varnish issues on exterior teak

[rtbates]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Our teak is grey.... No trouble at all, 'just needs to be cleaned up occasionally.... just like me.

My wife loves our exterior teak.

The only problem with leaving teak grey is the long term drying out of the teak.

[pdxsailordiver]

The cabin top on my Cascade 42 is Kwila trimmed in teak.
I would agree prep is everything. In the past I have used most of the marine finishes and found most sucked. The past five years I used McCloskeys spar varnish. It has held up as well as the expensive stuff. I just stripped and applied a new first coat last weekend using Pettit high build varnish, just to try it. I may top coat with McCloskeys. I always sprinkle on nonskid after 8 -9 coats then apply one top coat over the nonskid.
The hatches will be done last.
In the pictures you can see how the hatches yellowed.

[JPA Cate]

Ketchgould,

Well, there you have it: some love doing the labor and some prefer to avoid doing it. Zeehag is right about the nature of teak, it is oily. Plus your climate asks it to expand and contract a lot, so I don't think it's going to be easy for you to get it "Bristol" fashion. If you find some other vessels in your area that you like the looks of their varnish, you could try their scheme for getting a finish you like. A lot of experimentation is going to be involved.

Here's something to mull over. Once you have it varnished or re-sealed with epoxy, I have seen paint, grey paint the color of silver teak, applied over the sealed teak, which looks lovely, and lasts a long time, and can be removed back to nice teak with a scraper and a heat gun. Just an idea if it all gets too hard...

[Stu Jackson]

I've been all over the yard with teak: nothing, oils, varnishes, cetol. I just removed the cetol from the handrails and eyebrow and am letting them go gray. The cockpit stuff under the dodger, the coaming boxes under the Sunbrella covers and the trim on the helmsman seat will stay with the cetol. What a pain. I like zeehag's sea water treatment the best after 35 years of this nonsense!

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by rtbates

The only problem with leaving teak grey is the long term drying out of the teak.

I am also right at the decision point of how to future manage the exterior varnished teak.
(Caprails, House and Window trim)

Since it needs to be taken back to bare wood very tempted to now keep the teak natural.

So what low maintenance product should I use, to keep it from dying out and looking clean?

[BriaF]

I live in a high sun uv area.
Tried oils - don't last, too hard to clean & prep.

I now use sikens hls It is loaded with uv inhibitors,
it lasts better than others, recoating is easy.
Just wash & paint,
Prep for full paint easier than most.
Hls is easy to sand.
2 or 3 coats
I prefer the pine tint give a lighter colour.
I use it mostly on decks
If you want a gloss finish
it can be over coated with a gloss
cetol or supernatural ( sikens )

[bobconnie]

We use Paint! We hate shiney! If there was no teak outside, I would be a happy man ! Inside I use lots of sanding and lots of varnish, with every other coat rubbed with stainless steel wool. makes for a fine surface. I love shiney teak below decks and none above deck !! Two part paint topsides works for me and lasts a lot longer then varnish! I prefer to work on things that are important then varnish. At least to me ! We spend so much time at anchor, that haveing to deal with topsides varnish is just not worth it to me !! Maybe the dock queens that love a shiney boat will tell me Im a dummy but I like my unshiney boat !! LOL

[Bash]

Originally Posted by bobconnie

Maybe the dock queens that love a shiney boat will tell me Im a dummy but I like my unshiney boat !! LOL

I'm not certain I understand Louisiana colloquialisms, but I'm having a hard time telling whether "dock queens" is more misogynist or homophobic. Or is this just a good-ol-boy way of saying that anybody who doesn't paint his teak with house paint isn't a proper redneck?

Care to enlighten us?

[Dennis.G]

I am in process of stripping off varnish, and will be going with Semco teak sealer. This product is similar to oil in that it does not require stripping in future, but not oil. It is used by many for decks, but I am using on trim (starting with eye-brow and a lashing board, and will be doing cockpit grating and toe rails next). May keep companion way hatch and cockpit table varnished, but everything else Semco. I have high hopes (and am tired of varnishing)

See Index

[gbanker]

Has anyone tried two part clear Awlgrip?

[redcobra]

So what's the problem with Cetol. I just touch up about once a year.

[minaret]

Originally Posted by gbanker

Has anyone tried two part clear Awlgrip?

Yes. Do a forum search on Awlspar and Awlbrite.

[bobconnie]

Dock queens have a shiney boat at the dock with a lot of partys aboard but never seem to go to sea ! An I never said a thing about house paint ! Nor am I a red neck, as Im a displaced Calif boy ! And being a California boy, Im sure not a homophob, lol Grow up and get a funny bone !! No one picked you out to pick on so whats the problem ??

[onestepcsy37]

clean the bare teak with the don casey system; a bucket of water with a half cup bleach, half cup liquid laundry detergent, soft scrub brush. don't scrub too hard or in the same direction as the grain of the wood. let it soak in, then hose it off. let it dry (maybe come back tomorrow).

now tape off the teak and apply a coat of STARBRITE TROPICAL TEAK OIL. then go around the boat again and apply a second coat. it dries pretty quickly. remove the tape.

come back in three or four years and do it again.

pictured is my teak caprail treated as above, after two years in the tropics.

[Ketchgould]

After another season of use an update...

All the varnish lasts 4 months at best before you loose 6-8 layers in places.

I have been very happy with the Armco treated wood which was two coats in one day for the season. Looking back I would use Armco anywhere a cover cannot be used to protect the varnished teak. Sounds like democracy and star brute are similar although Armco looks to have less color I think.

Christian