Rot is caused by one of two general types of fungus, white and brown. Pretty technical terms, I know. They both require acidic environments to grow and usually temperatures above 50 degrees F. If you place very fine crushed limestone (often called stone dust or paver sand) in the bottom of the hole, and after placing the post, fill the hole with the same stuff, it cannot be made acidic as there is just too much alkalinity for an acid to exist without being neutralized. Water that enters the post through that limestone is made calcium rich. However the interior of posts can usually still rot no matter what you do except true pressure treating. But if the post becomes saturated with the calcium rich water, then its going to be rot resistant.
Paul, thank you for that scientific explanation. I personally like to know why things do what they do. Again, thank u for taking the time to explain it.
I took apart a 50 year old building here in Ontario and I found those posts that were charred and possibly treated like yours were still sound, very hard to get out of the ground. Some were buried in concrete and they were rotten and no good anymore. All the poles were our eastern white cedar. I never heard of your mix, it sounds pretty simple, will certainly try that out here in the future
mot the best way to treat your lumber when you can easily buy a pressure sprayer and polyurethane wood preservative in bulk and it will save you money in the future
@@BuiltByJalalthis method costs about $10 to treat all the posts since you already have the used motor oil and $8 in Diesel plus $2 for a cheap chip bush. No purchased wood preservative will ever beat that.
I remember my grandfather building tobacco barns here in NC out of creosote posts. I'm not sure you can even buy that stuff anymore. Hard to work with, but lasts 30+ years in the ground.
This is close to boat soup. Every sailor had their own formula. It is generally a combination of pine tar, Turpentine and linseed oil. It was used on all the lines and rigging and inside planks and structure of wooden boats.
Something's never go out of style because they work. I bought my first vehicle, 65 C10 Apache for $150 from a construction company had had Cats, back Hoes, Scrapers and they were fueled at the job site and oil & filter changed. They carried the drums in the back of this wood floor truck. Overtime, the floor was soaked with diesel, motor oil both new and old, but never rotted and looked like new other than a nice dark stain. The speedo was broke at 264k miles and ran great. The family farm never paid me any allowance so all money earned from working for neighbors. From hay into their barn, plowing, mowing yards or moving cattle 8-10 miles to a new pasture. It had a 283 cu in w/2 spd auto and good tires, red with Fawn dash. No A/C just heat. I grew 6" at age 11 and already the tallest, I would get hired easy in our county. By 3AM I was up and headed to a field off the road a 1/4 mile near trees and a dry rock bottom creek. My last year of school, class didn't start until 9:30 or 10AM. I was one to operate a new John Deere 4X4 center articulating. I started morns with headlights on the tractor to clean the air filter, ck oil, grease the center pivot and start it. Alway check oil pressure and fuel first. Raise the disc & hit 18 grease fittings. Check wheels for loose, whack them with an axe handle for air and give everything a good once over with a harry eyeball. Side mounted tool box was factory or we put it on. Alway a large chain hung in a agreed fashion & a little notch cut in the handle and box, for the axe handle. Hair-pin cotter held the lid tight. Only tractor I ran w/full cab, A/C and more than a Motorola AM & whip antenna. He opted for a 2.2 cu ft cooler, no fridge. Want it cold, get ice. Simple. One day, seat turned sideways as always to watch the disc, direction & gauges, radio guy said time and I was a half hour late. Nobody drove it and I was on the far end making a $1.50 hr. I said a few words and parked it without letting the twin turbos spool done. Locked it, hid the key I an agreed spot. I tore out of that field going 40 MPH and hitting my head. Second creek over, I hit bottom hard. No county road dust, so never slowed down and floored it. 3/4 mile later the rear wheels locked up, oil light came on, with two hands on the wheel steered off the road and stopped. Part of me knew what I was about to see, but had to look anyways. Under the front bumper, crossmember was a gashing hole with just a little oil leaking out. I did write a note or take the keys, just started jogging to school toward the town of 160 souls. I had a mind full of excuses, but few had a truck to pull me and where will I put it. Where would I get an GM engine... Well, I got the coach to take me out as the shy got darker by the foot, we turned the corner and...nothing, it was gone. Like Tonto, I walk back and forth looking for tracks, oil drippings, anything that would tell me who would take it. I could movement for 20 some feet and they place it in neutral. 65 power glides was the last year for a rear and front pump. It kept it in gear for engine braking. Even though I had the little Red truck for almost 4 years, i felt like some stole $150 dollars from me. I got a pass from the coach, filed a police report, if someone wanted to tag it they had one place in the count seat to go thru. I called once a month for a while and gave up! I was heart broke like someone had shot my horse. Worse yet, there where no houses for 2.5 miles and I checked driving slow just looking. But farmers would put used vehicles in ditches next to the fence to keep cattle in and felt they were doing a good thing. Never saw it again. Sad! Sorry, used motor oil and linseed oil works also. Just drowned rags in a bucket of water because they can catch fire as they dry. Subscribed! DK, Omaha. ASE Master tech since 78, retired!
