Jul 2, 2011
Red Meranti – The Best Construction Material for Earth Quake Prone Countries
There are 3 groups of Meranti tree, which are as below:
- White Meranti
- Yellow Meranti
- Red Meranti
Among these 3, Yellow and Red Meranti can be easily found and is abundant in Malaysia rain forest. For Red Meranti, it can be further classified into Light Red Meranti and Dark Red Meranti. Despite its differences in color, as it is named; Light Red and Dark Red Meranti has a very distinct difference in weight(density) where Dark Red Meranti is heavier, denser and stronger in strength.
Nevertheless, Meranti is classified as Light Hardwood, and it has a very good strength over weight ratio. It is light in weight (density is in the range of 380~755 KG/M3); which make it a very suitable construction material for earth quake prone countries. Besides being deployed in construction, it is widely used as material for furniture and joinery work (mainly indoor furniture) due to its beautiful texture and grain.
Below is a comprehensive mechanical properties comparison between: Damar Minyak, Red Meranti and Pine Wood:
Red Meranti Mechanical Properties
