Balau decking is
highly
recognisable. A rich, dark red colour, this truly is a hardwood decking option that oozes class. This decking solution is perfect if you want a deck that gets better as time goes by. Starting out rich and dark, it loses none of its charm, but takes on a silvery hue as the years pass.
What is Balau wood used for?
Balau is a very good, hardy and durable wood to use in outdoor wooden decks and other outdoor projects. It contains toxins that limit
insects eating it
and it is high in resins and oils which naturally repels water and limits rot.
What is Balau wood?
Balau is a
very dense tightly grained wood
that is heavily laden with rich tropical oils and resins. Balau’s texture is very fine and even. For centuries Balau has been used for shipbuilding, heavy-duty furniture, and heavy construction, coveted for it’s excellent strength and weather resistant qualities.
How do you care for Balau wood?
Because this wood is naturally oily, unfinished balau
must be oiled regularly
. If your balau deck is exposed to direct sunlight for much of the day, the wood can become parched and cracked if you don’t oil it at least annually. Sealed balau does not need annual oiling, as the sealant holds in the wood’s natural oils.
How can you tell Balau wood?
Balau is a
yellowish-brown
, brown, or reddish-brown timber vvith interlocked grain, and a moderately fine and even texture. It is classified in Malaysia as being very durable. Red balau is a purplish-red or dark red-brown timber, with an interlocked grain, and a coarse but even texture.
What is the cheapest hardwood decking?
Treated pine
is the cheapest options. It is easy to work with and can be stained or painted. Hardwood timber decking is more expensive than treated pine, but a number of species are available, some of which are much less expensive than others.
Which is the best wood for decking?
Overall, our experts at Patio Productions recommend
Cedar or Redwood
as the best wood choice for outdoor decks. If you’re looking for a cheaper option, pressure treated wood is your next best option.
What colour is Balau wood?
Balau features heartwood that is of a
yellow to brown colour
and has a paler sapwood, which can be up to 50 mm wide. Its moderately fine and even texture presents an interlocked grain, which produces a stripe figure on the radial surface.
Is Balau a hardwood?
Yellow Balau (pronounced Bal-Ow) – Bangkirai – is a
very durable Malaysian hardwood
. It is a hard, heavy and strong timber with an even texture that is well suited to deck construction.
Is Cumaru a good wood?
Rot Resistance: Cumaru has
excellent durability and weathering properties
. The wood is rated as very durable regarding decay resistance, with good resistance to termites and other dry-wood borers. Workability: Tends to be difficult to work on account of its density and interlocked grain.
Should you oil hardwood decking?
Decking oil
preserves your wooden deck
and gives it a natural and attractive finish. While other products, such as decking stain and decking paint, can help preserve your new or old deck, decking oil is excellent at maintaining the natural grain’s visibility and protecting the wood from sun damage.
Is Balau waterproof?
Balau wood is very commonly used in outdoor furniture industry because of its
sustainability & waterproof
such as decking, pergola awning, door, bench and many more. The balau has a good life expectancy when used above ground that is, the heartwood has fairly good natural resistance to decay and most insects.
Should you oil Balau decking?
Balau is a type 2 decking which means that it has a life span of between 20-30 years depending on the treatment of the decking. We recommend oiling your decking boards
as soon as they are laid
, and then once every 12 months going forward.
Is Red Balau wood sustainable?
Note that species identification is important here since there are literally hundreds of species of wood under the Shorea genus, many of which are critically endangered. Hence, verifying that the
wood is only sustainably harvested
and legally verified as batu (red balau) is significant.
What is Selangan Batu?
Selangan Batu (commonly known as Batu) is
a yellow brown, reddish brown and sometimes purplish brown timber which darkens with age
. It has a fine to medium texture with a wavy interlocked grain and a medium to low shrinkage rate. This species is very common throughout Malaysia and Indonesia and some in the Phillipines.
Is Red Balau the same as Batu?
If you are looking for a rich warm look,
Batu
is the wood for you. Batu is also know as Red Balau and has beautiful red tones which gives this wood its own unique appeal.
