WeatherShield Premium Wood Products
Written by Todd Fratzel.
WeatherShield – The Smarter Treated Wood
Today I noticed a new product at The Home Depot, WeatherShield Premium Pressure-Treated Decking. What caught my eye was the warranty for this new type of pressure treated wood. WeatherShield offers a limited lifetime warranty which is guranteed protection against rot, decay and termite damage.
If these claims are accurate this is a huge development within the treated lumber market. The original versions of pressure treated lumber have been good, but 20 years is really about the maximum you can expect to see before problems arise. The manufacturer boasts the following:
- Enhanced Durability – Pretreated with a wood stabilizer to reduce splitting, cracking, warping and swelling.
Improved Weather Protection – Factory applied water repellent requires no additional sealing for one full year.- New Lighter Color – Cleaner and brighter for a more natural appearance and improved stainability.
- Building Code Compliant – Less corrosive to screws, nails, hardware and aluminum products.
- SCS Certified – Environmentally Preferred Treated Wood Products
Currently this version of the product is being sold by The Home Depot exclusively. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more of this product on the market very soon. Have you used it yet? I’d love to hear some feedback on it.
Leave a comment if you think your Facebook Friends would find this article useful. Thanks in advance!
Subscribe Via RSS
Subscribe Via Email
I compared both today & quizzed the store clerks, they called the manufacturer and he stated that the standard and premium both are treated with the same process/chemicals, but that the premium is a better grade. We hand selected the standard and believe we got a comparable product.
However, I could see a visible difference in color. For the difference in price (about $300) on a 500sf deck, I hope I didn’t make the wrong selection.
I’m betting on it being a marketing ploy.
How may I obtain MSDS for your product 1×4-12 APP GRADE. ESR1721 AA-680 County wirker and work with and handle your product often.
Rene’
@ Rene – You’d need to contact the manufacturer….this site has no relationship with the product.
How can I contact the Manufacturer with questions?
Terry – Check with Home Depot on that.
i built a 19 by 16 deck using weathershield wood decking,posts,railings and spindles…finished in june of 09…..the railings are turning grey and mildewing like crazy and so are some of the spindles…decking is ok but a few are mildewing…..no, my deck is not under a tree….sorry i didn’t treat the wood…but was told no worries for at least a year……..not true…..
John – Sorry to hear about your experience. I just looked over there information again and they don’t mention anything in the warranty about color. I will say that most industry professionals do recommend waiting a year before sealing any type of pressure treated lumber. Typically most people let it set for a year, some discoloration occurs, clean it with a pressure washer (will remove mildew and some of the coloration) then seal it. Have you spoken to the folks at HD where you bought it?
i’m sorry too……my understanding is that the reason you treat a deck is too delay and minimize problems such as mildew , discoloration, etc…….if i had not been told that the wood is good for at least a year, i would have treated it
haven’t talked to them yey…but i’m going to…
I saw this at Home Depot’s website. I wonder if you could use this for raised bed gardening?
BTW, I found Arch Chemical’s (the manufacturer) pdf on the stuff here:
http://www.archchemicals.com/Fed/WOLW/Docs/Outdoor/WS-5088-R1.pdf
We built a whole deck out of this and finished with the decking boards just 3 weeks ago. Already getting significant splitting in about half the 5/4 decking boards. These splits run down the length of the boards in the centers mostly. Used decking screws and pre-drilled and countersank every hole. Any ideas on what to do in additional to applying sealant to stop the spread of these splits?
Jolene – PT decking can be a real pain! Many things can lead to longitudinal splitting; moisture level is the typical culprit, if the wood was very wet still when installed the cracks are likely due to drying of the wood, cupping of the deck boards can also be a problem when you screw them down tight. There’s not much you can do at this point to stop what mother nature has in store for the decking. Sealing may help a bit and it’s likely that most of the splitting has finished happening. Sorry I don’t have better advice on this one.
Same problem here. I built a 40′ x 48′ deck on steel frame. Pre-drilled holes and screws. I bought the weathershield decking because it claimed reduced splitting and cracking. BS! This deck is only 6 months old and already has more cracks and splits than my front deck built with standard 5/4 decking 5 years ago. Unfortunately we’re screwed. The Home Depot came out and looked at it and said that it is normal and would not get any worse. HA! I suspect next winter when the freezing rain comes my deck will be trashed.
Go with cedar decking. Will not split, warp, crack or shrink. More expensive, but worth it.
I bought weathershield decking a week ago. I have not even installed it yet and I have already noticed significant cracks and splits that were not there when I purchased it. Anyone have any advice?
