>  The opinion of our woood chemists here in Australia at the time was that
>  by painting the exposed surfaces of the timber, you would stop any
>  leaching of the arsenic.  It should not bleed through the paint if the
>  timber is dry.
>
>  So you would need to ensure that the timber is dry.  If possible, the
>  timber should be treated rough, dried and then dressed to remove any CCA
>  salts that may be on the surfaces.  This is then painted.

The concensus in NZ, backed by research in the 1960s (I think) by
Trevor Palmer-Jones (I think) is that arsenic treated timber will
lead to bee deaths, even if painted.

The problem will not be demonstrated every season, but the leaching
of the arsenic salts will ultimately result in bee deaths.

In NZ, the recommendation, pretty generally accepted, is that arsenic
treated timber is *not* used in any part of a beehive that comes into
direct contact with bees.

I'd have to qualify that with Trevor's comments related to 'dry
timber' - it would certainly enhance the chances for possible use if
the timber was (1) absolutely dry and (2) painted.  My personal
preference is to us untreated, but if (1) and (2) are true, it might
not cause such a problem...


  (\      Nick Wallingford
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  (/      NZ Beekeeping http://www.beekeeping.co.nz

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