Linseed oil to treat lumber for raised beds?

[Rhiannon Feimorgan]

I'm building some raised beds this spring. Ceder is outside my price range and I don't want to use pressure treated wood as I'm worried about leaching into the soil.

I've read about using linseed oil to treat the wood. Linseed oil comes from flax seeds so I'm fairly sure it will be safe (if anyone has info to the contrary let me know) but I'm not sure how well it will work for wood that is outside in contact with soil. Is it going to last significantly longer than untreated wood or is it a waste of time?

[Rhiannon Feimorgan]

Anyone?

I'm talking about raw linseed oil not boiled which can have lots of other nasty stuff added.

[Ruthiegirl]

I know very little about linseed, but found this site by the Dept of Health and Human Services.

http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov...ds&id=16009014

Looks like you could look up specific brands and find what you need to know.

[Rhiannon Feimorgan]

Yikes! My hardware store has a product (can't remember it's name) that is just linseed oil. It's still going to be a fire hazard but it doesn't have any of the other stuff added.

I'm just wondering if it's really going to work.

Originally Posted by Ruthiegirl

I know very little about linseed, but found this site by the Dept of Health and Human Services.

http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov...ds&id=16009014

Looks like you could look up specific brands and find what you need to know.

[Masel]

I've used lindseed oil to finish wood but not for something that would be outside all the time. It is just not something that will last out in the rain and sun. Also you need many coats to get a minimal finish.

[Rhiannon Feimorgan]

That's what I was wondering if it's not going to be much better than untreated wood than it's not worth the trouble.

[Shellie]

The lumber we used a year ago to build beds is still in great condition. It's grayed but other than that it looks just like when we used it. It survived several months of 100+ degree temps (up to 117) and 8 hours a day of sun and also lots of rain (we've had a very wet few months). I think it's going to last a long time, even untreated.