All there is to know about Sal Wood

Hi, i am Abhishek, today i'll be sharing my in depth knowledge about Sal wood timber category. Firstly, i would like to start with a brief information about what basically Sal wood is.

Sal Wood, scientifically known as Shorea Robusta, is one of the most important sources of hardwood timber in India, with hard, coarse-grained wood that is light in colour when freshly cut, but becomes dark brown with exposure. The wood is very durable, and is sought-after for construction, although not well suited to planing and polishing. The wood is especially used in India for constructing high end front doors which are extremely heavy in weight and chaukhats that are used to install such doors.

 

MAJOR SAL IMPORTS IN INDIA

Although there is a lot of natural forest wood varieties available in India, the presence of Sal wood in India is limited to the south of the Himalayas. This is one of the major reasons that most of this Sal wood is imported into the nation from various other countries mostly being Malaysia, Indonesia, Germany, Canada, South of the USA through water transport methods using big ships.

Some business people prefer to buy whole of the forest plantations whereas others buy a specific number of containers consisting Sal wood be it sawn lumber or in the form of round logs. As the round logs of this particular timber wood are very big in size, it becomes difficult to ship them in 20 foot or 40 foot containers thus leaving the only possibility to ship them in open ship vessels. A 40 foot container usually holds about 20 CUBIC METER (CBM or CMT) of sawn lumber.

      

USES

• Sal Wood is a major player in making of high end wooden doors and chaukhats which are usually installed in high end houses.
• Sal tree is used for medical purposes as well, i.e., Sal resin is used as an astringent to relieve diarrhea and dysentery. For skin infections and ear problems, it is used as an ingredient in ointments. It is also used as an ingredient in foot creams.
• Sal seeds and fruit: They are used to make vegetable fat and lamp oil. Sal seed oil, better known as Shorea Robusta seed oil, is an extract from the seeds and used in cooking.

MAJOR PROBLEMS

• Sal Wood is one of the most expensive traded timber variety in the country thus making it difficult for everyone to afford it.
• As it is quite expensive, the sales person sometimes tries to deceive the customer by selling some other variety, charging the rates of Sal wood in order to make big profits. This often works out for the sales person as not every other person is able to point out differences between different timber varieties.
• Sal wood, being very hard is very difficult to saw and sometimes even requires about 6-7 persons a saw a single log on a sawing machine.
• It cracks under exposure to direct Sunlight.
• It usually shrinks and swells when left out for a long duration not being sold further or used.

ADVANTAGES

• Sal Wood is considered as class apart due to it's high end products.
• It generally has a natural soothing fragrance making one remember the atmosphere of a forest.
•  The products carved out from Sal Wood are highly durable and resistant in nature.
• Sal wood is termite resistant thus making it the choice of people who wish to forget once they install their furniture.

WHERE TO BUY FROM

As most of the particular timber is imported from other countries, it is abundantly available in cities with major shipping ports such as Kandla and Mundra Port in Kachch, Gandhidham, Gujarat or be it any other ports in Mumbai, Chennai etc. Now if one wants to buy Sal wood at the cheapest price possible, one must visit the Gandhidham Timber Market in Gujarat as it is the biggest timber market in the country and also home to two shipping ports thus resulting in severe competition amongst the competitors leading to benefits for the customers. The current prevailing price in the aforesaid market is about 1600-1700 Rs. per cubic feet. Now, off course everyone would not be able to travel to such a distant place, not to worry, the timber is available all over the nation and the prices vary depending upon the different transportation and warehousing costs that are being incurred by the seller.

Nangloi Timber Market in West Delhi is also considered as one of the most prestigious wholesale and retail market in the nation, thus people residing in North India can visit the market for their specific requirements. The current prevailing price in the aforesaid market is about 2000-2100 Rs. per cubic feet.

VALUE FOR MONEY

As it is one of the most expensive timber traded in the nation people often have their doubts about the value for the money they are being charged or are paying. I can only tell you one thing regarding this matter that although Sal wood is quite expensive but once you buy it you would never regret your decision due it's highly durable nature. Off course choosing the right seller is the decision you have to take wisely here.

Thus concluding this blog, if you have any queries drop it in the comments section below.

Thanks for reading.