Wood treatment process

Abstract

A process for treating a wood substrate with a water-based formulation containing a wax in order to confer water repellency to the substrate comprising the steps of: (a) placing the substrate in a treatment vessel and reducing the pressure in the vessel to remove air in the pores of the substrate; (b) contacting the substrate in the vessel, while reduced pressure is present in the vessel, with the formulation to allow the formulation to flow into said pores, said contacting being carried out at a temperature at or above that required to cause the wax to change into a molten state; (c) applying a positive pressure to the vessel to force the formulation into said pores; and (d) releasing the pressure in the vessel and removing the resultant wood substrate from the vessel.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.