Association Forum - The best finish for exterior Teak?

Assn Members Area · Join

Home.

Association Forum

Ships Store

Cruising

Racing

Technical Tips

Photo Gallery - New

Boat Search - Updated

Manuals & Brochures

Swap Meet

Links

Officer Flag Line & Staff

Bylaws & Constitution

Members Area

Join the Association

Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.

Association Forum

Username:	Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?

All Forums

Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

Catalina 25 Specific Forum

The best finish for exterior Teak?

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Author

Topic

BCG-Woodbury
Mainsheet Editor

Member Avatar

USA
396 Posts

Initially Posted - 06/19/2012 : 10:17:03

My Teak looks a little shabby and I would like to refinish it this summer. Is there a Tech Tip somewhere on re-finishing Teak? I don't want to strip it completely so is it possible to sand the bare parts and scuff the rest and apply few coats of new finish. Do you need to know what is already on there? I like the shiny look so what finish is best?

Thanks,

Brian & JoAnne Gleissner
Knot So Fast
1984 Catalina 25, SR/SK
Traditional Interior
Lake Candlewood, CT

Edited by - on

ColinR
1st Mate

Members Avatar

Canada
28 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 11:37:19

You could take the teak off and put on around 5 or more coats of west marine skipper varnish and then apply cetol at the start and end of the season. it will give you your shiny look, although make the hand holds slippery..

Edited by - on

Prospector
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Canada
3159 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 11:47:27

Oh boy - lemme go get a drink...

Have you done a search of the forum already? This topic is usually a good one, with folks advocating for oil, varnish, cetol, and no finish at all. Cetol usually wins out, but only after some heated debate from all sides.

I'll need to get a twist of lemon. You guys go ahead and start without me.

Edited by - on

Joe Diver
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1218 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 11:59:11

I've thought about doing some work to my teak....

Edited by - on

pastmember
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

2402 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 12:49:34

Real men have gray teak. Sand when the grain raises too much, apply oil. Cabin tops should be covered when you are not at the boat anyway. Men who secretly wear panties fixate on teak and use Cetol.

Edited by - on

CarbonSink62
Navigator

Members Avatar

USA
208 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 13:28:14

I just find boxers uncomfortable!

I was born this way!

Edited by - on

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Djibouti
9082 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 14:02:28

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by pastmember
 Real men have gray teak... Cabin tops should be covered when you are not at the boat anyway...<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">...and anal-retentive guys put covers over their cabins so their teak doesn't get wet.

On the serious side, I have my doubts about putting Cetol on top of varnish. I'd give it a very short time before it peels off. It's different stuff. The whole point of Cetol is to avoid the problems that occur when varnish begins to crack and/or peel--making complete removal necessary. I doubt that putting Cetol on top of varnish will change that.

"Regular" Cetol in its various colors has a satin finish (after you apply enough coats the first time). Sikkens makes a gloss finish that can optionally be put on top of the satin, but which has no UV blocking properties of its own. I like the satin--others like the gloss. I like the "Marine"--others like the "Natural Teak" color. Frank likes to mess around with canvas, and hopes he can find his after a Kansas storm.

Use the "Search" function above, looking for "Cetol" in the C-25 forum--you'll get an eyeful! Chris and I will enjoy our beers while you sift through the heated debates...

Edited by - Stinkpotter on 06/19/2012 14:05:00

dragonf1y
1st Mate

Members Avatar

USA
34 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 14:18:53

I had crappy teak on my boat when I bought it - old finish which was flaking off in areas and gray teak here and there. Last 'summer' (I use that term sparingly in the PNW the last couple years) I sanded all my teak down with the intention to apply Bristol Finish and be done with it. Since we had about 5 days of what I'd call summer, and because I work, I never had a chance to spend 2 more days applying the Bristol Finish and today I have gray teak. You know what's interesting about gray teak on a white deck? It becomes more or less invisible. Now I just don't think about it, whereas before it bothered the hell out of me that it looked like crap. If the gods smile on us with more than a week of summer this year (not looking like it) I might knock off the gray and still go for it as I already have the materials, but gray teak is fine by me especially with my limited free time and my desire to sail instead of play with brightwork. And now that my teak is gray I notice that a considerable amount of boats on my dock have gray teak like mine. The ones who don't appear to have retired owners and/or have all their beautiful wood covered in canvas anyway.

Edited by - on

Prospector
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Canada
3159 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 14:38:28

Cetol is awesome, its the best. Anyone who uses anything else probably drives a granny car and says 'tomato' wrong.

Edited by - on

Joe Diver
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1218 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 18:11:19

I use Minwax Helmsman and drive a Jeep Wrangler......but I haven't done any exterior teak yet....where do I fit?

Edited by - on

BCG-Woodbury
Mainsheet Editor

Members Avatar

USA
396 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 18:28:04

To All - I never realized that someone can tell what kind of car I drive, how I pronounce my vegetable names, or what kind of underwear I wear just by what my Teak looks like. Mine isn't peeling but has some wear spots that need to attention. I think the PO used Sikkens but I have to check to be sure. Thanks for the heads-up on the can of worms I might have opened. Keep the input coming, I'd love to hear it.

Edited by - on

Joe Diver
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1218 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 19:15:22

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by BCG-Woodbury
 .... or what kind of underwear I wear just by what my Teak looks like. Mine isn't peeling but has some wear spots that need to attention.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Just buy new.....Walmart has Fruit of the Loom for like $6 for 3.....boxers or briefs.

Edited by - on

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
3473 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 20:46:29

Best to do a search for the countless posting threads on this subject. I think most of us (at least today) have lost our interest in getting once again into the nitty gritty details on this subject.

