Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
Recent growth in sales of concrete repair spurs shows that changes in timber preservation products are having a limiting effect on the life of timber fence posts.
That’s according to concrete products manufacturer, Supreme Concrete.
Concrete repair spurs are used to repair and strengthen timber fence posts that have rotted at ground level due to poor preparation and maintenance. An economic alternative to post replacement, they are simply installed adjacent to the damaged post, which is then securely bolted to the spur to provide ongoing support for the expensive timber fence panels.
“Timber fence posts have been very popular over the years because they were perceived as a cheap alternative to high performance concrete posts” said Supreme sales director, Tim Wright. “Whilst this has never been the case, due to the much longer life expectancy of concrete, the case for concrete is now becoming even more compelling.
“Not only is the life of the timber posts now being affected by use of modern preservatives, which are less effective than those used years ago, the cost of the imported timber used to make the posts has been gradually increasing – to the point where the price differential is now as little as 10% in some cases.
“This differential is more than compensated for by the additional product and labour costs of installing concrete repair spurs when the posts begin to rot – irrespective of the disturbance and damage to garden planting,” he said.
Concrete fence posts, which are completely rot proof and unaffected by damp conditions, will last 25 years and more, whereas timber posts treated with modern preservatives, are now more susceptible to rot at the ground interface, and can fail after as little as 5 years.
Supreme Concrete has been selling Repair Spurs through its national merchant and distribution network for almost 40 years, and has noticed a significant expansion in sales following health and safety legislation which has restricted the types of wood preservative that can now be used to protect timber fencing products.
