timber decking properties

8/3/2019 Timber Decking Properties

1/8

MALAYSIAN

HARDWOOD

DECKING

at homewithwood


2/8


3/8

Few materials can match the beautyand practicality of tropical timber fordecking.

Unlike concrete, brick, stone, ceramictiles or metal, timber decking cancreate a quick facelift to ones garden.It is simple to install, and does not

require elaborate, time-consumingfoundation work.

Timber effortlessly complementsnatural surroundings. Its flexibilityallows landscape artists the freedomto incorporate enhancements suchas handrails, balustrades, pergolas,screens and gazebos.

NATURAL

BEAUTY AT

ITS BEST


4/8

A SOUND

CHOICE

Malaysian hardwoods have establisheda reputation for quality, making themmuch sought-after by discerningbuyers. Timbers such as Balau, RedBalau, Kempas, Keruing and Merbauare the best hardwoods for deckingproducts because of their durability,strength and attractive grain.


5/8

apwood is light brownwith a grey or pink-tinge ands not well-defined from theeartwood, which is light

rey-brown with a pink-tinge.he grain is interlocked andexture is moderately coarseut even.

Sapwood is not well-definedfrom the heartwood which islight brown, pink-brown, redbrown or purple brown

with a grey tinge. The grainis interlocked, irregular orwavy. Texture is moderatelyfine and even.

Sapwood is white or paleyellow in colour. Heartwoodis pinkish when fresh anddarkens to bright orange-red

or deep brown. The grain isinterlocked, often veryinterlocked. The texture iscoarse but even, except inareas where includedphloem occurs.

merpauh kelat kempas

Sapwood is purple-red orred-brown to grey-brown incolour. The heartwood is darkred-brown. Grain is straight to

deeply interlocked. Texture ismoderately coarse to coarsebut even.

apwood is lighter in colournd well defined from theeartwood, which is yellow-rown, brown or reddishrown. The grain is

nterlocked and the textures moderately fine but even.

Sapwood is pale yellowin colour. Heartwood isyellowish to orange-brownwhen fresh, darkening tobrown or dark red-brownon exposure. The textureis coarse but even, withinterlocked grain.

Sapwood is usually liin colour than and noalways well-defined fthe heartwood, which

red, red-brown to darred-brown. The grainstraight to shallowlyinterlocked and textuis slightly to moderatecoarse but even.

Sapwood is well-defined fromthe heartwood of purple redor dark red-brown colour.The grain is interlocked, oftendeeply interlocked. Texture israther coarse and even.

keruing mengkulang

eavy hardwoods

balau merbau

Properties of some Malaysian Hardwood Timbers for Decking

apwood and the heartwoodre clearly demarcated. Theormer is yellow-brown withpink tinge and the latter

s deep red, red-brown, pink-rown or orange-brown.he timber has interlockedrains, and often comes withstriped figure. The texture

s moderately coarse to

oarse and uneven.

Sapwood is not clearlydefined from the heartwoodwhich is medium red todeep red to deep red-brown.The grain is interlocked.The texture is moderately

Sapwood is light yellow-brown and frequently darkerthan the heartwood whichis light golden brown anddarkens to a deep brownon exposure. Its textureis moderately coarse andeven, with interlocked grain.

Sapwood is not sharplydefined from the heartwood,which is light to dark yellowand darkens on exposure.Texture is moderately coarsebut even, with shallow todeeply interlocked grain,occasionally with slightspiral grain.

bintangor dark red meranti

ght hardwoods

mersawa yellow meranti

Sapwood is well-definThe heartwood is lighyellow-brown to yellobrown or brown. Thegrain is interlocked asometimes wavy. Thetexture is moderatelycoarse but even.


6/8

pecies strength tangential air-dry density remarksmovement (kg/m3)

Balau very strong Type III 850-1,155 This timber is suitable for heavy-dutyapplications and has good working propePre-boring before nailing is recommended

Merbau strong Type III 515-1,040 A popular timber for joinery in Europe,particularly Belgium and The Netherlands.The timber is attractive and particularlysuitable for decorative flooring. Pre-boringbefore nailing is recommended.

Red Balau strong Type III 800-880 This timber is suitable for heavy constructwork. It is moderately durable and is slightdifficult to saw, but planing is easy and thesurface produced is smooth.

medium hardwoods


Kelat strong Type III 495-1,010 Suitable for medium traffic flooring.Machines easily and takes a good finish.Pre-boring before nailing is recommended

Kempas very strong Type V 770-1,120 An excellent flooring timber for indoor useequally good for external decking. Classifi

as durable in the UK. Avoid included phloe

Keruing strong Type IV & V 690-945 A popular timber for container flooring andtruck bodywork. Easy to work and has goonailing properties. Can be preservativetreated to enhance durability.