Old Timers been using this 50/50 mix for over a 100 years. Some of the post they set inground have lasted over 100 years. 4 inches of course sand below the post also keeps moisture off the bottom and prevents rot.
I've been using old oil for coating wood and inside vehicle chassis for god knows how long. Also cover the post ends that will be in the soil with bitumen pitch too. Take care Great Plains Craftsman enjoying following buddy.
Thank you for the detailed explanation...I've been trying to find information on treating posts for a pole barn I'm preparing to build...I'll be using Eastern White Cedar cut and milled from my bush. I'll be burning the entire length to be buried just to be sure.
Dan I am with You on than, great info that I have been looking for. Mine will be from huge southern yellow pine on our property harvested and processed with my chainsaw sawmill!
I did this to some fence post and a gate. I didn't char the ends, but I soaked the ends in buck of diesel/used oil then pained the mixture on the rest of the post. I got about 7 years from the post and the gate is still good 9 years later. Termites never attacked the post, but they did eventually rot from the inside out. I think it was them wicking up water from the ground. If you live out west where it's very dry I wouldn't be surprised if this kind of treatment would last for decades. In a wetter climate a few years is all you'll get from anything touching the ground.
That is probably true. Here these will last a long time. Rocks in the bottom of the hole helps alot too. Using a wood like cedar for this is also a good idea. I use what I have
I’ve been thinking about how to pressure treat wood for months just worried about having to buy it instead. I’m very happy to have to come across this video, the information you gave in this video will be used. Thank you for sharing ❤
Used transmission oil for red tones. I added dark walnut stain to my mix to darken it up. Able to adjust to even out the tones on my garden fence. Once dry, the oil mix is inert.
How well does this method work when used with concrete? I've heard a couple guys talking about it rotting out but Ive also seen a couple that still stand strong after 20+ years of standing
To keep the post from rotten for hundred of years, when you finish putting the posts in the ground take a 1 1/2 " or 1 1/4' drill bit and drill a hole aprox 4" above ground level to about 6" below ground level on a 45 Degree angel (make sure you don't go all the way through) and fill the hole with the a 50/50 mixture of the used motor oil and fuel and plug the hole. Then after 6 months come back and remove plug and then use 100% used motor oil, and top up every 3 years or so when needed based on the dryness of the posts. A hard wood plug about 6" is easier to remove than a soft wood plug, only put plug in about an inch or so.
That is an excellent idea. Something that I may have thot about sometime. It is a perfect way to recycle the used oil back into the ground where it came from in the first place. We always used a old rag soaked in use engine oil the coat the bottom of our push mower and the blades of our reel mower after each use. I still remember someone seeing the bottom of our old push mower deck and he swore that it was made out of stainless steel because it was so shinny and rust free. lol. I still have my grandfathers draw knife wrapped in newspaper and tied with a string, from the 1920s. Him and my dad would put a little fresh oil on the paper after done using and sharpening the knife. No rust has ever been on that tool.
I have a question; how long do I have to season my logs in order to be able to use this technique? I have maple . I will harvest them to fence my property which is 27 acres . Thank you
Had a plywood roof for decades on grandpas farm. All they did is lay down plywood. tarred and nailed strips of plywood over the seams then rolled on used oil every year or two. Never leaked and lasted until my uncle got the farm and quit oiling it. Then it eventually deteriorated, over about another decade, breached to water and the building rotted away. In my oppinion it's a better result and longevity than shingles cause 25 year shingles sure as hell don't last anywhere near 25 years anymore. They crack, break, curl and then leak. Then you are looking at the expense and labor of full replacement or you can just grab a paint tray, roller and a gallon or two of used oil and redo the roof before morning coffee for another year or two.
I like to put gravel in the very bottom of the hole. Tamp the hole with gravel around trees, cause concrete will leach out and kill trees within ten feet. I had a metal storage building with treated 4 x 4's and i put the 50/50 onto them and the termites still ate them. BROWN & ROOT we used that blend to spray onto our chains and pullies, trucking stuff.
Love it. I have been preserving my deck with this treatment for a number of years, It works well. I use a airless sprayer and spray the deck wait a day or too and its ready to use. The smell will leave just as soon. I love it and it looks great RC
Another trick to make it last longer add rocks gravel at the bottom of the hole to help drain any water around the wood did this to my wood fence post and there still there since 1999.
I just make sure they are dry wood then use tar , first coat melt the tar to liquid state apply it to the whole pole when it drys apply a thicker viscosity coat , to the 3 ft that goes underground it will be like thick rubber it will last more than 30 years - longer than pressure treated wood
i read an article in a book from around 1900 that said to boil the timbers in water with alum mixed in . the author claimed that the builder would never live long enough to see them rot,even if the builder was a very young man when this was done.
