Journal

Notes on teak.

Occasional technical notes on solid teak decking, from timber selection to long-term care.

There is no single price. What actually drives the cost of a teak deck replacement, and why only a survey gives a real figure.

Before you replace: confirm you need to, specify for longevity, plan the timing and downtime, and budget for what may lie beneath.

The contractor decides more than the price. What to look for: timber, bonded expertise, prefabrication, honest surveys and real references.

A teak deck asks for little, but the little it asks matters. What keeps one sound for decades — and what quietly wears it out.

How bespoke teak panels are templated, machined, laid up and bonded in the workshop before fitting — and why prefabrication builds a better deck.

The black seams are the deck's seal. What caulking does, how it is applied, why it fails, and when a deck needs recaulking.

From survey to handover: removal, sub-deck preparation, timber selection, panel fabrication, bonding, caulking and finishing, step by step.

Most deck problems are at the seams, not in the wood. When repair makes sense, when replacement is the honest call, and how to tell.

Grey colour is not the signal. The real signs a deck is past repair: shallow seams, cupping, lifting caulk and water beneath the planks.

A solid teak deck can last from ten to forty years. What decides where yours falls: thickness, timber, construction and care.