Building your deck with tigerwood will ensure a luxurious and spectacular outdoor space that adds value to your property. Tigerwood is one of the densest and highest-quality Brazilian hardwoods that is naturally biodegradable. It is particularly known for its lower price than other exotic hardwoods, but it is responsibly harvested and environmentally friendly to use, making it a good alternative to composite materials.
Tigerwood is known as Brazilian muiracatiara, and it is identifiable for its reddish hue with irregular brown lines for its grain. It is for this reason that tigerwood is called such because the brown lines may resemble tiger stripes. The grain is tight, and the decking itself is extremely hard, making it an ideal material for decks. The color goes well with an ipe railing, too, in case you want to incorporate another hardwood into your structure with a darker, contrasting color.
Like most Brazilian hardwoods, tigerwood is highly resistant to rotting and naturally wards off insects like termites. Its hardness deters wood destroying organisms and mold because they cannot chew, gnaw, or maintain a strong foothold on it. Hence, they end up searching for another wood that is softer for their tastes, like pine. Moreover, tigerwood does not rot, despite minimal maintenance and care, even if it becomes soaked in water.
In the Janka scale, tigerwood is rated at 2016 lbf, which means it is harder than oak and maple. In fact, it is harder than maple baseball bats and most oak floors. Maintenance is easy, requiring only a finisher to reflect or block UV rays from the sun and prevent it from turning gray. You do not need to use stains and other protective measures to keep your tigerwood in perfect condition.
Tigerwood is biodegradable, so it can easily be disposed of when it reaches the end of its lifespan without harming the environment. It can decompose easily in a landfill, and it will not cause harmful toxins to leak into soil and our water supply. High-quality tigerwood is responsibly harvested to ensure compliance to the Lacey Act. Hence, each tree is immediately replaced or replanted.