Gone are the days when outdoor furniture meant cheap plastics and uncomfortable wrought-iron. Nowadays, people across the country are investing in beautiful outdoor furniture made from upscale timber, and teak is one of the most popular species.
Here are just five reasons why.
- Toughness
Outdoor furniture should be beautiful, but it should also be tough, able to take a few knocks without breaking or showing signs of visible damage. Enter teak – it’s an incredibly tough wood thanks to its density, but it also maintains a fair amount of flexibility. Those characteristics make it excellent at resisting damage and passing the test of time.
- Weather-Resistance
It should go without saying that outdoor furniture should be weather resistant- that’s why plastics and metals are often popular. If you want hardwood, teak is the way to go. It’s one of the few woods that keeps its natural oils after being felled, and those oils provide natural protection against swelling and warping in the heat or brittleness and cracking when it’s cold.
- Rot and Stain Resistance
Teak is popular in countries that suffer from termites because its natural oils also help keep such pests at bay. Not such an issue in the UK, but you’ll still appreciate teak’s ability to resist rot and decay, another benefit of those natural oils.
- Weight
Outdoor furniture presents something of a quandary; it should be light enough to move around easily, but it should be heavy enough to prevent the wind blowing it around. Teak strikes the ideal balance. That’s because it has a very high weight-to-volume ratio. You can leave teak furniture out when the wind is picking up without worrying about damage.
- Style
Teak is valued across the world for a score of reasons, and style is chief among them. It’s a premium timber that casts a first-class appearance. If you want outdoor furniture that catches the eye, you’ll probably find it hard to resist furniture made from teak.