Well, I had built some stairs to get up a hill a couple of years ago out of the Weathershield material and 2 x 10s and it still looks like new. Just finished a treehouse for the kids with it, and framing for the deck (haven’t put the decking on yet) and the reason I went with it was my experience with it in CT. The stairs are under a lot of trees and I never treated it.
I am extremely disappointed with this product. Bought about 15 to replace some of the boards on our deck, and they have warped and split. It has only been perhaps 3 mos. since I bought them. The 4 or 5 that I have not used have also warped. Not happy at all with this product.
Warren – Really seems to be a recurring sentiment from folks. Pressure treated lumber continues to be a source of disappointment regardless of which brand/formula folks use. Sorry to hear the bad performance.
I disagree. I have two forty foot decks on my home. The only problems with either of them is age. One deck is 26 years old, and just now starting to need some replacement. The other deck is 20 years old, and the only reason for replacement boards is because we got rid of our hot tub and are now building a screened in porch over part of the deck. Over time treated wood will do some naturally occuring warping and/or cracking, even more so if not taken care of properly. BUT it is absolutely unacceptable for a wood advertized as weathershield does, by claiming it does not require treatment for a year, to split, crack and warp as this wood did over a period of only 3 months. I will make sure to let people know not to purchase this weathershield premium wood. It is certainly not a premium product.
I installed my deck in November 2010 in February 2011 I noticed splitting in the wood .Now it is March and my 6 x 6 supports are cracked nearly the entire length along with my decking.Lately Home Depot wood has become junk.I am going to Lowes and never buy from Home Depot again.I am lucky there are both nearly 1 mile from each other.
thank’s for the comments.i have just been told by home depot that they have changed there whole product line to this wheathershield.as a professional for 35 years,i’m not going to take the risk. i have built many traditional pressure treated decks with success.however unless the supplier picks out the best wood in the pile,i suggest doing it yourself!even with the best traditional,you will always have some cracks,etc.after all a deck is usually built in direct sun.with traditional ,wait 6 months before applying a semi transparent stain,or wood life.
I would like to construct a raised bed garden with 2 x 10 Weathershield boards but noticed that the instructions say to not use it for circumstances where the preservatives may become a component of food. Does this mean it cannot be used for raised gardens? It appears that it does mean this.
You are correct. NEVER use pressure treated lumber for gardens. I recommend a naturally resistant wood like Cedar. Good luck.
We now wish we had found this page before purchaseing, putting up, and painting this product. We wanted to paint right away after assembling, and were told it was ok to paint/stain as it is kiln dried treated wood.
Well I guess time will tell. We just put the pre-assembled railings up this last weekend, so we’ll wait and see how it handles our dry South TX summer.
to Penny (may 16, 2011)
how did the painting work out, did you seal with oil base paint first? We are considerring painting w/ latex but heard from a lumberman that deals another product treated with MCA and kiln dried that it is always best to seal with oil before painting any treated wood.
I have purchased some WeatherShield deck boards, and I would like to know if there is an easy way to remove the black ink writing from the boards without sanding them.
I’m not really sure Fred. Before sanding you might want to try some oxygen bleach like Stain Solver or OxiClean. Those are great at removing stains from wood without damaging the wood fibers.
i am replacing my top deck boards on a 1800 square deck. the deck is 16″ on center so i can use anything i chose. i have been looking at composites and wood. the home depot has veranda composite ane weathershield.i am experienced with keeping up with the wood.i see they all get bad reviews. which one do you suggest i should go with. i live in eastern long island ny so they take a good beating.
Honestly, I’d recommend you look at IPE wood. It’s a dense tropical hardwood that doesn’t require sealing. It weathers a dark brown color, will last for years and won’t need any maintenance.
I installed last summer on a 25 x 15 deck
I expected some shrinkage I thought would be in the length
What I did not expect was in the width of each board
Installed with a 1/8 gap is now 3/4 inch gap both sides ??
Any more shrinkage and we’ll need to wear “snow shoes” so you don’t fall thru !
Contacting HD now to inquire about liability coverage
I’m really not surprised. Pressure treated lumber (especially pine) is going to shrink that much regardless of what they claim. Good luck!
I’ve used it – thinking it was a 5/4″ redwood but not happy with it. In a 2 week period since I started using it, has it done all the things it said it wouldn’t, split, warp, twist. I feel Home Cheapo is selling this stuff without really making the customer aware it is not redwood but faux redwood. I am about 20% into my project and plan to start over after wasting good money on it already.
Wow thanks alot Home Depot….crap store. Unfortunately just finished my deck with this garbage premium wood. Don’t walk from this junk…run like hell…split all to hell and back already one week later.
I purchased Post Caps from Home Depot WeatherShield brand. In just one year they completely warped. The top part lifted and the nails holding it were rusted. I would not buy that product again and would not recommend it.