@@believeitlandscapemaintena7636 Alum is that stuff that women use downstairs to make their husbands think they are making love to a young virgin again. It works. You can order it from Amazon. My friend who was in Vietnam said all the local women used it. So maybe if it gets soaked into the pores of the wood it shrinks the pores tighter and dont let the water or fungi get in.
Saw chipfrier oil used, with mineral spirits to thin it, on cr@p pine for the bottom and sides of a half ton trailer. Lasted over 15 years outside. Not bad.
Could you only do the wood char up to slightly above where the post is above the soil WITHOUT the oil? Just feel it’s unsafe for pets etc. or would it not help. Thank you.
"Maaaaaawm! Can I go over to Timmy's and play with tractors, torches and make cresote?" Awesome episode. I am glad you found use for the ol' twisted timbers. Its funny how some of this stuff works. There are huge wooden bridge posts that rot at the surface level of the water but the timber under the water is fine because it isn't ever exposed to oxygen which is needed for decomposition. The minerals in the water embed themselves in the fibers of the timber over the coarse of time and make the posts below the water line tough as rocks. literally. Thanks for sharing. - Will
Hello from Pakistan 🇵🇰 i really like the way you did it. I am inspired and willing to do it for a kid’s swing will be making soon. I appreciate the help. Thank you
Thanks for the video. Once the mixture is cured, does it still increase flammability of the posts? Where I live, the next wildfire is a “when” not “if” situation, and as much as I’d like to treat my own posts, something about fuel-soaked wood doesn’t sit right 😅
Thanks for sharing this method. I've seen people char and heard people use oil but wasn't sure the details. Would synthetic oil work the same as conventional oil?
What size of torch are you using sir 100k BTU or ? something i just learned creosote is not available but from what inter say made from coal tar or wood so bam this is how you get some Coal Tar Versus Asphalt Based Sealcoats or may be better is the roof cement just dig around and n mix up that thinning with diesel or /
Great video tutorial, you are so lucky living in such a nice place, I made a mix of old engine oil and white spirits to treat my shed roof because roofing felt in uk sucks, it doesn’t last 5 minutes (I’m going to use some reclaimed metal cladding) very cunning of you to think of burying the twisted section.
My gramps (95 years old) and I coated our fence boards with used engine oil. I don't recall using the diesel fuel, but it has been about 20 years ago give or take. We have not done the scorching before, but I did ask him one day if his dad did it when building log cabins. He thought he had, but did not recall details. What is the BTUs of your flamer? I am trying to decide which one I get since they range from 100,000 to 500,000.
Hi there, thanks for posting, and posting,,, I like a way to use old motor oil up, and the desil as a catalyst.. how do you think it would go on a deck, slippery under foot? slippery when it rails? stain your pants when siting on it??? cheers, thanks
What about the inside moisture that gets trap inside the wood? Wouldn't that make the wood rot from the inside or do you used seasonned wood for starters? Thx great video!
Just wondering since some water is going to get down in the post if its better to leave the bottom untreated so water can go somewhere out the end. Great video.
@@GreatPlainsCraftsman Putting clean gravel below the bottom is something I have always done with treated 4x4s. It allows a drain bed for the water to go down deeper. Just like putting a 5 gallon bucket of clean gravel down at the bottom of a yard hydrant allow for the water to drain away.
Great idea and a good way to get rid of used motor oil. Thanks for sharing this tip Tim. Let's not forget the barn siding and roofing. LOL Have a good evening.
How long does it take for the posts to dry? Would it be okay to do this to wood that is exposed? Would the motor oil/diesel mix get on clothes etc. if I were to accidentally rub against it well after it's dried? I plan to make wooden planters from some large wooden crates I have. The wood is pine and has only been indoors used for shipping glass. No part of my crates will be buried. I'm just wondering if this would be better than painting.
I want to do burnt wood on my business sign that we are building. So two questions. After burning what is the best thing to use to clear coat it ? Second question if I do a light stain after I burn it do I need to do a clear coat over the stain? I know nothing about wood so have no clue what is the best clear to put on it
After burning you need to rinse it with water. Then let dry and coat with oil or oil based clear with UV inhibiting properties. No need for stain. Do not brush it if you want the alligator charring to remain, as you will brush it off. Lightly brush on the clear with a paint brush.
I stand my posts for a week or two in a mixture of diesel ,old engine oil and bitumen. The bitumen you can get from old roofing felt or asphalt(tarmac).Just soak it in petrol for a day or so and sieve (strain) off the liquid.
I have seen this also used w/kerosene & motor oil. Please Comment on this if you have any knowledge of this. Thanks. Have seen where they put the Posts Upside Down, Believing they last longer?
Kerosene would work. Yes I have heard of that for cut trees used for posts. You can also cut the tree at the Winter Solstice. Research it, along with scaring the tree a season before you cut it.
Shelly for in ground treatments diesel and motor oil are the best. Linseed oil could work but just be sure to char the entire post section going into the ground to alligator char and that would be a good start. The carbon layer from burning and petroleum-based oil combination is what does the trick. For above ground treatments, linseed oil works good.
