Laminated solid timber
Solid wood countertops, made to your cutting list
Houteng manufactures laminated solid timber countertops, butcher block tops and table tops for kitchen companies, joiners, interior designers, builders and developers. You send the sizes; we manufacture and deliver nationwide. These are solid timber laminated from strip, not postform board with a timber-look finish. MDF tops are available on request. We don't install or fit them.
Solid timber island top.
Construction
How our countertops are made
Each top is laminated from solid timber plank or strip, then machined and sanded to your dimensions. Because the strips are laid up individually, a top can run wider and longer than a single board allows.
All our timber is kiln dried to 12% moisture content or lower. Anything wetter than that moves once it's fitted.
Need a full table rather than a top? See our custom joinery.
Laminated edge, showing the strip lay-up.
Two types
Wide-plank
Wide-plank tops are made from full-width planks laminated edge to edge, keeping the wider sections of natural timber with fewer joints. The result is a continuous, furniture-like surface.
Used for kitchen counters, L-shaped runs, dining tables and boardroom tops.
Butcher block
Butcher block tops are built from narrower strips laid up long-grain or end-grain, giving a heavier, more uniform section than a wide-plank top.
Used for kitchen islands, sink runs, prep counters and butcheries. Available in 30, 40, 50 or 60 mm.
Specifications
Thicknesses, sizes and finishing
Laminated solid tops
Generally 32 to 45 mm thick, or to your spec. Can be built up for a thicker edge or a specific downstand detail.
Butcher block
30, 40, 50 or 60 mm, or other thicknesses to your spec.
Maximum size
Made to your sizes. No fixed maximum in solid timber: length and width come down to the design, the construction, and what can be handled and transported.
Moisture content
Kiln dried to 12% or lower.
Finishing
Your call, there is no standard. Clear varnish with hardener, a water-based option, stains, or oils including Rubio Monocoat, Jax Oleum and Pronature. Raw on request.
Sink and hob cut-outs
Normally done on site by the installer, where the position can be set against the actual appliances and fitted units. Factory cut-outs are only done when quoted from your template.
The range
Countertops we make
Continuous solid timber surface. Kitchen counters, islands and vanities.
Wide-plank construction: full-width planks laminated together, keeping the wider sections of natural timber. Kitchen counters and L-shaped runs.
Wider strip layout with a furniture look. Dining tables, boardroom tops and hospitality.
Mitred vertical return down the side of an island. Island ends and reception counters.
Heavy solid section, long-grain or end-grain, for cutting and lab work. Butcheries, school science labs and prep counters.
Timber
Any timber species, made to your spec
Kiaat
A dense South African hardwood with a warm red-brown colour and pronounced grain. Stable once dried, which is why it holds its shape across a wide island top.
Saligna
A local hardwood with a lighter pink-brown tone and a straighter, more even grain. A more affordable route to a solid timber top than Kiaat, with the same construction.
Kiaat and Saligna are two examples, not a limit: we make solid worktops in any species. Tops can be laminated in any of the timbers we work in, including American Ash, Oak (European, red or white), Meranti, Iroko, Mahogany, Walnut, Blackwood, Rhodesian Teak, Cherry, Beech and Pine. All of it is commercially available and harvested sustainably under licence. Anything not on our list can be discussed against the project.
Butcher block
Butcher block countertops
Butcher block tops are laid up from heavier solid sections than a standard counter, in long-grain or end-grain construction. Say which you want when you send the spec. We make them for kitchen islands and prep counters, for butcheries, and as solid butcher tops for school science labs.
Made at 30, 40, 50 or 60 mm, with other thicknesses possible where the design calls for it. Tell us the use and we'll quote against it.
Butcher block island top in use.
Project work
For developers, architects and contractors
We manufacture countertops in volume: solid worktops through a student accommodation block, solid butcher tops for a school science lab, counters across a hospitality fit-out. Repeat work has to match, with the same species, thickness and finish from first unit to last. Send us the schedule and quantities and we'll quote the tops and the delivery separately, so the freight on the project is visible upfront.
In 2023 we manufactured and supplied around 100 solid Saligna laminated tops for Rovange Lifestyle Concepts' school projects, delivered inside two months.
Laminated solid timber benches in a school laboratory
~100
solid Saligna laminated tops
4 m
length of the largest top
2 months
from order to delivery, Rovange Lifestyle Concepts school projects, 2023
Process
How ordering works
1
Send your cutting list
Sizes, species, thickness, finish and quantities.
2
We quote
Trade pricing on your list, with delivery quoted separately. Often within the hour on a complete cutting list.
3
We manufacture
Typically 10 to 15 working days, depending on quantity, complexity and finish. You get an estimated completion date with the order.
4
Delivery or collection
Nationwide delivery, quoted separately. Or collect from Plantation Street, Silverton: Mon to Thu 08:00 to 16:00, Fri 08:00 to 14:00.
No minimum order. Also see our cabinet doors.
Questions
Countertop questions
Planning a kitchen for your own home? We manufacture for the trade, so ask your kitchen company or joiner to send us your sizes.
Do you install or fit the countertops?
No. We manufacture and deliver; fitting stays with your installer.
How do I look after a solid wood countertop?
Oil it. We use and recommend a food-safe technical oil, which most hardware stores carry. There's no fixed schedule: the more the surface gets washed and worked on, the more often it needs oiling. Check it regularly and re-oil when the timber starts to look dry or stops beading water.
Is Saligna a hardwood?
Yes. It's a local hardwood, lighter in colour and more affordable than Kiaat, with the same laminated construction.
Can you machine cut-outs for sinks and hobs?
Usually the installer does them on site, because the position depends on the appliances and the fitted units. Factory cut-outs are only done when quoted from your template.
What moisture content is the timber dried to?
12% or lower. Anything wetter will move after fitting.
Do you deliver outside Gauteng?
Yes, nationwide from Silverton, Pretoria, with delivery quoted separately from the countertops.
Send us the sizes, species and quantities
A single island top or a full development's worktops, the process is the same.