Mengkulang strong Type III 625-895 An attractive timber with good strengthproperties and popular for joinery work inEurope. Can be preservative treated toenhance its durability for decking.Satisfactory working properties and easyto nail.

Merpauh strong Type II 640-880 Some difficulty in sawing but otherwisehas good working properties. Though notvery durable in exposed conditions, the

timber is very easy to treat withpreservatives.

ght hardwoods


Bintangor moderately strong Type II 465-865 An easy to work timber but pre-boring isrecommended before nailing. Though notvery durable the timber can be used withpreservative treatment.

Dark Red Meranti moderately strong Type I & II 560-865 The most important timber exported toEurope where it is very popular for joinery.Has good working properties and is easy t

nail. Suitable for low traffic flooring.

Gerutu moderately strong Type IV 575-880 The timber is suitable for light to mediumconstruction under cover and strip flooringIts nailing property is rated as excellent.

Mersawa moderately strong Type III 515-735 Satisfactory working properties andeasy to nail. Has sufficient durability butshould not be used in contact with theground. Suitable for low traffic flooring.

Yellow Meranti moderately strong Type II 575-735 Popular for plywood manufacturing, thetimber can also be rendered for decking wpreservative treatment. Suitable for low traflooring.


7/8

movementThe method used in the determination of the movement of different timberspecies is similar to the procedure described in The Movement of Timbers Technical Note No. 38, Princess Risborough Laboratory, BRE, UK, 1976.However, the constant humidity temperature settings required for the twoexposure tests were adjusted to 30C/95% relative humidity with equilibriummoisture content (EMC) of 20%, and 30C/60% relative humidity with EMCof 12% respectively.

A total of 20 pieces of quarter-sawn and flat-sawn representative samples

were used to measure the radial and tangential movements of each speciesof timber.

These were obtained from 30mm boards which had been air seasoned forthree to six months to attain the air-dryEMC of approximately 14 to 19%.Each sample was then fine-dressed to a thickness of 6mm and cut to astandard length of 50mm and width of 150mm.

For the purpose of describing the movement of the Malaysian timbersfor decking, the following classification was used:

strength classificationThe strength properties have been determined using the test proceduredescribed inASTM designation: D143-52 developed by the AmericanSociety for Testing Materials.

Notes to the properties of Malaysian timbers

Basic Stresses and Moduli of Elasticity for Strength Groups for Malaysian Timber in the Green Conditionm.c. > 19%), (MPa)

strength bending and compression compression shear modulus ofgroup tension parallel parallel perpendicular parallel elasticity

to grain to grain to grain to grain

mean minimum

very strong 20.69 17.24 1.72 2.76 13,800 8,600strong 17.24 13.79 1.03 2.07 11,000 6,200

moderately strong 12.41 9.65 0.69 1.38 9,000 5,200

weak 7.59 6.55 0.41 1.38 5,700 3,000

movement tangentialrating movement

Type I 3.1%

Source: Movement of Seasoned Timber in Service FRIM

Technical Information Handbook No. 18, 1998


8/8

HEAD OFFICE

18TH FLOOR, MENARA PGRM

NO.8, JALAN PUDU ULU, CHERAS

56100 KUALA LUMPUR

MALAYSIA

EL +603 9281 1999

AX +603 9282 8999

MAIL [email protected]

ONDON OFFICE

24 , OLD QUEEN STREE T

ONDON SW1H 9HP

UNITED KINGDOM

EL +44207 222 8188

AX +44207 222 8884


HANGHAI OFFICE

8C, JINMING BUILDING

NO.8, SOUTH ZUNYI ROAD

CHANGNING DISTRICT

200336, SHANGHAI

P.R.CHINA

EL +8621 6219 7208

AX +8621 6275 4060


DUBAI OFFICE

UITE 104, 1ST FLOOR

AL MOOSA TOWER II

P.O.BOX 62476, DUBAI

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

EL +971 4 3326 998

AX +971 4 3326 889


WEBSITE www.mtc.com.my

Malaysia values her forests fortheir significant socio-economicand environmental functions.Buyers are assured that Malaysiantimber products are manufacturedfrom raw materials sourced fromsustainably managed forests.

ATREASUREFOREVER

The Malaysian Timber Council wasestablished in 1992 to promote Malaysiantimber-based products globally. TheCouncil strives to ensure the continueddevelopment of the Malaysian timberndustry by improving its competitiveness,enhancing market access and creatingtrade opportunities.

For a list of Malaysian suppliers,please contact:

MALAYSIAN

TIMBERCOUNCIL

timber decking properties

Documents