When you purchase any wood product, furniture, flooring, siding or lumber, you are buying a product that responds to the ambient temperature and moisture content (MC) of its sur-rounding environment. Like any wood, reclaimed teak, kokko or ironwood will absorb moisture in humid places and expand as it does so. And, in cold dry places it will give off moisture and contract ever so slightly.

The reclaimed wood products sold by Techtona are kiln dried to industry acceptable levels. Most of flooring has a 6%-9% MC level at the time of milling and shipping. When that wood trav- els across the world to other moist humid, or cold dry areas, it will lose or absorb moisture depending on which environment it ends up in.

When you get your flooring, decking, paneling we suggest working with your installer and consulting with the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) to decide the right duration to let the wood sit and acclimatize before installing. Getting this right will reduce chances of warping or cupping after the product is installed. Below is a very general guideline of steps we recommend you follow which will help you figure out what that amount of time is.

When you purchase any wood product, furniture, flooring, siding or lumber, you are buying a product that responds to the ambient temperature and moisture content (MC) of its surrounding environment.

Like any wood, reclaimed teak, kokko or ironwood will absorb moisture in humid places and expand as it does so. And, in cold dry places it will give off moisture and contract ever so slightly.

Open the box and take out the wood. Use a moisture content reader to check the moisture content of the wood on arrival. You do not need to check every board, perhaps 25 boards per 1500 square feet is fine. What is the right moisture content for your area? Please see this document and then go to page 45 to see the suggested moisture content level for your area. Check for any unexpected cracks or damages. Have a licensed professional (the person installing your flooring) double check your findings.

Regardless of what reading you get on your moisture content reader, you should let the wood acclimate, ideally in or near the place it will be installed. All flooring/paneling should be stored on a solid flat surface supported with blocking evenly spaced no further than one foot apart along the length of the units to prevent warping. Try to make sure the wood product is flat and the boards are separated and cross stacked evenly with same sizes spaced evenly, to allow for adequate airflow between the boards.

When checking for moisture during acclimation period, the type of moisture meter used can determine the level of accuracy. Follow all of the manufacturer’s recommendations to ensure proper use of the moisture meter. There are two common types of moisture meters.

Pin style meters require multiple testing points along a board depending on the finish coating. Care should be taken when using this style of meter to avoid damage to your surface finish (don’t push the pins into the exposed, finished face of the flooring!).

Pinless meters typically have depth adjustment that can be adjusted to provide a more accurate reading. This should be considered when checking MC.

Make sure to check the MC of the installation surface (walls or subfloor, including concrete) in at least 20 points every 1000sq ft. Please consult a professional installer regarding the type of subfloor and possible need for a moisture vapor retarder. Flooring/paneling must be at the MC for your geo- graphic area and be within 2-4% of the subfloor’s or existing wall sheeting’s MC. Be sure to check the moisture near win- dows or plumbing. These areas may have higher out-of-range MC readings that will affect the performance of your material.

If possible, a week before your flooring is set to be installed, run your HVAC system at the proper settings for desired temperature and humidity. This will allow the humidity to stabilize in the room your new flooring/paneling will reside.

Ambient air humidity should be between 35% and 55% assuming the room is between 60° to 80° Fahrenheit. If your humidity or temperature is out of spec, postpone your installation. Failing to do so may cause the room to have an improper moisture content that will cause failure. These conditions must be maintained over the life of the product.

While the above are helpful recommendations, they are no substitute for the expertise and guidance of the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) as well as your professional flooring and paneling installer. For more information, or if you have additional questions, please consult a licensed professional or consult with the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) prior to installation.

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Much of our reclaimed teak and ironwood was cut from forests in the late 19th or early 20th centuries. All of it today would be considered old growth. Back then teak, ironwood and other timbers were around in such abundance that the timber was rough sawn into lumber and used to frame all kinds of structures. When extracting this wood from demolished structures, one is struck first by the size of the timbers 14” wide teak floorboards were commonplace.

Entire mature teak round logs were used as support pillars for many types of buildings to keep living space out of reach of seasonal floods and critters that should not be there. In today’s world of course framing anything in solid teak or ironwood is unthinkable. The material is just too rare.

The teak and other hardwoods that Techtona reclaims have seen decades and in some cases-a century or more of in-situ weathering as exposed stilts, building frames, floors, rafters etc. This creates amazing texture and patina which adds tangible history to the material we work with.

The passage of time in harsh conditions also creates cracks, scratches, bee holes and other evidence of wear. In the world of reclaimed teak and other hardwoods, nail holes are a fact of life. We often get requests for wood that is touched up as little as possible-people want the holes and the original texture of the wood. Such tables are shown in our reclaimed teak plank table section.

From the moment we extracted our first 6-inch, 19th century nail, we knew we had a work of rare historical art in our hand. These hand-hewn steel nails were forged in the late 19th / early 20th centuries. These average 4”-6” long and are extracted using a precious set of US army, WWII issue nail extractor.

Our finishing team does an excellent job filling holes in flooring, paneling, decking and furniture. Holes are filled by inserting a mixture of teak sawdust and epoxy and then sanding it smooth or inserting a custom-drilled teak plug and sanding this smooth. Both processes are briefly shown below.

Research has shown that these nails were likely the first of their kind in SE Asia, made by hand and machine on rudimentary ‘nail cut’ machines invented by the Glasgow Steel Nail Co which can trace its business roots back to 1870 in industrial era England. These nail making machines would have arrived SE Asia on ships owned by the Bombay Trading Co.

to speed up their production of teak and other wood-based products in SE Asia. The distinctive square holes left by these original nails in our reclaimed teak are yet another cultural imprint on this incredible wood.

These nail-heads can be use in any number of decorative motif on any of the custom furniture we design. For ideas, please contact us.