The Best Wood for an Outdoor Table

There are 600,000 different species of trees in the world. This means there are at least thousands of types of wood to choose from for all your woodworking. When you have tons of options, it can make the choice even harder. What is the best wood for an outdoor table?

When you’re building an outdoor table or any outdoor wood furniture, you want strong and durable wood. You can’t use a weak wood that’s going to collapse with one gust of wind.

Where do you begin when you are choosing the right type of wood? Well, that’s what this article is all about. We’ll cover the best wood for outdoor tables.

You can stop worrying about the kind of wood for your outdoor table and get to the part you love. The building.

Acacia Wood 

Acacia wood is a very dense hardwood. Its natural density produces the durable and strong wood we all know and love.

Because it’s hardwood, it’s resistant to dents, nicks, and scratches.

Acacia is filled with natural oils. These natural oils ensure acacia wood is rot-resistant.

With the help of some sort of finishing coat, acacia fights off insects. It’s also water-resistant.

You won’t have to worry about hunting down acacia wood because they’re far from rare. They’re almost everywhere and aren’t going away any time soon.

Beware, acacia wood is hard on knives and other tools.

Our Rating: 3 stars out of 5 

Cedar Wood 

Source: canva.com

Cedar wood is a lightweight softwood. But it’s still strong and durable. It’s easy to cut but it’s hard for outdoor elements to tear down.

This wood doesn’t crack from water retention making it safe (for the most part) to have out in rainy weather. It’s water-resistant.

It’s moisture-resistant, not only resistant against water. And the resin aroma that cedar wood emits scares away insects. Plus, it’s rot-resistant as well.

Cedar’s soft grain is smooth to both paint and stain.

Once your table’s built, you don’t have to keep up with it all the time. You don’t have to make repairs all the time. It’s a nice change of pace compared to other types of wood.

The con to cedar wood is that despite its’ strength, it can easily become dented or nicked.

Our Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Cypress Wood 

Cypress is one of our top picks for outdoor tables. There are a couple of downsides to cypress wood.

Cypress wood can be difficult to find. There’s a very limited supply of mature cypresses. And since it’s so hard to find, it’s more on the expensive side of wood types.

If you live in an area with a wet climate, cypress should be one of your top choices. It repels water so it doesn’t get water damage.

It won’t warp after a hard rainfall or unpredictable snowfall. Weather changes aren’t going to make it shrink and expand so much it ruins the shape. It’s stable.

Cypress is also rot-resistant and bugs hate the wood.

This is all thanks to a natural preservative oil found in cypress wood called cypressane.

Last, cypress wood is easy to work and build with. It doesn’t take muscle to cut through it. And it’s as easy to drill through as it is to cut through.

Our Rating: 4 and a half stars out of 5

Eucalyptus Wood 

Source: canva.com

Eucalyptus wood is affordable and it’s easy to find. You don’t have to empty your bank account to get enough eucalyptus wood to build your outdoor table.

The wood has natural oils that repel pesky bugs. It’s also rot-resistant and moisture-resistant. Water exposure isn’t going to damage it.

It’s strong and durable. It’ll take a lot to bring a table made from eucalyptus wood down.

There’s a smooth texture making it easy to paint or stain. It’s also easy to slide a saw through.

Our Rating: 5 stars out of 5 

Redwood Wood 

Redwood is one of the most beautiful types of wood there is. The color and the shade stand out from other woods and you know when something is made from redwood.

Redwood is very durable. It can take all weather conditions, from snow to dry summers.

It won’t shrink and expand from exposure to different temperatures. It’s also rot-resistant and repels insects.

Redwood is smooth and easy to cut and work with. It even holds together if you decide to use wood glue on your outdoor table.

One downside is that it’s easier to dent, nick, and scratch redwood tables or furniture.

Because of its’ beauty and how difficult it is to find, it’s expensive. Redwood takes a long, long time to mature.

Our Rating: 3 and a half stars out of 5

Shorea Wood 

Shorea is super dense and solid wood for the affordable price. It’s also tight-grained.

People like to compare shorea to teak wood. But we prefer shorea wood any day.

It’s super strong and just as durable thanks to it’s dense and solid natural build.

Your outdoor table is going to last for a very, very long time. And it’s going to age beautifully.

There’s a natural oil inside that makes it moisture-resistant and rot-resistant. It’s aroma also scares away insects.

Our Rating: 4 and a half stars out of 5 

Conclusion 

Every type of wood out there has it’s own attributes. Some wood works better for outdoor furniture. Others work better for indoor furniture. These are our favorite types of wood to make an outdoor table out of.

Source of Featured Image: canva.com