What is the difference between Salt Spray corrosion testing and Treated Wood corrosion testing?
These two types of tests use entirely different test standards and test environments. Salt spray tests are intended to provide relative corrosion information of items exposed to exterior environments and use salt solutions along with elevated temperature to accelerate corrosion rates. Treated wood tests are intended to provide relative corrosion information of itemss in contact with preservative treated woods and typically use humidity and elevated temperature to accelerate corrosion rates. Neither test can be translated to determine the expected service life of a specific installation. There is no apparent correlation between Salt Spray and Treated Wood corrosion tests. The fact that one item performs well in one of these two tests does not necessarily mean that it will perform well in the other test.
These two types of tests use entirely different test standards and test environments. Salt spray tests are intended to provide relative corrosion information of items exposed to exterior environments and use sodium chloride solutions along with elevated temperature to accelerate corrosion rates. Treated wood tests are intended to provide relative corrosion information of items in contact with preservative treated woods and typically use humidity and elevated temperature to accelerate corrosion rates. Neither test can be translated to determine the expected service life of a specific installation. There is no apparent correlation between Salt Spray and Treated Wood corrosion tests. The fact that one item performs well in one of these two tests does not necessarily mean that it will perform well in the other test.
