Typically Roof/Floor Trusses under Miami-Dade Building Code / Florida Building Code are not required to be built with Treated Lumber, because simply our code requires the homes to be fumigated for termites during the construction process.
However, all export jobs going abroad do require the Trusses to be built with Treated Lumber. The Treatment that is normally used is Borate
Borate treated wood is on the rise as a safe and long-lasting method to protect homes from wood destroying organisms. There are several types of borate wood preservatives used to treat solid wood, engineered wood composites and other interior building products like studs, plywood, joists and rafters. Borate treated wood has been used successfully for more than 50 years in New Zealand, for a decade in Hawaii – specifically to combat the voracious and highly destructive Formosan subterranean termite – and increasingly throughout the mainland United States. Borates prevent fungal decay and are deadly to termites, carpenter ants and roaches – but safe for people, pets and the environment. Borates interfere with termites’ metabolic pathways when ingested through feeding or grooming, effectively killing them. Surviving termites avoid the protected wood products
Many Truss Manufactures use Sillbor a Borate Treatment done by Robbins Lumber. By using Borate Treated Lumber no Special Truss Plates are required. The standard G60 Truss Plate works fine.
For added Protection you can have your trusses built with Borate Lumber at an additional cost of roughly 20%. This added benfit will Protect Your Trusses as Follows
Termites… Experts on this subject all agree, “In the South, you either had, have or will have termites.” The southern United States is an ideal habitat for subterranean termites. Now there is the added threat of the Formosan termite. This voracious species poses an even greater problem because of its huge colonies and destructive appetite.
Many homeowners have found that, against some termites, standard soil treatment alone is an inadequate defense.
Rot & Decay… The fungi that cause wood rot exist throughout the United States. SillBor® wood provides a shield with warranted protection for the home’s sill plate and other interior uses..
Cockroaches and other pests… A laboratory study reported in the Forest Products Journal found only one of 60 cockroaches alive after 28 weeks exposure to borate-treated wood. Meantime, in control enclosures with untreated wood, the cockroach population increased from 60 to 201. The particular species of cockroach tested is considered an indicative organism for other non-wood-destroying pests. The authors conclude, “The results suggested that borate pressure treated lumber may provide control of cockroaches in the immediate vicinity.”