6:40 light poles and wire poles used to be saturated in oil. I remember hearing about when they first were used people would climb them and sit on top at night. I vaguely remember this but I think they used lanterns to see and some poles would catch fire while people were up on them? Does anyone know about this? Its way before my time
Not sitting to provide a human street light. It was first done by Shipwreck Kelly back in the 20's as PR for businesses. Common in those days for PR. No tv and most people didn't even have radios at home for commercials to play, so something for people to come look at. In 1960s, common to see military search lights and tv commercials soon took over, then floppy air-filled tubes blowing around now. As for catching fire, I guess if you were a business competitor and wanted the guy down, you just tossed a match.
I’m gonna try boiled linseed oil post charring on a small piece of wood buried in a planting pot. I’ll post the results in a year or sooner if it doesn’t work.
Appreciate the lesson but I have to ask is the oil not going to harm the environment in some way? I mean when it rains the oil will leach a little and cause that tell tale "rainbow" in rain water right? I just have to wonder if that leaching oil near say your homestead water well can eventually leach into your water supply or just harm the environment in some other way? Just curious.
No. The oil will cure in the wood, and there is so little surface area. Pressure treatment chemicals are worse, and oil does come from the earth remember. Thanks!
what about giving the post a second torch after impregnating them with that asfaltous ?, just to open more the pores and letting it penetrate, and also liquify the bitumen.
The treating of posts starts here: 5:35
staticGenerator THANK YOU!
Thanks:)
Thank you
Thanks
Thanks
Rot is caused by one of two general types of fungus, white and brown. Pretty technical terms, I know. They both require acidic environments to grow and usually temperatures above 50 degrees F. If you place very fine crushed limestone (often called stone dust or paver sand) in the bottom of the hole, and after placing the post, fill the hole with the same stuff, it cannot be made acidic as there is just too much alkalinity for an acid to exist without being neutralized. Water that enters the post through that limestone is made calcium rich. However the interior of posts can usually still rot no matter what you do except true pressure treating. But if the post becomes saturated with the calcium rich water, then its going to be rot resistant.
Very interesting. I do this practice also. I know old timers that treat posts this way and have had them last for decades.
Paul, thank you for that scientific explanation. I personally like to know why things do what they do. Again, thank u for taking the time to explain it.
You can also add creosote from cleaning a woodstove to the mix for extra protection.
I took apart a 50 year old building here in Ontario and I found those posts that were charred and possibly treated like yours were still sound, very hard to get out of the ground. Some were buried in concrete and they were rotten and no good anymore. All the poles were our eastern white cedar.
I never heard of your mix, it sounds pretty simple, will certainly try that out here in the future
mot the best way to treat your lumber when you can easily buy a pressure sprayer and polyurethane wood preservative in bulk and it will save you money in the future
Were the posts that were still decent quality buried with something other than concrete?
@@BuiltByJalalthis method costs about $10 to treat all the posts since you already have the used motor oil and $8 in Diesel plus $2 for a cheap chip bush. No purchased wood preservative will ever beat that.
Is that used motoroil? Can you use new motor oil?
Great video Tim.Being frugal and using what you have is the name of the game.
Thank you Doug!
I remember my grandfather building tobacco barns here in NC out of creosote posts. I'm not sure you can even buy that stuff anymore. Hard to work with, but lasts 30+ years in the ground.
This is close to boat soup. Every sailor had their own formula. It is generally a combination of pine tar, Turpentine and linseed oil. It was used on all the lines and rigging and inside planks and structure of wooden boats.
Yes Lars I have heard of it
Dad use to have a 50 gallon drum around and let the post soak in the oil
I never thought I'd have Sam Elliot teach me how to treat wood.
Think again mijo
Sounds pretty gay
No offense to this gentleman, but none of us are even fit to carry Sam Elliot’s mustache’s jockstrap...
