yes those will be more durable in term of scratch resistance .. but besure to check u got the right thing.. some might give engineered / reconstituted wood but claimed to be solid wood.

Im a newbie and planning to replace my old parquet floor with new timber flooring. During the survey, I came across kekatong timber. Does anybody knows is kekatong better for flooring compare to merbau? Anybody can share experience installing kekatong flooring? Share kekatong floor pic?

In order to get to install the flooring cheaper, I was thinking of buying the wooden planks separately and hired a contractor to install them. Would this be more cheaper than buying directly from the flooring shop? Anybody who can offer contractors with reasonable price and good workmanship for installing solid timber floor is most appreciated. Does anybody knows whats the average charge for taking out old parquet, installing, grinding, and varnish new timber floor?

Thanks in advance.

Question, where you going to get the wood planks? Is it cut for flooring use? and season for the weather?

Yes, it is sold as wooden plank T&G for flooring purposes. Some of the wooden flooring shop selling these planks as promotions from old stocks.

yes kekatong is a very good wood.. density is around 800-1000 kg/m3.. which is comparable to merbau.. when u are buying from contractor.. make sure the contractor know where u wanna install it.. and check the environment 1st.. the moisture content and humidity of the place which u wanna install is vital for solid wood installation.. if not properly acclimatised ur flooring will have lot of defects... usually the reason y the contractor suddenly intro u this species becos he having a stock on hand and wanna sell it to u.... wood is good no doubt tat is if ur contractor is honest enough to give u to whole package with kekatong wood.. sometimes they will mix with meranti or even cap chai.. so better u got some1 which is knowledgeable in this solid wood so tat u dont get cheated..

What about Borneo cherry compared to merbau or walnut?

I prefer the lighter colour of Borneo cherry. Anyone know what is the name of the tree which Borneo cherry wood is taken from?

This post has been edited by kamion: Jul 24 2011, 07:22 PM

Should be kapur.. But u really need to ask the shop tat sell it.. As we dont have tis species here.. But it is usually given an exotic trade name by shop to boast their sales..

They have no idea. Is this a bad sign?

This is a picture of the sample I was shown.


Attached thumbnail(s)

can shot top and side view as well..?

Anyone use Cherry wood before?

About to install something called Borneo Cherry.

Oh, how much did you get? A company offer me Cherry, same price as Merbau cause is balance from project. Wonder how good is it.

If it is indeed real american cherry, u might have lucked out. But cherry is softer than merbau and is prone to dents so one has to be wary of unpadded furniture legs and sharp objects.

Nowadays retailers name wood all types of names..takes a real wood guy to tell you what really is what.

According to the supplier, the borneo cherry come from Sabah.

I might caution you from doing this though. depending on your knowledge of wood, it might be a risk not worth taking if you do not have any history on how this wood is seasoned (ie. KD schedules, Moisture content, dimensional tolerances). Once installed, when problems develop, you'd run into a lot of finger pointing. if you buy material yourself, you would also need to factor in wastages and if the installer is diligent in helping you save material (since he's not paying for it)

Prices do vary a lot from what work is involved, what finishing (solvent or waterbased PU), how many coats of finishing. refinishing for wood floors with a good multi-layer coat would usually run about $5.50/sf. Installation depends on what installation method used and on what material (lamparquet, timber strips, batten, moisture barrier, waterproofing, leveling etc).


This is just an exotic name given to a local species.

Yeah, I finally made a decision to use Merbau. Less worry and headache

And yes, using conventional gloss finish is cheaper, water-based are much more expensive. Take www.parquet.com.my for example, their promotion include installation is RM 8.80 for a merbau 15mm x 73mm but without baton, and use conventional finishing.

I have a question. I've purchased a new house and intend to replace the first floor tiles with solid wood strip flooring. I'm getting a lot of conflicting answers from the people I've asked concerning whether it is necessary to remove the tiles first before installing the wood flooring. Most say that it is okay to install the wood planks over the tiles. Did you guys have the tiles removed first before installation of the wood flooring?

You may be able to find almost the size that you're looking for with LumberMart. Expect to pay at least RM17, but due to the non-standard size the price may be higher.

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Added on September 20, 2011, 7:23 amHave seen work done by different companies for timber flooring and of all, in my opinion, LumberMart gives the best work and satisfaction overall.

My experience previously was with RV Woods, bought merbau flooring from them and overall service was good with only 1 complaint, wasn't completely happy with excuse and finished work in my walk-in wardrobe.

Anyway, I've listed the companies that I've either personally used or seen work done for my friends houses. Hope the info comes in handy.
Timber Flooring Contacts




This post has been edited by adrianjc: Sep 20 2011, 07:23 AM

120mm (about 5") should be around RM 17 +- 1, thickness is very important too. usually is 18mm.

You can try Maha Asia Parquet. They have quiet a few variety of Merbau.

That really depends on what "wood flooring" you are planning to install.

For engineered wood flooring (and laminates), yes, you can install "floating" over your existing tiles.

For solid wood, it is necessary to remove your tiles and have fresh floor screed. Reason being the baton/floor planks must have a good adhesion surface.


I assume this is supply and install prices, but i don't know if you can get those prices now,especially if its on waterbased finish. Merbau has gone up some 10-15% recently...