# Firewood treated with pesticides. Safe to burn indoors?



## woodchuck33 (Oct 25, 2012)

I didn't know any better and have been told by numerous people that it is safe to do so, but everything on the internet says not to burn firewood indoors that has been treated with pesticides. I sprayed my woodpile (about 1/2 cord) with Ortho Home Defense Max a couple of times this summer and once with a Spectricide ready to use spray that connects to the waterhose due to a BAD tick outbreak this year. The pile was sprayed in July and August and has not been touched since and we have only received about 1.5" of rain and my wood pile is not covered. Should I just give this wood away to someone who will burn it outdoors and start collecting firewood again? 

Sorry if this post sounds like I am rambling on and not making sense, I am just a little mad at myself right now...


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## brenndatomu (Oct 25, 2012)

If you are burning it indoors the smoke and fumes are going up the chimney, at least they should be. If not you have bigger problems. I'd rather burn it in a stove than a outdoor firepit, you can never seem to get away from the smoke no matter which way you move! :msp_biggrin: My point...BURN IT! BTW, I use the Ortho HDM on my stacks too.


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## woodchuck33 (Oct 25, 2012)

MAN!!!! You made my whole day! The wood that I have stacked is pecan that I sawed down, and then split by hand with a maul (over a cord, btw). I really didn't want to have to get rid of it! Thanks again for the reply!!!


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## brenndatomu (Oct 25, 2012)

You're welcome. Enjoy!


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## greendohn (Oct 25, 2012)

*Heck Yeah BURN IT!!*

Burn it!!
I spray/bomb my fire wood.
As mentioned earlier,,everything should be going up the flu pipe.


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## mellow (Oct 25, 2012)

I would not recommend burning it in an open fireplace, a stove/insert maybe. Also would not burn it in a catalytic stove/insert.


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## Garmins dad (Oct 25, 2012)

mellow said:


> I would not recommend burning it in an open fireplace, a stove/insert maybe. Also would not burn it in a catalytic stove/insert.



Need more info on WHY NOT.....


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## NDtreehugger (Oct 25, 2012)

greendohn said:


> Burn it!!
> I spray/bomb my fire wood.
> As mentioned earlier,,everything should be going up the flu pipe.



And right to your neighbor, 


If I found my neighbor spraying his firewood with poison, Id kick his ass.
I breathe his smoke all the time. How would you like your neighbor to treat his wood with poison?

In Kansas I had a neighbor that burned tires in the summer, so come late fall when the wind changed directions and the fog was low I burnt tires, tire smoke went into his house like it did mine in the summer. He came over and asked me to stop burning tires and said you should do that in the summer, I asked him why so the smoke can go into my house.


You should never treat your firewood with poison.


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## mellow (Oct 25, 2012)

Garmins dad said:


> Need more info on WHY NOT.....



Would you burn poison ivy in your fireplace?


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## Ayatollah (Oct 25, 2012)

Treating firewood with pesticides AFTER it's been cut? What on earth for?


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## cmsmoke (Oct 25, 2012)

So you don't drag ants or other insects in your house when stacking wood inside. I've been noticing them mostly in maple around here. I am also searching for a good answer.


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## mellow (Oct 25, 2012)

If you have an ant problem check out this thread for a solution that will not require you to spray your wood with chemicals

http://www.arboristsite.com/firewood-heating-wood-burning-equipment/202752.htm#post3718382


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## cmsmoke (Oct 25, 2012)

Yes, I forgot about that thread. I sprayed in March. That posted in June, by then it was too late. Thanks for the reminder!


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## D&B Mack (Oct 25, 2012)

Since Ortho is ok to spray in your home, I am assuming it is ok after months sitting outside to burn...


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## haveawoody (Oct 25, 2012)

Yep people outdoors won't love you and not a great idea to handle the wood to much or leave it in the house.
Even things that are semi safe for humans can be quite toxic when burnt.

Get yourself a clear sheet of plastic for your stacks and just make a top cover to shed the bulk of rain.
Once your stacks get dry and stay that way you will never have to spray anything again.


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## brenndatomu (Oct 25, 2012)

Not to start an argument...but... I disagree on not using it because of a cat stove or because of fumes to the neighbors. We are talking about a mist sprayed, not wood being soaked in, and, it was applied months ago. Like 1 drop in the ocean compared to burning tires! This stuff is only good for so long, evaporation, rain washes off, etc. I mean it can't be that bad, it's made to be used in the living spaces of your house, sprayed on carpet, floors, cabinets, etc. (I know, I know, that don't mean it's GOOD for ya) If I remember right, the directions say to keep kids and pets away until dry. I would find it very difficult to believe that burning wood that had been sprayed months ago would have any effect on your stoves cat, and not much, if ANY effect on the amount of toxins the neighbors would be getting (wood smoke is normally 100% pure, right?). Heck, there's lots of naturally occurring poisons in our soil, you guys surely don't let your wood touch the ground do you? Anybody garden? Checked your "organic" carrots for radon/radiation, salmonella, or anthrax lately? Like I said, not tryin to start trouble, it's just that I've learned a long time ago that ya gotta apply some common sense and reasoning to everything you do, think it through. I like to be as safe and healthy as the next guy, and sure, burning Ortho-ized wood may not INCREASE your lifespan, but I don't think using it the way we are discussing, is gonna make any difference to most of our 72 yrs. (average male) You know what they say, life has a 100% mortality rate! Ain't no getting outta here alive... Oh, and for using Sevin dust or any of the other pesticides mentioned in the other post, that's gonna get on the wood too, I would think there's gonna be more of the poison actually on/in the wood than with the Ortho HDM spray, or similar products. Don't hate me, just my opinion....


