Ayous: the complete guide to ayous wood

Ayous is a soft, lightweight wood with poor durability that needs treatment to protect it against various forms of attack such as insects or fungi. Exotic ayous wood is therefore suited to indoor uses such as mouldings, panelling or furnishing.

Would you like to learn more about ayous? WoodPartners explains everything you need to know about ayous wood:

• What is ayous wood?
• What are the characteristics of ayous?
• Ayous: what is it used for?
• How do you maintain exotic ayous wood?
• Other questions about ayous

What is ayous wood?

Ayous wood, or ayous, comes from the Malvaceae family and its scientific name is Triplochiton scleroxylon. Originating from West Africa and Central Africa, it is also imported into certain European countries such as France.

The ayous tree can reach more than 50 metres in height, its trunk can measure up to 25 metres and its diameter ranges between 90 and 150 cm.

What is more, different names are used for ayous depending on the country:

• Germany: Abachi;
• Benin : Xwetin;
• Cameroon : Ayous, Ayus;
• Congo : Eguess;
• Ivory Coast : Samba;
• France : Ayous;
• Nigeria : Arere, Obeche;
• United Kingdom : Obeche; Wawa.

What are the characteristics of ayous?

Ayous is a non-durable wood that can be pressure treated, like garapa, for outdoor use in class 3. Its yellowish-white to pale yellow colour gives it a warm appearance and its straight grain makes this soft, lightweight wood an interesting choice for interior wall coverings.

Description of ayous wood

• Colour : yellowish white to pale yellow;
• Sapwood (the soft, light-coloured part of the wood that forms each year under the bark): not distinct;
• Grain : medium;
• Grain direction or fibre orientation : straight or interlocked;
• Interlocked grain or direction contrary to the axis : slight.

Description of the ayous log

• Diameter : between 60 and 140 cm;
• Preservation in the forest : poor.

The physical properties of ayous wood

• Density (at 12% moisture content with 1 MPa = 1 N/mm²): 0.38;
• Hardness (at 12% moisture content with 1 MPa = 1 N/mm²): 1.1;
• Volumetric shrinkage coefficient : 0.36%;
• Total tangential shrinkage (TS): 5.0%;
• Total radial shrinkage (RS): 2.9%;
• Ratio between TS and RS : 1.7%;
• Fibre saturation point : 29%;
• Stability in service : moderately stable to stable.

The natural durability and treatability of ayous

• Resistance to fungi: class 5, not durable;
• Resistance to dry wood insects : class S, susceptible;
• Resistance to termites : class S, susceptible;
• Treatability : class 3, poorly treatable;
• Use class: wood class 1, for indoor use with no risk of damp.

Drying ayous wood

• Drying speed: fast;
• Risk of distortion : very low;
• Risk of case-hardening (accidental hardening): no known risk;
• Risk of checks (splits): very low;
• Risk of collapse (waviness, separation of the wood): no known risk.

Sawing and machining exotic ayous wood

• Blunting effect: normal;
• Sawing teeth : ordinary or alloy steel;
• Machining tools : ordinary;
• Suitability for peeling : good;
• Suitability for slicing : good.

You may note that ayous wood tends to crumble during machining; we advise you to reduce the cutting angle.

Assembling ayous

For the assembly of ayous, two steps are important:

• Nailing and screwing: poor holding;
• Gluing : good, but care must be taken because ayous wood is very porous and absorbent.

Ayous: what is it used for?

The appearance and elegance of ayous wood make it an asset for interior fitting-out. Ayous can replace poplar in certain uses such as panel making or the building of lightweight furniture.

• Packaging: this soft, lightweight wood is ideal for making packaging.

• Panelling: its white to pale yellow colour is a particular asset for panelling and for interior wall coverings in general.

• Interior joinery: ayous is often used in interior joinery for making mouldings because of its light weight and its elegance.

• Furniture: ayous wood can easily replace poplar in lightweight furnishing; its light weight and its softness are appreciated.

• Fibreboard or particleboard: ayous has undeniable qualities forthe making of fibreboard or particleboard used as ceiling coverings. Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport is the perfect example, since its ceiling is clad with ayous slats.

How do you maintain exotic ayous wood?

Exotic ayous wood must be looked after throughout the processing chain by being treated. This non-durable wood will then be able to withstand the various external attacks more easily.

Next, ayous can be given a finish allowing it to preserve itself more easily and to keep its natural shade, by applying a saturator, for example. Otherwise, like many exotic woods, it is likely to grey slightly over time.

Other questions about ayous

What is the price of ayous wood?

The price of ayous wood will depend on the use you make of it: cladding, boards, etc. Nevertheless, it remains more affordable than poplar for your interior fitting-out.

Ayous is a non-durable wood that is most often used for interior fitting-out because of its softness, its light weight and its appearance. You now know everything about ayous wood for your next projects with WoodPartners!