Oil or Varnish?

[UseMyName]

Oil or Varnish? I have a Twister and have taken all the wood inside back down to bare wood, I'll be doing the same for all the wood work on deck - she is a composite Twister, a wooden top. We have some water damage where water has got beneath the varnish when the boat was unloved.

The question now is to varnish or to oil? My previous boat, a beautiful little Folkboat was taken down to bare wood above deck and I spent weeks varnishing and sanding, varnishing and sanding, then two years later the sun had bleached the teak and I could have done it all again.

I am planing on taking the boat down to the med as a live-aboard and want a low maintenance finish to the wood. So my question is what would you do, varnish or oil inside and out?

 

[PlankWalker]

Never ever oil.

 

[UseMyName]

What about Teak Wonder? Has anyone used that?

 

[Tranona]

For the inside use Ronseal satin. Easy to apply and gives a good longlasting finish. You are really giving yourself a hard time taking such a boat to the Med. Cannot imagine a more unsuitable boat just from the maintenance point of view. To stand a chance in the climate forget conventional varnishes and use International Woodskin. If you need convincing then look in the recent edition of Classic Boat for the findings of more than 10 years testing of bright finishes, much of it in the Med by Richard Hares.

Never use oil. Often leaves a sticky residue which attracts dirt that gets into the grain. In hot climates the oil will disappear in days just leaving the dirt.