In southwestern B.C., CCA-treated wood is being increasingly used for balcony support posts. However, these are not required to meet CSA standards. After only 4.5 years in service there were signs of decay in 105 mm square CCA-treated posts removed from one Vancouver condominium complex. Three of these posts with particularly low preservative retention and penetration were severely decayed. Four more were slightly damaged by decay. Overall, the posts would not have met the penetration and retention requirements in CSA standards and were put into a critical application in a high hazard environment in contact with untreated wood. The size and the preservative retention suggest that this was material treated for the Japanese market that failed to meet the penetration or grading requirements of the JAS standard and was therefore sold locally. There is a wealth of evidence to show that material meeting CSA standards can meet or exceed service life expectations. However, confidence in the performance of treated wood can easily be damaged by the poor performance of substandard material. Unfortunately, there is currently no requirement for treated wood used in buildings to have third-party assurance of standards conformance.