@@dholley51492 w
He does look like Sam Elliot. Lol
Something's never go out of style because they work. I bought my first vehicle, 65 C10 Apache for $150 from a construction company had had Cats, back Hoes, Scrapers and they were fueled at the job site and oil & filter changed. They carried the drums in the back of this wood floor truck. Overtime, the floor was soaked with diesel, motor oil both new and old, but never rotted and looked like new other than a nice dark stain. The speedo was broke at 264k miles and ran great. The family farm never paid me any allowance so all money earned from working for neighbors. From hay into their barn, plowing, mowing yards or moving cattle 8-10 miles to a new pasture. It had a 283 cu in w/2 spd auto and good tires, red with Fawn dash. No A/C just heat. I grew 6" at age 11 and already the tallest, I would get hired easy in our county. By 3AM I was up and headed to a field off the road a 1/4 mile near trees and a dry rock bottom creek. My last year of school, class didn't start until 9:30 or 10AM. I was one to operate a new John Deere 4X4 center articulating. I started morns with headlights on the tractor to clean the air filter, ck oil, grease the center pivot and start it. Alway check oil pressure and fuel first. Raise the disc & hit 18 grease fittings. Check wheels for loose, whack them with an axe handle for air and give everything a good once over with a harry eyeball. Side mounted tool box was factory or we put it on. Alway a large chain hung in a agreed fashion & a little notch cut in the handle and box, for the axe handle. Hair-pin cotter held the lid tight. Only tractor I ran w/full cab, A/C and more than a Motorola AM & whip antenna. He opted for a 2.2 cu ft cooler, no fridge. Want it cold, get ice. Simple. One day, seat turned sideways as always to watch the disc, direction & gauges, radio guy said time and I was a half hour late. Nobody drove it and I was on the far end making a $1.50 hr. I said a few words and parked it without letting the twin turbos spool done. Locked it, hid the key I an agreed spot. I tore out of that field going 40 MPH and hitting my head. Second creek over, I hit bottom hard. No county road dust, so never slowed down and floored it. 3/4 mile later the rear wheels locked up, oil light came on, with two hands on the wheel steered off the road and stopped. Part of me knew what I was about to see, but had to look anyways. Under the front bumper, crossmember was a gashing hole with just a little oil leaking out. I did write a note or take the keys, just started jogging to school toward the town of 160 souls. I had a mind full of excuses, but few had a truck to pull me and where will I put it. Where would I get an GM engine... Well, I got the coach to take me out as the shy got darker by the foot, we turned the corner and...nothing, it was gone. Like Tonto, I walk back and forth looking for tracks, oil drippings, anything that would tell me who would take it. I could movement for 20 some feet and they place it in neutral. 65 power glides was the last year for a rear and front pump. It kept it in gear for engine braking. Even though I had the little Red truck for almost 4 years, i felt like some stole $150 dollars from me. I got a pass from the coach, filed a police report, if someone wanted to tag it they had one place in the count seat to go thru. I called once a month for a while and gave up! I was heart broke like someone had shot my horse. Worse yet, there where no houses for 2.5 miles and I checked driving slow just looking. But farmers would put used vehicles in ditches next to the fence to keep cattle in and felt they were doing a good thing. Never saw it again. Sad!
Sorry, used motor oil and linseed oil works also. Just drowned rags in a bucket of water because they can catch fire as they dry. Subscribed!
DK, Omaha. ASE Master tech since 78, retired!
Thank you Dean for the comment!
Great video thank you. Both charring and used motor oil are very acidic so that’s the thing that keeps bugs and fungus away.
Old Timers been using this 50/50 mix for over a 100 years. Some of the post they set inground have lasted over 100 years. 4 inches of course sand below the post also keeps moisture off the bottom and prevents rot.
would gravel or sand be a better base for fence posts?
@@countryfella94 might not have enough structural strength
We put a out of ballist mix below post instead of sand before we cement in
Interesting how various soil can be. Here in Ontario, Canada when I dig into ground the soil is black.
What an honor to know you, Tim. I'm smarter after every video.
Lol. Thank you Chuck
Thank you so much. I have my own saw mill now and I plan on using the post and other boards for projects. Need to treat for ground contact, etc.
I've been using old oil for coating wood and inside vehicle chassis for god knows how long. Also cover the post ends that will be in the soil with bitumen pitch too. Take care Great Plains Craftsman enjoying following buddy.
Thank you Daryl! Many people out here is this method.
How long will it last in the ground with the bitumen pitch?
I found that very useful..
Improvise, adapt and overcome! Love it my friend!
Hello Phil!
Watching this man's videos is very soothing. He like a cross between Sam Elliot and Bob Ross
Bingo
Great video bad thanks for bringing that up the Vikings used to burn the ends of logs in building their huts
Thank you Mike
Thank you for the detailed explanation...I've been trying to find information on treating posts for a pole barn I'm preparing to build...I'll be using Eastern White Cedar cut and milled from my bush. I'll be burning the entire length to be buried just to be sure.
Good plan Dan!
Dan I am with You on than, great info that I have been looking for. Mine will be from huge southern yellow pine on our property harvested and processed with my chainsaw sawmill!
@@retiringrenegade9874I run a Granberg. Best investment ever.
I did this to some fence post and a gate. I didn't char the ends, but I soaked the ends in buck of diesel/used oil then pained the mixture on the rest of the post. I got about 7 years from the post and the gate is still good 9 years later. Termites never attacked the post, but they did eventually rot from the inside out. I think it was them wicking up water from the ground. If you live out west where it's very dry I wouldn't be surprised if this kind of treatment would last for decades. In a wetter climate a few years is all you'll get from anything touching the ground.
That is probably true. Here these will last a long time. Rocks in the bottom of the hole helps alot too. Using a wood like cedar for this is also a good idea. I use what I have
I’ve been thinking about how to pressure treat wood for months just worried about having to buy it instead. I’m very happy to have to come across this video, the information you gave in this video will be used. Thank you for sharing ❤
why are you not burning the sides? is there a reason for that ? only the ends? or does it work on sides too? i want to do to a treehouse if possible?