Edited by - on

pastmember
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

2402 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 20:58:34

Gray teak; good chance they go commando.

Edited by - on

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

Djibouti
9082 Posts

Response Posted - 06/19/2012 : 21:52:36

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by pastmember
 Gray teak; good chance they go commando.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">...with a rusty gun.

Edited by - on

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
3473 Posts

Response Posted - 06/20/2012 : 03:44:51

Brian,

Removing the entire previous finish is obviously the best before applying new whatever. But I did similar to what you are considering - sanding down the bare areas and scuffing up the rest.

My thought is that it would be best if applying over old finish to try out Sikken's Cetol products. Cetol is not as hard a finish as varnish but easier to apply and can have great results. You can get it in a glossy coat if that's what you want but see Dave Bristle's comments above. Whatever you wind up applying, probably best to get it in a tint as close as possible to what you have now. Chances are whatever you get is going to have a sort of blotchy look since most of your teak has a previous finish already on it and tint matching, oftentimes, just does not work out that well even if applying the new finish over all the teak. But, overall, the teak should look better than what you have now which as you indicated the teak is looking shabby and has bare spots.

The reason I would try out Sikkens Cetol, is because if you decide later that you want to remove it all, I believe Cetol will be a bit easier to remove than a varnish.

My teak, when I first applied Cetol, was an easy way to refresh the teak finish that was already present. I did not know what was on my teak when I purchased my boat but after applying the Cetol and seeing how well it did match up with the previous finish, I believe the previous owner also used Cetol. I have had my boat now for over 7 years. When I first applied the Cetol, I had what I would consider a fairly uniform tint on all the teak. Thru the years with an annual re-application of 1-2 coats of Cetol, it has maintained the finish fairly well considering the easy prep and re-application process which is basically a good washing or light sanding and sanding of any bare areas and then recoating. But I have had some bare areas that when recoated turned out lighter and so now my teak is not quite so uniform in it's tint. But to me it is much better than the weathered grey look. I have my boat in the water, year-round, and so re-applying Cetol works out best for me with minimal maintenance attention.

I have another posting thread somewhere regarding making a Sunbrella cover over the teak areas and if I go ahead with that project, then I am going to consider stripping all the finish and then may consider going with teak oil since I always liked that look better but not if I have to redo it every 3 months. A cover over the teak will prolong the life of any finish, for example, my tiller has a Sunbrella cover on it and I have never re-applied a finish to it. It's original varnish glossy finish is still in excellent shape.

Edited by - OLarryR on 06/20/2012 03:53:05

redeye
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

3476 Posts

Response Posted - 06/20/2012 : 04:39:33

<< My Teak looks a little shabby and I would like to refinish it this summer. >>

Sweet... anyhoo.. ya pop it off and take it to the shop. Scrape off the bedding compound and sand it 60 grit. anytime you get bare wood the teak will clog the sandpaper so you get to replace the sandpaper a lot. The dust is not good for your lungs so keep away, wear a mask, or do it on a windy day. Wipe Clorox on it and wait a day. Sand more .. sand more. Sand it with 180 grit. Rub it with a thin poly

http://www.minwax.com/wood-products/interior-clear-protective-finishes/minwax-wipeon-poly

all over it and let it dry. it dries pretty quick and soaks into the wood really well. Makes the following coats stick well to the wood. Sand between coats using a freecut 320 grit ( rather than a roughcut sandpaper ).

Repeat.

I set the piece up on chopsticks when I use the thin poly.

Paint on several coats of Cetol ( or Spar urathane, or helmsman poly), which is Thick and needs to be painted on as thin as you can or it will fisheye, or run, or wrinkle if you paint it on too thick. Cetol is the best UV inhibitor and goes on thickest. Let dry a day and sand and repeat ... usually you have to do a coat on the upper surface of the piece and then flip it and do the bottom. Rebed the piece and screw back down on your boat. Then you can add another coat about once a year.

If you do all that it will look like a CrisCraft finish from the 50s.

<< Does your teak still look a little shabby? >>

Another method is every once in a while, rub some bleach on the wood, sand it in place, and oil it. Teak wood is full of oils that protect it and keep water out.

Edited by - on

Joe Diver
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
1218 Posts

Response Posted - 06/20/2012 : 06:25:43

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by redeye
 Teak wood is full of oils that protect it and keep water out.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Yes...I found that on my interior pieces, after sanding the raised, stained surface down to good clean wood...if you let it sit overnight, the deeper oils will rise to the new surface darkening it a bit. I always let a piece sit at least overnight before applying varnish and starting the sealing process.

Edited by - on

diySailor
1st Mate

Members Avatar

USA
39 Posts

Response Posted - 06/20/2012 : 17:23:42

I re-did the entire weather exposed teak over the winter with TeakGuard by AllGuard. Not as shinny as varnish but has a nice honey tone when dry (it breathes so it gets dark when wet but drys out back to the original honey tone fairly natural teak color). Easy to apply and repair. Don't have any fist hand knowledge of long term results but my brother has redone his teak with it in Florida and we'll compare notes.

One thing that I really like is that it keeps the feel and texture of the wood so it's not slippery unless multiple coats (6 or more) are used. So I used a couple of coats of TeakGuard on the hatch-board lids which will keep them from getting musty if wet and won't cause the seat cushions to slip. I think it will work nicely.

Good luck with your choice.

Here's a sample with added handholds for the Galley Maid!

Edited by - diySailor on 06/20/2012 20:28:24

Topic

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Jump To:

Association Forum

Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.