What is RubberWood? Cons And Pros of Rubber wood for Furniture? Can rubberwood be used to make furniture? You're not the only one, thousands of people search for that query on Google each month. in this article, we give you the answers to these questions.
Contrary to popular belief, rubberwood is not exactly a hybrid of elastic wood. Actually a medium-density hardwood, rubberwood is made by cutting down the Pará rubber tree. The majority of these trees are found in South America, Asia, and Africa. Pará rubber trees are grown for their latex and harvested to make rubberwood timber at the end of their productive lives. Rubberwood is regarded as a "environmentally friendly" wood as a result.
What is Rubberwood?
Tropical hardwood rubberwood is an affordable, lightweight material. It resembles teak in a lot of ways. The rubber tree is the source of rubberwood. The milky latex that the rubber tree produces when cut gives rise to its common name, the rubber tree.
Rubber is made from this latex. Rubberwood is a white-colored timber that over time becomes light brown. It has a similar density as ash and maple hardwood, is medium-hard, medium-textured, and straight-grained.
For a wide range of woodworking and timber tasks, rubberwood is a good choice. It is swiftly rising to the top of several Southeast Asian nations' export timbers. Although it is frequently seen in foreign wood items, many Americans are unaware of rubberwood.
It's conceivable that this wood will continue to gain popularity over time and eventually displace more conventional hardwoods in many applications.
My first encounter with "rubber wood" happened while I was looking for genuine wood furniture. I thus pondered what rubber wood is and whether it would be suitable for my furniture.
Hevea brasiliensis, often known as rubber wood, is a cheap and lightweight wood that originates from rubber trees that generate the basic material required to make natural rubber, latex. Rubber wood, also known as "parawood," is a tree that grows in Brazil's Amazon rainforest. Latex extraction starts after the tree reaches maturity, which takes around 9 years.
Is rubber wood made of genuine wood?
Beginning in the middle of the 1980s, rubber wood appears as a substitute resource for the timber industry and other wood-based goods. It has since grown to be one of the most popular for this sector.
Contrary to its name, rubber wood is actually a true hardwood that is medium in hardness, has a medium texture, and is comparable in density and weight to maple or ash.
Although rubber wood has a different look and set of qualities from oak or teak, it is also known as (Hevea brasiliensis) parawood or Malaysian oak.
The rubberwood is a popular option for home furnishings stores since it is readily available in a broad range of colors, gorgeous textures, and finishes.
Rubber wood naturally has a poor level of durability, but after being treated with preservatives, it becomes excellent for both indoor and outdoor use.
The furniture (desks, chairs), cabinets, interior millwork, and kitchen items that employ rubber wood most frequently are (cutting boards, knife blocks).
Even tiny bits of rubber wood are employed; by gluing them together, panels are created from which table tops, trays, and chair seats are made.
Pros and Cons of Rubber wood for Furniture
But how does it compare to other kinds of wood used to make furniture? Are rubberwood products worth the money spent on them? Let's examine the advantages and disadvantages of rubberwood furniture.
Pros of Rubberwood
Sustainability: According to WWF, around 10% of the world's forests are cleared each year to make way for fast-wood forests. It can be extremely harmful to the ecosystem to cut down trees at a rate faster than they are growing. It may cause landslides, floods, and soil erosion. It may potentially speed up the impacts of global warming. Since you're using trees that would have been burnt otherwise when you harvest rubberwood, these consequences can be minimized.
Durable: The flexibility of rubberwood is not as great as most Westerners believe. It is a member of the maple family and is highly durable. It possesses roughly 9500 psi of strength, 1.3 million psi of stiffness, and 500 pounds of hardness.
Cost-effective: Rubberwood is sold for less money than other wood since it is sometimes seen as a byproduct. Because of the widespread belief that rubberwood is not a lasting material, most people choose oak, maple, or cherry instead.
The best for furnishings: Rubberwood that has been processed into furniture is excellent because it is incredibly stable, with little shrinking and breaking. Furthermore, rubberwood has a fantastic medium brown to yellow tint.
resists stains well: Rubberwood works nicely with finishes and stains. This is especially advantageous if you wish to alter its design to better suit the environment and your preferences.
Cons of Rubberwood
Perishable: Perishable rubberwood has a propensity to quickly deteriorate. Additionally, it is vulnerable to insect assaults and fungal stains. It must go through a lot of severe chemical treatments in order to reduce these effects, which may turn some people off.
possibly causing latex allergy: Rubberwood might not be suitable for you if you have latex allergy. People who worked with rubberwood have reportedly had some form of allergic response.
Twisting and warping: Rubberwood has a propensity to twist and warp during drying, leading it to become distorted before drying completely. Although it may become fairly robust and resilient after it has had time to mature.
is not ideal for usage outside: Rubberwood absorbs moisture well. When you leave it outside, this makes the deterioration happen more quickly. Keep your rubberwood furniture indoors or in a less humid atmosphere as a result of this.
The Finding: Given the aforementioned advantages and disadvantages, it is reasonable to claim that rubberwood will produce a sturdy and sustainable furniture material, unless you are sensitive to latex. To prevent warping and twisting, the wood must be thoroughly treated and sealed if it is to be used for outdoor furniture.
Difference between Rubber Wood and Hardwood
Generally speaking, there are two classifications for wood. Hardwood and softwood are these two groups. The wood from rubber trees, notably the Pará rubber tree, is known as rubberwood. This kind of hardwood exists. The wood that originates from angiosperm trees is known as hardwood.
It is a kind of tree that produces seeds that are encased in fruit, pods, shells, or other coverings. Rubberwood is a less dense, softer kind of wood. It is not always true, though. For instance, balsa wood, which is categorized as a hardwood, is soft, light, and less thick than the majority of other woods.
You can Read this article: Different types of wood for woodworking
Wood is not categorized according to its weight or density. Based on plant reproduction, it is carried out. The Pará rubber tree produces rubberwood. A tree that produces hardwood is an angiosperm.
It is a kind of tree that produces seeds that are encased in fruit, pods, shells, or other coverings. For instance, nuts and acorn seeds. The rubberwood is frequently used to make toys, furniture, and cooking utensils. Hardwoods are frequently used for tools, fuel, building materials, boats, musical instruments, kitchenware, flooring, charcoal production, etc.
The most popular hardwoods for making furniture are mahogany, oak, ash, acacia, and mango. Tropical hardwood rubberwood is a lightweight, inexpensive material. Hardwood trees develop more slowly. The hardwood becomes more costly as a result.