I do the sides too in another video. Either way is good. The end is the most critical along with the point at which the post reaches surface level
Used transmission oil for red tones. I added dark walnut stain to my mix to darken it up. Able to adjust to even out the tones on my garden fence. Once dry, the oil mix is inert.
How well does this method work when used with concrete? I've heard a couple guys talking about it rotting out but Ive also seen a couple that still stand strong after 20+ years of standing
Never use concrete. Holds moisture and rots the wood
To keep the post from rotten for hundred of years, when you finish putting the posts in the ground take a 1 1/2 " or 1 1/4' drill bit and drill a hole aprox 4" above ground level to about 6" below ground level on a 45 Degree angel (make sure you don't go all the way through) and fill the hole with the a 50/50 mixture of the used motor oil and fuel and plug the hole. Then after 6 months come back and remove plug and then use 100% used motor oil, and top up every 3 years or so when needed based on the dryness of the posts. A hard wood plug about 6" is easier to remove than a soft wood plug, only put plug in about an inch or so.
Thank you, I will remember that
That is an excellent idea. Something that I may have thot about sometime. It is a perfect way to recycle the used oil back into the ground where it came from in the first place. We always used a old rag soaked in use engine oil the coat the bottom of our push mower and the blades of our reel mower after each use. I still remember someone seeing the bottom of our old push mower deck and he swore that it was made out of stainless steel because it was so shinny and rust free. lol. I still have my grandfathers draw knife wrapped in newspaper and tied with a string, from the 1920s. Him and my dad would put a little fresh oil on the paper after done using and sharpening the knife. No rust has ever been on that tool.
Would it be "more better" if the wood was charred all the way up above ground contact and then treated with the gas/diesel mix?
Yes, if you watch the video tagged in this video and listed at the end, I do that with some more posts.
I have a question; how long do I have to season my logs in order to be able to use this technique? I have maple . I will harvest them to fence my property which is 27 acres . Thank you
Had a plywood roof for decades on grandpas farm. All they did is lay down plywood. tarred and nailed strips of plywood over the seams then rolled on used oil every year or two. Never leaked and lasted until my uncle got the farm and quit oiling it. Then it eventually deteriorated, over about another decade, breached to water and the building rotted away. In my oppinion it's a better result and longevity than shingles cause 25 year shingles sure as hell don't last anywhere near 25 years anymore. They crack, break, curl and then leak. Then you are looking at the expense and labor of full replacement or you can just grab a paint tray, roller and a gallon or two of used oil and redo the roof before morning coffee for another year or two.
I like to put gravel in the very bottom of the hole. Tamp the hole with gravel around trees, cause concrete will leach out and kill trees within ten feet. I had a metal storage building with treated 4 x 4's and i put the 50/50 onto them and the termites still ate them. BROWN & ROOT we used that blend to spray onto our chains and pullies, trucking stuff.
very oldschool. here in germany we also did and probably still doing it like that.
Love it. I have been preserving my deck with this treatment for a number of years, It works well. I use a airless sprayer and spray the deck wait a day or too and its ready to use. The smell will leave just as soon. I love it and it looks great RC
Thank you Ronald!
I have tons of used oil. Now I can treat my wood before building my deck. 😊
Another trick to make it last longer add rocks gravel at the bottom of the hole to help drain any water around the wood did this to my wood fence post and there still there since 1999.
Yes that is true
I just make sure they are dry wood then use tar , first coat melt the tar to liquid state apply it to the whole pole when it drys apply a thicker viscosity coat , to the 3 ft that goes underground it will be like thick rubber it will last more than 30 years - longer than pressure treated wood
i read an article in a book from around 1900 that said to boil the timbers in water with alum mixed in . the author claimed that the builder would never live long enough to see them rot,even if the builder was a very young man when this was done.
Very interesting. No reason to doubt it. Thank you for watching and the information!
What's alum?
Is THAT an abbreviation?
@@believeitlandscapemaintena7636 Alum is that stuff that women use downstairs to make their husbands think they are making love to a young virgin again. It works. You can order it from Amazon. My friend who was in Vietnam said all the local women used it. So maybe if it gets soaked into the pores of the wood it shrinks the pores tighter and dont let the water or fungi get in.
Saw chipfrier oil used, with mineral spirits to thin it, on cr@p pine for the bottom and sides of a half ton trailer. Lasted over 15 years outside. Not bad.
Not Bad!
Could you only do the wood char up to slightly above where the post is above the soil WITHOUT the oil? Just feel it’s unsafe for pets etc. or would it not help.
Thank you.
"Maaaaaawm! Can I go over to Timmy's and play with tractors, torches and make cresote?"
