Teak deck maintenance

[Peter]

Know it's been posted before, but trying to search here isn't easy.
Anyway my question is based around something which could be used to "re-oil" the teak. As I think over time the natural oils must disapate. My decks are 40 years old but 25mm thick so plenty of life left. Have seen someone use Teak Wonder Sealer, gives a nice finish. But seems to be a sealer not a product to re-oil the decks.
looking for any advice on products, or just leave the teak as it is

 

[dunedin]

Don’t use oil on teak decks !!! And never scrub them.
Apply Boracol or Patio Magic and come back to clean decks.

 

[RJJ]

I am in the "salt water and lots of it" camp.

 

[pvb]

Never oil, it's filthy stuff and will merely attract dirt! Wash with sudsy water and a sponge, never a brush. Treat twice a year with Boracol - this stops green algae growing and stops tiny black mould spores (which people think are dirt). The deck will go a gentle silvery grey colour and need minimal maintenance.

 

[jwilson]

Agree with the others: either leave grey, don't scrub whatever you do, use Boracol or Patio Magic or anything else containing benzalkonium chloride once or twice a year, or seal with Semco or similar which keeps them prettier. Don't know Teak Wonder, but it might well be similar to Semco.

I know of one owner who does actually oil his teak decks, he's had the boat from new and at 40 years old they are still in fairly good condition but look near black. Not pretty in my opinion, and I have doubts about their non-slip quality in the wet.

The one bit I wonder about is that you say the deck teak is 25mm thick: this is really, really unusual. Typically a lot less on anything other than a very big old boat. About 8 - 10mm is common on a lot of new boats.

 

[johnalison]

Lots of salt was the advice when we got our boat in 2000. After two or three years the deck was looking quite mucky, with patches of mould and lichen wwhich all vanished when I started applying anti-mould stuff. At first I used Polycell 3-in-1 mould killer but this was I believe reformulated, and in any case Patio Magic works better and is more concentrated. After 20 years I have just needed to strip a mm or so of caulking that is proud, which I am doing in parcels, but the deck is otherwise fine and the screws remain unexposed.

 

[pvb]

Lots of salt was the advice when we got our boat in 2000. After two or three years the deck was looking quite mucky, with patches of mould and lichen wwhich all vanished when I started applying anti-mould stuff. At first I used Polycell 3-in-1 mould killer but this was I believe reformulated, and in any case Patio Magic works better and is more concentrated. After 20 years I have just needed to strip a mm or so of caulking that is proud, which I am doing in parcels, but the deck is otherwise fine and the screws remain unexposed.

And Boracol works even better than Patio Magic! Boracol contains disodium octoaborate (a mould killer), in addition to the benzalkonium chloride which both Patio Magic and Boracol contain. As a result, Boracol is more effective at killing the tiny black mould spores which look like dirt. It's a bit more expensive but, in the overall scheme of things, cheaper in the long run if it preserves the deck better.

 

[Talulah]

Borocol is pretty expensive. Even more so with shipping. It comes in 2 strengths. Borocol 5 and Borocol 10. I have bought 25 litres of Borocol 10 which is too much for me to use. If anyone is in Brighton and wants to buy some I can bring down my remaining 15l. You’ll need a container. Personally I store it on the boat in fuel cans.
£35 for 5 litres. Maybe this should be in the for sale forum but obviously relevant to this thread.

 

[pvb]

Borocol is pretty expensive. Even more so with shipping. It comes in 2 strengths. Borocol 5 and Borocol 10. I have bought 25 litres of Borocol 10 which is too much for me to use. If anyone is in Brighton and wants to buy some I can bring down my remaining 15l. You’ll need a container. Personally I store it on the boat in fuel cans.
£35 for 5 litres. Maybe this should be in the for sale forum but obviously relevant to this thread.

Yes, it's more expensive than Patio Magic, but it's more effective. The cost of a few litres of Boracol twice a year is peanuts compared with the enormous cost of teak deck replacement!

 

[superheat6k]

When I bought my Corvette I factored in replacement of the teak deck within a few years. So when I cleaned it with Wessex two pack and a new deck suddenly appeared I was made up. I now use Wessex every other year with a coat of Semco clear twice each year. OK the Semco may seem expensive at £100 for a US Gallon (2-3 coats for me), but compared with the £12-15k for a new deck this is peanuts.

I also use Patio Magic to keep the green algae at bay.

 

[LONG_KEELER]

I too am mightily impressed with your deck being 25mm thick.

Is your boat a one off ?

 

[Rikarde]

I have tride most of the different types of things for the teak decks. Snappy, Oil of different types.
I use a soft organic deturgent made from pineoil and a soft bruch - works the best for me.

 

[Ian_Rob]

Yes, it's more expensive than Patio Magic, but it's more effective. The cost of a few litres of Boracol twice a year is peanuts compared with the enormous cost of teak deck replacement!

Somebody was telling me the week before last that Borocol, which I used on my decks for the first time last October, has a bleaching effect and shouldn’t be over used. I had never heard this before. Is it true?

 

[Momac]

When I bought my Corvette I factored in replacement of the teak deck within a few years. So when I cleaned it with Wessex two pack and a new deck suddenly appeared I was made up. I now use Wessex every other year with a coat of Semco clear twice each year. OK the Semco may seem expensive at £100 for a US Gallon (2-3 coats for me), but compared with the £12-15k for a new deck this is peanuts.

I also use Patio Magic to keep the green algae at bay.

I have similar routine but possibly go longer on the Wessex and Semco treatment . Thinking about doing that in the near future .

The teak that normally lives under the protection of the canvas canopy responds well to a mild detergent and water cleaning

Aldi sell a product similar to and equally effective as Patio magic but finding it on the shelves is hit and miss.

 

[pvb]

Somebody was telling me the week before last that Borocol, which I used on my decks for the first time last October, has a bleaching effect and shouldn’t be over used. I had never heard this before. Is it true?

No!

 

[cmedsailor]

I have just finished applying two layers of Teak Wonder on my cockpit teak. Let's see how it will cope under the hot Mediterranean sun...

 

[Ian_Rob]

No!

Thought not. Thanks

 

[jwilson]

I don't think Boracol or Patio Magic or similar can be overused. Ony complaint is from overenthusiastic bunnyhuggers who think that a couple of spoonfuls of chemicals that will inevitably ultimately end up diluted in a thousand gazillion gallons of seawater will harm fish. Don't apply if your boat is in your small garden pond.

Sorry about the bunnyhuggers thing: I'm actually quite green and eco, but worrying about a few drops of chemicals from cleaning decks in the Atlantic or a tiny amount of two stroke oil from a modernish 3 hp two-stroke outboard used for a mile at a time is really pretty trivial.

 

[johnalison]

Yes, it's more expensive than Patio Magic, but it's more effective. The cost of a few litres of Boracol twice a year is peanuts compared with the enormous cost of teak deck replacement!

But if you're as lazy as me, the option of popping down the road to B&Q and picking up PM is more appealing, and it works on the patio too.

 

[MagicalArmchair]

cost of a few litres of Boracol twice a year is peanuts compared with the enormous cost of teak deck replacement!

Won't that damage the caulking eventually? Hence the salt water advice? My teak deck is a flipping disgrace - I think it must have last been cleaned in 2008...