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## cmsmoke (Oct 25, 2012)

I probably jumped the gun spraying it. They were fresh cut and split. Yes they were wet, or starting to dry rot. There is nothing in them now. What happens to the insects when they leave the wood? Won't they take up residence somewhere else? 
I think I'll try the boric acid and sugar in the tuna can next time. It would be better to make sure they don't start to chew on my house.
I bring stuff home that is 8 to 12' long. Sometimes you don't know they are infested till you make a cut close to the nest...Then it is too late...They are everywhere at that point. It is a con in the way I process, but I don't believe there is a perfect method.


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## greenskeeper (Oct 25, 2012)

my screenname should be worthy of an answer...


lots of mis-information here. Most pesticides break down quickly when exposed to the environment. This isn't the 1960s when we were spraying mercury to kill bugs for years between applications.

Should be a non-issue to burn "treated" wood.


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## haveawoody (Oct 25, 2012)

cmsmoke,

Yeah the bugs and damp just go together.
Getting rid of damp gets rid of them.

They will either starve or leave to something similar that is damp and has food.

Mr bugs are just telling you thanks for the home.
Although poisions will remove them for a time thats all it will be is for some length of time.

Make it dry like the saharah and not in contact with the ground and not to many things will live in the pile.
Mr bugs walking papers 

Mr and Mrs bug will have to look for a new place in the country.
If you have a nasty neighbour just keep him damp for a few weeks while you dry your wood.


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## haveawoody (Oct 25, 2012)

greenskeeper,

Well i would say most of them are like nuclear material.
In year 1 it's only 1/2 as bad as on day 1.
On year 2 it's only 1/2 as bad as year 1.
Etc.

Same for most poisions but on shorter times, they do break down most of the toxic elements quick but long term for complete breakdown.
Burning them lord knows what they become even in small quantity.

The real reason is having dry wood though so my though is deal with the problem direct with a wood sort.
No poision in that at all unless it takes 6 or so beers for the sort


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## greenskeeper (Oct 25, 2012)

haveawoody said:


> greenskeeper,
> 
> Well i would say most of them are like nuclear material.
> In year 1 it's only 1/2 as bad as on day 1.
> ...



Since the OP was talking about insecticides....

Unless bound to the soil as in a normal application, they break down within 14days max.


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## Garmins dad (Oct 25, 2012)

mellow said:


> Would you burn poison ivy in your fireplace?



From what i read i would say no.. BUT.. I don't have any here so i have no first hand experiance with Poison Ivy.. BTW.. Fault of my own.. I should have been more clear in my question.. Why not burn it in a catalytic stove?

How would burning it in a cat stove be any different from burning it in a open fire place or regular stove?


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 25, 2012)

greenskeeper said:


> my screenname should be worthy of an answer...
> 
> 
> lots of mis-information here. Most pesticides break down quickly when exposed to the environment. This isn't the 1960s when we were spraying mercury to kill bugs for years between applications.
> ...



Exactly and what doesn't gets pretty well torn apart in to other substances when going through the fire. That IS how they destroy poisons - burn it. What comes out the chimney is not what was sprayed on the wood.

The other consideration is you will get one whale of a lot more "poison" just breathing in your living room after spraying some insect spray around.

The thread is an overeaction to a non-problem.

Harry K


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## haveawoody (Oct 25, 2012)

greenskeeper,

Yeah 14 days at 1/2 toxisity.
If we are spraying in a damp environment i doubt 14 days to 1/2 toxisity either.

What do we get after a couple months?
Still 1/8 toxic to everything other than humans.
Our gene pool is 70% the same as an ant so what the company says and reality of toxisity to humans i bet is a very different thing.

JMO but spraying wood for bugs should be a very last thing to do.
So many other options exist to keep wood bug free i think that it should be a very rare thing to have to do.


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## ponyexpress976 (Oct 25, 2012)

A lot of my wood is residential removals...seems like every other round has carpenter ants hitch hiking a ride to my place. I sprinkle some granulated ant killer around my dumping/cutting/splitting area. As the ants come out they find a snack...ping pang pow...toast! No problem in the stacks and none in the house.


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## AIM (Oct 25, 2012)

turnkey4099 said:


> The thread is an overeaction to a non-problem.
> 
> Harry K



Yep!!

The world is coming to an end once again...

Between pesticides and green wood we are most certainly doomed...


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## haveawoody (Oct 26, 2012)

I'm not saying it's a good or bad thing to spray your stack.
I'm just saying it is pointing to a problem with the stack if it has bugs.

IMO Lots of better cheaper solutions than spraying things over the wood pile.

In general i think your fine to burn the wood.
Just don't burn it a couple days after spraying it.


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## deepsouth (Oct 26, 2012)

I would have said not burning treated wood was like timber dipped/soaked in a nasty blend like CCA or creosote (for example). 

Just misting it, and a while ago, no worries. 

Bit like a local timber here, blackwood. Gorgeous timber but goes black over time where cut, great grain etc. but smells like old pipe smoke when it burns. Even a hot burn it smells a bit. much prefer Eucalypt varieties. 

But bought some wood this year as first year with a wood heater and haven't cut enough dry wood myself.


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