Awesome episode. I am glad you found use for the ol' twisted timbers. Its funny how some of this stuff works. There are huge wooden bridge posts that rot at the surface level of the water but the timber under the water is fine because it isn't ever exposed to oxygen which is needed for decomposition. The minerals in the water embed themselves in the fibers of the timber over the coarse of time and make the posts below the water line tough as rocks. literally. Thanks for sharing. - Will
Hey Will! LoL
Great Plains Craftsman how well does this hold up?
I used poly urethane on 4x4 posts 18 years later no rot. Minnesota seems to be the land of rot.
Used motor oil + diesel (sometimes I'll throw in old wood stain, anything oil based) is also an easy way to deter horses from chewing fence posts.
Does burning treated lumber help or hurt
Well, my grandad was right.
Hey, thanks for the tips, sir .
Much appreciated !
Wulfy
Hello from Pakistan 🇵🇰 i really like the way you did it. I am inspired and willing to do it for a kid’s swing will be making soon. I appreciate the help. Thank you
Thank you!
Thanks for the video. Once the mixture is cured, does it still increase flammability of the posts? Where I live, the next wildfire is a “when” not “if” situation, and as much as I’d like to treat my own posts, something about fuel-soaked wood doesn’t sit right 😅
Watching your video feels like I'm watching "no country for old men". 😄
Thanks for sharing this method. I've seen people char and heard people use oil but wasn't sure the details. Would synthetic oil work the same as conventional oil?
Yes all oil is good
Yes
could you use vegetable oil, or does it need to be petroleum based? veg oil is dirt cheap if you dont have used around
I have no used motor oil. Do I understand that a 50/50 mix of new motor oil and diesel will work also?
I use the same method by using instead is there anything wrong with that
In Australia. All city councils do this procedure for power poles. Still all standing.
Super cool...super cool. Does the wood dry to the touch after treating this way?
Yes
What does it look like if you paint the mixture over charred areas of timber ?
Have not tried painting
Hello Ron from Eagleton... ;) great video! thank you very much
Hello Ron!
What size of torch are you using sir 100k BTU or ? something i just learned creosote is not available but from what inter say made from coal tar or wood so bam this is how you get some Coal Tar Versus Asphalt Based Sealcoats or may be better is the roof cement just dig around and n mix up that thinning with diesel or /
does it have to be used oil? or is just cheaper then new one.
Great video tutorial, you are so lucky living in such a nice place, I made a mix of old engine oil and white spirits to treat my shed roof because roofing felt in uk sucks, it doesn’t last 5 minutes (I’m going to use some reclaimed metal cladding) very cunning of you to think of burying the twisted section.
Thank you.
This past week, our weather turned as well. I like the cooler, darker weather so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it'll last.
Me too Aaron. The heat can stay away
Thanks, just what I needed.
Well done mate.
Can you use gasoline instead of diesel
Is englemann spruce or jack pine better? Great idea, given the cost of lumber, etc. Thanks
Pine or Spruce are the same in this instance.
Thanks for sharing your story.
Thank you for watching Glenn!
My gramps (95 years old) and I coated our fence boards with used engine oil. I don't recall using the diesel fuel, but it has been about 20 years ago give or take. We have not done the scorching before, but I did ask him one day if his dad did it when building log cabins. He thought he had, but did not recall details. What is the BTUs of your flamer? I am trying to decide which one I get since they range from 100,000 to 500,000.
Not sure on the BTU, got it used but any standard torch will work. Just be sure to burn it to alagater char, burn it good
Ok , Thanks! :)
Thanks so much, that's very helpful.
Hopefully this isn't a dumb question, but: can you do this after treating wood with a borate solution? Or would that be overkill?
You could. Borate is great for insects and rot as well. I would do one or the other.
Hi there, thanks for posting, and posting,,, I like a way to use old motor oil up, and the desil as a catalyst.. how do you think it would go on a deck, slippery under foot? slippery when it rails? stain your pants when siting on it??? cheers, thanks
No one that has done a video on yakisubi has mentioned how deep to burn or how hot. To get proper results.
Excellent video. Thank you!
What about the inside moisture that gets trap inside the wood? Wouldn't that make the wood rot from the inside or do you used seasonned wood for starters? Thx great video!
When done properly, you use seasoned logs.
Just wondering since some water is going to get down in the post if its better to leave the bottom untreated so water can go somewhere out the end. Great video.
Thank you Tony. No, treat the bottom, but put at least 6 inches of clean gravel in the bottom of the hole.
@@GreatPlainsCraftsman Putting clean gravel below the bottom is something I have always done with treated 4x4s. It allows a drain bed for the water to go down deeper. Just like putting a 5 gallon bucket of clean gravel down at the bottom of a yard hydrant allow for the water to drain away.
Great idea and a good way to get rid of used motor oil. Thanks for sharing this tip Tim. Let's not forget the barn siding and roofing. LOL Have a good evening.
I know Dana, it's coming. Need to get this done first. Thank you!
@@GreatPlainsCraftsman just pulling your chain Tim. Your fencing is coming along nicely. I'm getting curious about the shelter now, if not a bullpen.
Can you do this to pressure-treated poles? They aren't all that well treated these days. Ever tried it?
