raised bed advice - need help fast - please respond

cmpman1974

18 years ago

I recently added a few raised wooden beds to my existing garden. I constructed two 4' wide x 12' long x 10" high beds made of untreated wood (not pressure treated). I had my topsoil / compost delivered Saturday and filled both beds yesterday.

I am making one more 4' wide x 4' long bed since I have some extra dirt. Why waste dirt, right? :)

Now, the big problem. My Dad suggested I waterproof the garden beds with a sealer. I did this already on the two large beds. When I was at Home Depot today, they told me to NOT use waterproofing sealant on garden beds if I am eating the produce.

Did I make a big mistake? I paid $50-$60 for the wood so I seriously hope not. Of course, I am not willing to risk my health over the cost. Any thoughts on this topic? I feel stupid since I didn't use pressure treated wood because of the arsenic content (supposedly) and then I put chemicals on the untreated wood.

Coincidentally, I waterproofed the beds outside and it killed all the grass the stuff dripped on - kind of scary. I used Olympia clear waterproofing sealer.

What would all of you do? My dirt cost me about $100-$125 I hope it's not contaminated already! It has been in the bed for less than 24 hours.

As much as I try to read and learn, there's always something I don't think about! This is a COSTLY mistake if I am wrong.

I look forward to your responses.

Chris

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Comments (5)

Termater
18 years ago
Chris,

I think its Olympic sealer that you got at Lowes. Olympic is a division of Pittsburgh Paints and heres whats in the sealer.

Proprietary or trade secret additive/ingredient(s)
1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene
Linseed oil
Paraffin
Stoddard solvent
Solvent naphtha, petroleum, medium aliphatic
Solvent naphtha, petroleum, light aromatic
Linseed oil, dicyclopentadiene copolymer
Resin (unspecified)
Film formers

Dont you love the secret ingredient part? The secret ingredient in the sealant is rumored to be Chromium so you dont want that in the soil or most of the other ingredients for that matter.

At this point though the soil is still OK as the sealant hasnt had time to "offgas" or leach into the soil but I would use the wood elsewhere and start over with new wood. You will have to replace the wood every 3-4 years as it will rot in the damp soil.

if you are still concerned about the soil you can "solarize" it and bake off anything in there.
jean001
18 years ago
You wrote: "When I was at Home Depot today, they told me to NOT use waterproofing sealant on garden beds if I am eating the produce."

Before you take such "expert" advice, how about calling the manufacturer of the seal and ask them?

If they say it's a problem, line the beds with 4 to 6 mil poly sheeting.
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DirtDigHer
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You can move the soil into the middle of each bed...then...staple black plastic...around the wood...if you keep moving the soil...you can cover the whole space...keeping the toxic wood from coming in contact with your soil...this should work...
marylandmojo
18 years ago
I notice your post is a week old, so you may have already made a decision...nevertheless, if it were me, I'd lose the boards you put the sealant on. Use them for something else (to defray cost)...fencing or trellising of ornamentals, whatever, as long as you keep them away from your source of food. Don't you have timber yards or sawmills there where you can buy oak boards? I bought rough-cut 2"X12", l6 ft. long oak boards in my area (Maryland-Virginia), for about $6 or $7 apiece, 10 years ago, that are nearly as solid as they were when purchased. Of course I wouldn't dream of going to Home Depot (or some such similar retailer) for oak boards, but we have lumber yards and sawmills in rural areas that will cut oak boards to your specifications at a reasonable price...and 2" means 2" at a sawmill, not 1 1/2". I happen to have capped the 2" oak boards with cheap 2X4's (pine) as added insurance against decay (and also to have a place to plant my rear end while working in the raised beds), and I have no problem with such beds lasting 15-20 years, or so. To each his/her own, but oak is abundant in my area, and probably outlasts pine 5 to 1, so I wouldn't think of using pine for raised beds. Also, I can't work in a raised bed that's more than 39-40" wide without climbing into it, so I limit all my beds to that width (and I'm 6'5"). I realize (and read in this forum) that people make much wider beds, which they walk around in, but one of the chief benefits of raised beds (in my mind) is to avoid tramping and compacting the soil. Again, to each his/her own, but I have raised beds that never have had a foot in them since they were built. So, my suggestion is to remove what you have and use it elsewhere (not around something you'll eat). Find reasonably priced rough-cut oak boards (they'll last so long you won't have to worry about "sealing" them), and make your beds an appropriate width (so you won't have to climb into them).

raised bed advice - need help fast - please respond

Comments (5)

Termater

jean001

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