Learn More About Suar Wood as a Substitute of Expensive Woods

As someone who doesn’t really know about the tons of wood types that ever existed, you must think that there are only a few types of wood in this world, mainly teak, maple, oak, mahogany, walnut or elm wood.

And also, you might think that all these few wood types are the only ones that can be used as materials for any furniture or industrial needs.

Well, think again, the woods mentioned earlier are the woods that are most widely known or very popular amongst many people, of course for wood beginners like you.

Because in fact, they are popular to be the most used ones that are considered somewhat expensive.

Teak wood specifically, has become the most popular type of wood, probably one of the most expensive ones due to its extraordinary durability.

However, the supply of teak is not keeping up with the increase in consumer demand.

In the meantime, for wood experts in the construction and furniture industry, there are many types of wood that are not only good and suitable for industrial use, but are also very beautiful to look at every day and cheaper if used to polish any furniture or industrial materials.

Teak wood specifically, has become the most popular type of wood, probably one of the most expensive ones due to its extraordinary durability.

However, the supply of teak is not keeping up with the increase in consumer demand.

Suar Wood Definition

Popularly known as the “Rain Tree”, “Monkey Pod”, “Giant Thibet”, “East Indian Walnut” and more, or its scientific name, “Albizia Saman”, suar wood is unique because of its large size that looks pretty much disheveled.

This type of wood also has 30 other nicknames from at least 10 different countries in the world, including South America, Central America, Venezuela, Jamaica, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and other countries.

Thus, this wood tree was once popular as a shade tree and grows big in any tropical areas or tropical forests. The very extensive roots of the suar wood tree make it less popular to plant because it can damage roads and the surrounding buildings.

As they say, one of its popular names comes from the water that often drips from the canopy because of its ability to absorb strong groundwater and dirt from cicadas that live in trees.

In nature, the supply of suar wood with large sizes is still quite a lot and can still be found in the wild, but the very largest sizes are apparently rare.

Hence, this wood is mainly used for industrial purposes (especially in the timber industry) as wood for carpentry.

Mainly, it is also used as a raw material for making furniture to replace teak furniture, whose supplies in nature are decreasing from day to day and are also very expensive.

Characteristics of Suar Wood

In general, furniture that is made of suar wood has its own authentic characteristics, which emphasizes the density in its natural design.

For that reason, furniture that is made of this typical wood, most of the components are made a bit thicker and almost none are made with a thinner size that are not less than 3 cm wide.

Hence, suar wood furniture made from table tops, the thickness size of the wood being used is normally between 4 to 15 cm wide.

On the other hand, it’s really the size of the wood that is difficult to find in teak type furniture as is the case with suar wood furniture.

From there, the very main characteristic of suar wood that people will directly recognize is its large size.

Therefore, suar wood furniture craftsmen can freely make sturdy furniture undamaged without any joints.

To get to know more about this type of wood, here are some general characteristics of suar wood:

● The Weight

Suar wood is a heavy type of wood, just like teak wood. On average, the weight of this type of wood can reach 800 kg/m3 more or less, in other words it is very heavy.

● Wood Color

The part of the wood surface is dark (mainly dark brown with a darker tinge of grain), with a clear white colored sapwood.

● Durability level

Suar wood is a durable wood with a class IV level of durability, which means it is only recommended for indoor use.

● Wood Strength

The strength level of this wood, it is a type of wood that falls under class III level. Because the thickness of this wood that is processed into furniture is very high, the strong class will help the wood to be able to support heavier loads, like beds.

● Tree Specifications

In general, the diameter of suar wood tree is around 1.5 m wide, and it can go as tall as 25 m on average.

● Finishing

Painting suar wood furniture in a transparent color is the right choice. The type of finishing material used must have high transparency that doesn’t change easily.

When you look at the beauty of the fiber, which is straight and wavy, it actually shows the circle of years it has been grown. Of course, it’s best to not waste this opportunity to show off its true beauty.

Advantages of Suar Wood

There are chances that many furniture sellers offer products from suar wood, but they don’t fully know the advantages of this unique type of wood. Besides being similar to teak wood, this wood has natural uniqueness and there is no other type of wood that can match its authenticity.

Thus, most people believe that suar wood can protect other woods because it grows larger and protects other smaller woods. At night or when there is rain, the leaves of this type of wood can fold on its own and when growing in the forest this wood has the advantage of absorbing more water to survive.

Hence, the following are other advantages of suar wood:

Its soft surface makes the chisel not easily blunt and produces perfect engraving.

What makes suar wood used as raw material for furniture? The large size of the wood can even be bigger than young teak, making it an adequate raw material. Larger wood makes processing easier (dining table).

As mentioned earlier, the use of suar wood also accentuates its tough side. None of these wood components alone have a thickness of below 3 cm. In fact, the average thickness for a dining table or cupboard is around 4 to 15 cm. Therefore, you will not find this almost perfect thickness in teak wood furniture.

Not only is the finishing result of this wood itself stunning, during the growth of the suar wood tree, it can absorb air pollution. Thus, air pollution can be minimized.

Disadvantages of Suar Wood

Indeed, there are many advantages of the suar wood. However, there are some drawbacks of it too.

When used as outdoor furniture, the natural oils of this wood will increase easily. This wood, however, cannot stand the heat from the sun because it will cause cracks and even break.

From the strength aspect of suar wood, this wood is classified as the strong class level III. So, it is recommended not to use this wood material on high load resistance conditions.

Suar wood is classified in the class IV level of durability. This means that the wood is very vulnerable to pests such as mold, termites, and powder lice. The level of durability IV is also very low compared to other woods in general. For instance, when compared with teak in class I or mahogany in class II, still far below those types of woods.

The Utilization of Suar Wood

As you now know, suar wood can be used to make various types of furniture, mainly dining table, bed, tabletop and more.

However, due to the low level of durability, this wood type is usually designed for indoor furniture only, unless the wood has been treated, mainly for pest repellent.

And because this wood is still available in large logs, craftsmen often make large sized furniture.

Another usage of this wood type is to make various types of decorations and crafts in general. For instance, some are made for wall hangings, miniatures, and other decorative items.

In terms of its uses for construction materials, suar wood is usually used with loads that are not heavy and in conditions that are not heavy duty.

Even though suar wood has less popularity compared to teak, its unique texture allows this wood to be processed into good furnishing materials as a substitute for the other expensive types of woods.

For maintenance, after becoming a piece of furniture, regularly clean it from dust using a cloth. Are you now interested in using suar wood as part of your home interior?