Why we use sapele hardwood for our gates.

Sapele is a type of mahogany. Woodworkers have long treasured Honduran mahogany for furniture, but it has become rare and therefore very expensive. Often Honduran mahogany is called genuine mahogany. Because this species is rare and therefore protected, it is difficult to know if the source of this wood is legal. Sapele, on the other hand, is plentiful and therefore more reasonably priced and free of import protections.

Sapele is a tree that grows in Africa. Like many wood species that come from tropical climates, sapele is very rot resistant. It is also very hard, and like genuine mahogany, sapele has beautiful grain structure.

Redwood and Cedar woods also have rot resistant properties. This is why we like to use these woods for fences. However, these species are very soft. We have found that it is difficult to achieve the structural integrity needed for gates using these soft woods. Sapele is five times harder than redwood.