Teak and TSP

[sleepy_2]

I’ve got a great book “the art of finishing wood by Rebecca [can’t remember last name]”, in fact, I think the recommendation was from this forum.

Now, Rebecca recommends cleaning teak decks with a mixture of TriSodiumPhospate (TSP) and lemon Joy washing up liquid. I’ve searched on the Internet for TSP and found that in the USA TSP is commonly used to prepare surfaces for painting and other DIY jobs. However, there are hardly any references from European sites and trips to various DIY stores have been fruitless. So, is TSP in use in Europe and do I have any chance of finding any? If not, any suggestions for alternatives? Of course, I already know about seawater!

Thanks very much in advance, Sleepy


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[ccscott49]

TRy a mix of bleach, caustic soda, (very little, 5%) and washing up liquid, any type, this will clean the decks, then apply oxalic acid,(10%) which will bring the colour back and neutralise the caustic. A very good rinse, with salt or fresh water and your decks will look like new.

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[robind]

you could try a proprietory brand
Rob

<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.rejuvanu.com>RejuVanu</A>

 

[alant]

Met a guy on a large (superyacht) in Cowes - he was a skilled shipwright etc & highly recommended Sainsbury's Dishwasher powder. Just add to a bucket of warer & scrub!!

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[longjohnsilver]

Apparently coca cola is excellent for cleaning teak.

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[NigeCh]

How to clean teak ... If you really have to

Teak is a very soft hardwood which exudes oils which then oxidise to form a plasticising protective coat.

If you really really want to clean teak then use sugar soap (sodium dodecylbenzene sulphonate), fresh water and a soft cloth which you very lighty rub over the surface along the grain and then wash it off with more fresh water. (Sugar soap is avaivable in all UK hardware shops including B&Q)

If you scrub teak either along the grain or across the grain you will destroy both the oxidised oils layer and the surface fibres. Although it may look pretty for the next couple of weeks it will soon revert to the colour that it wasn't and end up in a worse state than before.

Treat teak as something that needs no maintenance other than a quick swill with a bucket of fresh water every now and again.

Only clean teak if it's gone green with algae ... and then only use well diluted sugar soap, fresh water and a soft cloth ... otherwise leave it as it is.

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[Paul_H]

Re: How to clean teak ... If you really have to

Best advice ive seen. I spent years cleaning and oiling teak toe rail to keep that showroom look but oil just traps grime which then needs removal of a few thou of precious timber to clean. Now I prefer the natural matt brown and white oxidized look. I do scrub my teak but only with a soft dustpan brush or large paint brush. Green stuff can be cleaned off and held at bay using a proprietary algae cleaner (eg the stuff decorators use on outside walls) but careful re environmental use.

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[sleepy_2]

Re: How to clean teak ... If you really have to

My teak is newish (about a year old). I don’t use bleach, or teak cleaner or anything else. I don’t want to keep my decks looking like new, I want them to go beautifully silver. The problem is, they are going grey/black. I thought the main trick to get silver decks was to wash the teak in clean seawater but I don’t get far enough away from pollutants along the shore, often enough to do the trick. Fresh water isn’t stopping the march to grey/black rather than silver. I had the vague notion that the TSP was supposed to be a substitute for seawater….

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