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Plastic Lumber Landscaping Timbers and Posts
Landscaping timbers and posts are used as raised beds, retaining walls, and terracing. Plastic lumber landscaping timbers and posts are used in urban plazas, zoos, and outside office buildings-in fact, the National Park Service alone has more than a dozen projects planned with these recycled-content products. Timbers and posts manufactured with plastic or composite (plastic mixed with wood or fiberglass) lumber give new life to recovered wood and plastic materials such as milk jugs and plastic bags.
- Recommended Recovered Materials Content Ranges
- Product Specifications
- Product Information
- Additional Links
Recommended Recovered Materials Content Ranges:
EPA's Recovered Materials Advisory Notice (RMAN) recommends recycled-content levels for purchasing plastic lumber landscaping timbers and posts as shown in the table below.
| Material | Postconsumer Content (%) | Total Recovered Materials Content (%) |
|---|---|---|
| HDPE | 25-100 | 75-100 |
| Mixed plastics/Sawdust | 50 | 100 |
| HDPE/Fiberglass | 75 | 95 |
| Other mixed resins | 50-100 | 95-100 |
¹EPA's recommendations do not preclude a procuring agency from purchasing wooden landscaping timbers and posts. They simply require that procuring agencies, when purchasing plastic landscaping timbers and posts, purchase these items made with recovered materials when the items meet applicable specifications and performance requirements.
Product Specifications:
Plastic lumber cannot be tested using the same tests already developed for virgin plastic. Tests on virgin plastic are performed on small cross-sections of the material. This is an accurate indicator of how the virgin plastic will perform as it is a homogeneous material. Plastic lumber, however, is not homogeneous in its construction, so tests on a cross-section of this material do not accurately predict how a length of lumber will perform in certain circumstances. For this reason, new test methods have been developed for lengths of lumber. These test methods apply to all types of plastic lumber or equivalent materials that are not homogeneous at the cross-section. These test methods are as follows:
- 6108-03 Standard Test Method for Compressive Properties
of Plastic Lumber.
- 6109-03 Standard Test Method for Flexural Properties of
Unreinforced and Reinforced Plastic Lumber.
- 6111-03 Standard Test Method for Bulk Density and
Specific Gravity of Plastic Lumber and Shapes by
Displacement.
- 6435-99 Standard Test Methods for Shear Properties of
Plastic Lumber and Plastic Lumber Shapes.
- 6112-97 Standard Test Method for Compressive and
Flexural Creep and Creep Rupture of Plastic Lumber and
Shapes.
- 6117-97 Standard Test Method for Mechanical Fasteners in Plastic Lumber and Shapes.
ASTM is working on draft test methods for shear properties.
Product Information:
Database
of Manufacturers and Suppliers
This database identifies manufacturers and suppliers
of plastic lumber landscaping timbers and posts.
Additional Links:
2007
Buy-Recycled Series: Landscaping Products (PDF) (7 pp, 120K, About PDF)
This fact sheet highlights landscaping products
designated in the CPG, including plastic lumber landscaping
timbers and posts, and includes case studies, recommended
recovered-content levels, and a list of resources.
Technical Background Document
(PDF) (215 pp, 381K, About PDF)
This background document includes EPA's product
research on landscaping timbers and posts, as well as a more
detailed overview of the history and regulatory requirements
of the CPG process.
