Is rubberwood used for butcherblock ever pressure treated with borate or boric acid?
My builder got me a rubberwood butcherblock countertop to complement my flooring. Do you know if rubberwood used as countertop wood has been pressure-treated with borate or boric acid? (I’ve read that typically rubberwood is pressure treated immediately after being sawn into lumber to diffuse its natural chemicals, regulate moisture content, and protect it from mold, rot, and wood-boring insects, all of which it is highly susceptible to.) Update: I received word from the manufacturer of my countertop that, yes, my countertop wood has been pressure-treated. I am awaiting word as to what chemicals it was treated with. I am not surprised, because I am reading that rubberwood, having been leached of most of its latex before being turned into lumber, is not inherently a high quality wood for construction and therefore must be chemically-treated. I find this of concern because I was not expecting butcherblock, a food-prep surface, to be treated with toxic chemicals. Is butcher block made from other hardwoods, such as maple or oak, manufactured with chemicals pressure-treated into the wood?
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No, butcher block countertops in the US are usually made of maple, or sometimes walnut, oak or other domestic hardwoods. I've never heard of them being treated for resistance to bugs or rot. The discussions are usually about whether to put any finish on them; a film-forming finish like polyurethane is not food-safe and will not hold up to chopping directly on the counter, but can work for people who use separate cutting boards. Or they can be coated with mineral oil or another food-safe oil, or left totally unfinished, eventually leading to an interesting patina.
Thanks! Maybe I should try a different wood, then.