“Teak” is the most borrowed word in the timber trade. Plenty of hardwoods are sold as teak, and once a piece is stained and polished even an experienced eye can be fooled. These are the checks we use in the yard. None of them is conclusive on its own; together they are hard to fake.
1. Colour, and how it ages
Freshly cut teak heartwood is a warm golden brown, sometimes with darker streaks. Left alone it darkens and evens out over years; outdoors and unfinished it weathers to a silver grey. Wood that is uniformly reddish, or grey-brown with no golden note, is usually something else - or teak that has been stained. Look at an unfinished underside or the inside of a drawer, where stain rarely reaches.
2. Grain and growth rings
Teak is usually straight-grained with a coarse, even texture, and the pores are visible to the naked eye. Look at the cut end: closely spaced growth rings mean slow growth, which generally means denser, more stable timber. Wide rings mean a fast-grown plantation tree. Neither is fake teak - but they are not the same product, and should not carry the same price.
3. The oily feel and the smell
Teak's durability comes from natural oils and silica. Run a hand over a freshly planed face: it feels slightly waxy rather than dry. Fresh shavings have a distinctive smell, leathery and faintly like old varnish. A dry, papery feel and no smell is a warning sign - though bear in mind that old, weathered teak loses much of its scent at the surface.
4. Heartwood and sapwood
Every teak log has a pale outer band of sapwood around the darker heartwood. Only the heartwood has the oils that resist rot and termites. When you are quoted for a log, ask how much sapwood it carries, and when you are buying furniture, check that the sapwood has been cut away rather than stained to match.
5. Weight
Teak is moderately heavy - noticeably heavier than mango or rubberwood, but lighter than rosewood or sal. A piece that feels far too light for its size is often a softwood; one that feels unusually dense may be a different hardwood sold as teak. Weight also tells you about moisture: unusually heavy timber may simply be green.
6. What a cut end shows
If you can, ask for a fresh cut. It shows the true colour before any finish, the ring spacing, the oil, the smell, and any hollow or insect damage in the centre of the log. This single check settles most arguments, and a seller with nothing to hide will not mind.
7. Common substitutes
- African “teak” (iroko and similar) - a genuine timber, but not Tectona grandis. Often sold simply as teak.
- Rubberwood and mango - light, pale, and common in cheap furniture under a dark stain.
- Plantation teak sold as old-growth - real teak, but young, with wide rings and more sapwood.
- Veneer over plywood or MDF - check the edges and the inside of drawers: a solid piece shows continuous grain around an edge.
What to ask the seller
- Which teak, and from where?
- Can I see a fresh cut, or an unfinished surface?
- How long has it been seasoned?
- Is the girth measured over or under bark?
- Is this first or second quality, and why?
We will answer all five for anything in our yard. Send us a photo on WhatsApp if you want a second opinion on a piece you have been offered, or read how Burma, Nilambur and plantation teak differ and what decides the price per CFT.