Radiata Fine logs exported from New Zealand are susceptible to mould, sapst
ain and decay. Protection of logs from fungal degrade has not been achieved
using conventional antisapstain treatments. A novel antisapstain treatment
called Sentry(R) meets the efficacy requirements of industry by overcoming
some underlying difficulties of treating logs by delivering a deep envelop
e of treated wood that remains intact for the duration of the protection pe
riod sought, and by arresting inevitable fungal infection that occurs durin
g commercial log handling regimes. Sentry is a solubilised concentrate cont
aining methylenebisthiocyanate (MBT) and 2-n-octyl-4-isothiazolin-3-one (OI
A). Log mill trials compared the performance of Sentry with a commercial st
andard on logs of ages 1-14 days from felling. For log ages of 0, 2, 4, and
7 days, mean percentage sapstain for Sentry (equivalent to 0.5% w/v MBT pl
us 0.125% w/v OIA) was 0. 9, 21, and 32, respectively, compared to 3, 31, 5
4, and 54 for the commercial standard. The ability of Sentry to protect old
er logs is of considerable value to forestry operations because rapid extra
ction is often not feasible or increases costs. For block-stacked radiata p
ine boards stored for 12 weeks, Sentry. at the lowest concentration tested
(equivalent to 0.125% MBT plus 0.025% OIA), gave equivalent protection to t
he highest concentrations of all the commercial standards. (C) 2000 Publish
ed by Elsevier Science Ltd.