Teak furniture is pricey, so knowing how to identify real teak wood is important. You don’t want to spend quite a fortune only to realize later that you’ve been lied to. Teak furniture is great for both indoor and outdoor setting, and they are high in quality. Wouldn’t it be a bummer when you find out that you have spent quite a lot only to get the fake one?
The Special Thing about Teak Wood
Teak wood is like the king of the wooden craftsmanship industry. A lot of designers love this wood because of its natural winning qualities. The wood is well-known for its durability, beautiful (and natural) look, and strength. The wood is known not to easily rot or damaged because it has natural oil and it’s super dense.
Teak wood can indeed be quite costly. But then again, you get what you are bargaining for. Despite the high price, you can expect the wood to last forever.
Unfortunately, some mischievous people try to make use of this knowledge to scam other people, especially innocent buyers. These scammers would sell wood (not the teak) and ask for high prices. That’s why you should know how to identify real teak wood so you can avoid such scam.
Related: How to Choose Outdoor Furniture Material: Looking at Different Materials
Elements to Identify
When you know how to distinguish genuine teak wood furniture from fake ones, you can seriously save up a lot of money. Identifying them isn’t difficult, but you need to understand what elements to seek.
- Color
In reality, there are several different species of teak wood. You want to look for yellowish-white or dark golden brown. The latter one is the one with excellent and perfect quality. The color will fade when quality also declines. A lot of people think that the dark golden teak is the premium one, which is responsible for the high price rate. The yellowish-white is considered more affordable. It’s still durable and strong, but not as strong as the dark golden brown type.
- Ageing and Staining
You should ask the store whether the furniture you are interested in has been stained. Staining often happens so the store can hide the furniture’s true color. Real teak may have patchy and dark areas. It’s okay. In fact, it’s good news because that’s how teak wood responds to the surroundings.
You see, the dark patches happen when the teak’s natural oil and organic starch react with its surrounding weather elements and air moisture. If you find this characteristic in the furniture, most likely it’s a genuine one.
- Grain
Another way on how to identify real teak wood is to check on the grain. Real teak has straight and long grain. But it also depends on how the teak was cut. If it’s a bit wavy (but not too much), it’s still possible that it’s teak. But if it’s twisted with more knots, it’s probably not teak. If the store is adamant that it’s teak, it can be the low-quality teak. High-quality teak only comes with long (and straight) grain.
Related: Reasons Why Teak Wood Is So Great for Furniture Making: Understanding the Facts
- Weight and Smell
Because of its density and packed content, teak furniture is heavy. It shouldn’t feel porous or light. However, the grade A teak is the heaviest one when compared to the lower B and C grade teak.
Moreover, teak has natural oil content, which makes the wood smells leathery. The teak furniture should have this smell, especially if it’s never been used before. When the furniture of your choice has leather smell with significant weight, big chance that you have real teak wood.
People often say that the price alone is the indicator of whether it’s a real teak or not. But then again, it’s not always true. Bad people would sell regular wood for a high price of teak. You should know how to identify real teak wood to avoid such scams.
