CUMARU (Brazilian Teak)

Cumaru, often referred to by woodworkers and designers as Brazilian Teak, is one of the most popular exotic flooring and decking options available in the market today.  Cumaru offers customers a high quality hardwood at a great value when compared to more expensive species like Teak and Ipe.

• Common Uses:  Used in a variety of hardwood applications such as exotic flooring, cabinetry, handles, and also some heavy marine construction, and structural applications.  As an extremely popular exotic-decking option for many South Florida boat owners and designers, we here at Wood-Chip have a longstanding experience in suppling Cumaru for the use in marine applications, especially decking and dockage.
• Durability:  Cumaru is very hard and known for its excellent durability, resistance to termite attack, fire resistance and long useful life span of 50+ years.  It requires minimal maintenance and when finished properly, should retain its color for many years.    
• Weight: approximately 5.0-6.75 lbs. per board foot

Additional information on Cumaru:

Cumaru comes from the wood of the species Dipteryx odorata.  In addition to its use as a hardwood in carpentry, the tree is often harvested for its cinnamon scented seed – the tonka bean – which contains the chemical compound coumarin.  When working with Cumaru, a faint cinnamon scent is often reported.  Despite the aromatic properties, we strongly suggest you do not inhale wood dust of any kind!

Testing:  Their is an interesting way to easily test for the presence of Cumaru using a blacklight at night.  Under a blacklight, the heartwood of Brazilian Teak fluoresces making it easy to distinguish from its close cousin, Ipe.     

With a Janka hardness of over 3x that of traditional Burmese Teak, Cumaru provides a low cost, high quality comparative hardwood that more and more woodworkers are beginning to widely endorse.

Planning a deck project with Cumaru and have questions?  Give us a call to discuss your project.

(Brazilian Teak is not related to the wood that is most commonly called Teak, Tectona grandis.)