Sawn fence posts are a rather important product and the objective of this trial was to assess their durability. In 1985 a field trial with treated and untreated fence posts of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) was set out at the test field in Ultuna, Uppsala, Sweden. The posts had a dimension of 75 x 100 x 1400 mm3. The preservatives applied were a CCA, an ammoniacal copper and a creosote. In 1991 fence posts of the same species and size were set out at the test field in Simlångsdalen, Sweden and the preservatives used were a CCA and an ammoniacal copper quaternary compound. The assessment showed that all treated fence posts were attacked very little (mean rating 0 - 0.5) during the first 3 - 4 years at the two test sites. After 7 to 8 years the mean ratings were around 1.0 (slight decay). In Ultuna, after 13 years of exposure, the mean ratings are around 2.0 (moderate decay). The mean service life of untreated Scots pine was 10.2 years in Ultuna and 5.4 years in Simlångsdalen and for untreated Norway spruce 7.5 and 3.2 years, respectively.

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