileen
Thank you. Short clear and pragmatic.
Thank you for the informative video. How long should you let the lumber dry before using it for a project?
Hi David, The application of the borax mixture will be dry in about 24 hours depending on the humidity level in the air. If your weather conditions are high-humidity you can dry out the air with a gas or electric heater. Otherwise it might take a couple of days in those conditions.
I found your video due to already having wood rot on the porch and facade of a 130 year old house we are living in. I got an old wooden screen door from the Preservation Station in town, since the front door here is huge. I’m trying to restore the salvaged screen door, and discovered it has a hint of wood rot, too. I saw elsewhere that a combination of borax and glycol can treat wood rot. I didn’t have glycol, just the borax. But I had hand sanitizer, and thought fungus wouldn’t like that stuff, so I mixed the hand sanitizer with the borax and I’m letting it dry. And plan to paint the door tomorrow. It was after I made this concoction that I saw your careful method of using Borax - which I’ll follow on future projects. I like that it deters mold, too, so I’m guessing it might be a good solution to apply to insulation. Thanks for demonstrating the method so clearly.
Hi Cynthia, thanks for the message. That's an approach I haven't heard of before, but as we all know, it's not rocket science, so there's a lot of legitimate approaches. I don't see any reason that won't work.
@@buildinginmexico Thanks for your encouragement.
The problem with Borax to preserve wood is , it washes away if the wood gets wet. Some people place chunks of borax into holes in wood and plug them , if the wood stays dry the borax does not enter the wood and does no good if the wood gets wet it washes away. Borax is not very useful for serious wood preservation unless the wood stays dry. It can be helpful if the wood gets damp only like a Rim joist on a house.
I live in Nicaragua so we may have similar issues with termites that are almost comando level termites 😂
If I milled my own lumber from local trees would you recommend this treatment or a soaking bath for the lumber to later set for drying.
Thanks
Would you stain the raw wood first then treat with borax or vice versa? Thank you!
Does this Borax cleaning method work if the wood is more textured vs smooth as shown in the video?
Borax, if it's pure, isn't that toxic. Salt is more toxic. I used to drink a little in water as a boron supplement. It's also good for putting under apple trees if they're deficient in boron.
Foliar *leaf based* application is best for agricultural applications as boron CAN be toxic to root systems. Boric ACID is best as it reacts with the Potassium in plant biology rather than making the reaction more complex with the sodium ions in regular Borax. Boric acid is antibacterial antiparasitic and antifungal. Helps with all kinds of rot/funk.
Thank you for this video! I've been trying to find a sprayer that won't clog with a Borax solution to no avail. Could you please tell me what type of brush that is you're using? Just a regular paint brush? Need to treat a cabinet I received that has powderpost beetles! Thanks in advance:)
have you considered using sodium hydroxide to heat the water on site
This is so interesting! I was thinking of applying borax to the joists in my basement to prevent mold. If I use this method, I don't have to go back and remove the borax dust right? I could just leave it on there after I'm done?
Hi Jeff, yep you can leave the borax dust on the wood - additional surface protection.
Oh, wow! Great video, very useful! Much appreciated! Can I ask... Can you use this on, say, unpainted wooden doors and windows that are already in place? Can you paint the wood afterwards? How long does its protection last? Many thanks.
You can use and paint afterwards. As with any wood application avoid drips and runs. They will leave a drip stain on the wood.
@@buildinginmexico Thanks, man!
I heard this does not work as it doesn't get absorb. However, if you want to treat termiteb you have to use Bora Care.
I would like to treat an old house floor joist and all underneath . I guess it wouldnt go well with a pump sprayer , or are there any other easy application methods ?
You could use a pump sprayer with a metal tank instead of plastic, and duct tape a hot plate to the bottom to keep the borax in suspension.
What about mixing borax w glycol (antifreeze) and boric acid.
Trying to deal with fungus / rot
there are several common glycols and you want propylene glycol not ethylene. that's a solvent and carrier, alternative to boiling water
good luck getting them to mix
Do if the wood has wet rotted? Do I remove the damage area than apply boric acid mixture?
Yep, eliminate the source of the water damage, carve out the rotten wood and do the Borax treatment.
boric acid and borax are different
@burtreynolds3143 thanks for letting me know
I believe the borax only goes into "suspension' and not solution in water - thus the white powder residue. The water goes into the wood but the borax drops out on the surface. To get the borax to penetrate into the wood you would a propylene or glycol solution - like boracare.
I believe you are correct.
It would appear They've waisted their time .
Borax dissolves into: 2 Na, 1 tetraborate, it's a salt and it dissolves
@kiyannareynard-eu7ph is correct. The chemical reaction is: \( \text{Na}_2\text{B}_4\text{O}_7 \cdot 10\text{H}_2\text{O}
ightarrow 2\text{Na}^+ + \text{B}_4\text{O}_5(\text{OH})_4^{2-} + 8\text{H}_2\text{O} \). Warm water facilitates this process.
@@kiyannareynard-eu7ph Borax does dissolve in water to form sodium and tetraborate ions
@@kiyannareynard-eu7ph borate treatments leave a white residue and crystals on the surface of the wood. If the water carries the salts into the wood it would be good. The water or any type of glycol eventually get absorbed or evaporate leaving the salts behind. Drips show up as white residue. If left uncoated in a moist environment, like outside, they'll just wash off. The wood needs to be coated to retain the salts. Glycols dry much slower. They're used to allow the salts/solution to penetrate more deeply, theoretically having more time for the mixture to soak in.
Borax is a cleaning agent.
Borate is an acid used as a pesticide.
They both contain Boron but one is basic and one in an acid.
Ooooooo Borax does not give you wood...
Does this Borax cleaning method work if the wood is more textured vs smooth as shown in the video?