BSW accoya wood: is it miracle wood or just expensive

[georgebaxter]

I am quoting for a job and my clients have received a quote from someone saying they will use 'Accoya' wood. They left a sample, looks suspiciously like pine. The website says it is treated with something like vinegar and will not rot or move.

Anyone used it before? Is it expensive?

 

[goodwood]

George, it looks suspiciously like pine because it IS pine. The ancient Romans used to preserve their softwood by pickling it in vinegar. This new process (not that new: the commercial acetylation process was first proposed in 1928) does the job properly. The stuff is as good as they claim, (or better) but you need to be careful with adhesives. It doesn't glue well with the usual wood glues. I use it for my external joinery, but my system doesn't use glue, so for me, its just great.

Costs about the same as oak (depends who you buy that from, though) but without the wastage.

If you are interested, I can post a link to a website giving more detail about the process.