Not on pressure treated Mike
How long does it take for the posts to dry? Would it be okay to do this to wood that is exposed? Would the motor oil/diesel mix get on clothes etc. if I were to accidentally rub against it well after it's dried? I plan to make wooden planters from some large wooden crates I have. The wood is pine and has only been indoors used for shipping glass. No part of my crates will be buried. I'm just wondering if this would be better than painting.
Angie it will act like stain. Give it a few days to dry in the sun. I would use a 50/50 mixture. Remember used oil from a car will be more brown.
Great info, Tim, thank you.
So, after a few days in the sun, it wouldn’t smell, nor would it stain clothes, if used to build a cabin, for example?
@@zehii No it will dry. Takes a little longer than regular stain. It will eventually not smell either.
Such good looking guy! I learned something useful today, Thank you!
hello Tim, great music, great video and as always a positive approach to life. thanks for continuing to tease us about the 'shelter.' cheers buddy
Hello William! Good to hear from you
Wow! How I love your opening music!!! Wish I knew what it is.
I wondered when teaching treated post would start?
I want to do burnt wood on my business sign that we are building. So two questions. After burning what is the best thing to use to clear coat it ? Second question if I do a light stain after I burn it do I need to do a clear coat over the stain? I know nothing about wood so have no clue what is the best clear to put on it
After burning you need to rinse it with water. Then let dry and coat with oil or oil based clear with UV inhibiting properties. No need for stain. Do not brush it if you want the alligator charring to remain, as you will brush it off. Lightly brush on the clear with a paint brush.
I wonder if you could use plasticote for a treatment, or rubber spray
I stand my posts for a week or two in a mixture of diesel ,old engine oil and bitumen. The bitumen you can get from old roofing felt or asphalt(tarmac).Just soak it in petrol for a day or so and sieve (strain) off the liquid.
If you didn't love this guy within the first fifteen seconds I don't want to know you.
does that work with any type of wood?
I have seen this also used w/kerosene & motor oil.
Please Comment on this if you have any knowledge of this. Thanks.
Have seen where they put the Posts Upside Down, Believing they last longer?
Kerosene would work. Yes I have heard of that for cut trees used for posts. You can also cut the tree at the Winter Solstice. Research it, along with scaring the tree a season before you cut it.
@@GreatPlainsCraftsman Cutting the tree at the Winter Solstice - sounds like something that should be saved for the 1st of April!
Great information. Exactly what I was looking for. Thank you.
I am allergic to diesel and motor oil. Can I substitute linseed oil, vegetable oil, olive oil, or ?
Shelly for in ground treatments diesel and motor oil are the best. Linseed oil could work but just be sure to char the entire post section going into the ground to alligator char and that would be a good start. The carbon layer from burning and petroleum-based oil combination is what does the trick. For above ground treatments, linseed oil works good.
6:40 light poles and wire poles used to be saturated in oil. I remember hearing about when they first were used people would climb them and sit on top at night. I vaguely remember this but I think they used lanterns to see and some poles would catch fire while people were up on them? Does anyone know about this? Its way before my time
Not sitting to provide a human street light. It was first done by Shipwreck Kelly back in the 20's as PR for businesses. Common in those days for PR. No tv and most people didn't even have radios at home for commercials to play, so something for people to come look at. In 1960s, common to see military search lights and tv commercials soon took over, then floppy air-filled tubes blowing around now. As for catching fire, I guess if you were a business competitor and wanted the guy down, you just tossed a match.
Would used hydraulic oil work?
Awesome video. I am milling and building 1400ft of cattle fencing. This info will help with the posts. Thanks!
Glad it was helpful!
I’m gonna try boiled linseed oil post charring on a small piece of wood buried in a planting pot. I’ll post the results in a year or sooner if it doesn’t work.
Appreciate the lesson but I have to ask is the oil not going to harm the environment in some way? I mean when it rains the oil will leach a little and cause that tell tale "rainbow" in rain water right? I just have to wonder if that leaching oil near say your homestead water well can eventually leach into your water supply or just harm the environment in some other way? Just curious.
No. The oil will cure in the wood, and there is so little surface area. Pressure treatment chemicals are worse, and oil does come from the earth remember. Thanks!
Fantastic... and I like your jacket!
Thank you!
Great idea and it will last a long time in the ground💚
Thank you! Summer is still on hold for a bit
Yes we are supposed to get more snow Monday night here💚
How long is long would you say?
what about giving the post a second torch after impregnating them with that asfaltous ?, just to open more the pores and letting it penetrate, and also liquify the bitumen.
yes
Does this help against termites
Great tip, thanks.
Thank you for tuning in
"It`s pointless for a human to paint scenes of nature when they can go outside and stand in it." Ron Swanson
Hi I'd like to know If this may be applicable to bamboo? Thanks
Yes, absolutely
Video starts at 5:55. Char the ends with a torch and then brush on a mix of diesel and motor oil.