teak decks - would you?

[Birdseye]

If you were buying a new boat, would you order teak decks? And if not, why not?

Do you think they are a resale asset, or a liability? Are they worth £5k or more?

 

[jwrhind]

I would avoid them since in my opinion
- they are a maintenance liabillity
- no resale value
- can find better use for the money

... but

- they do look very attractive

 

[tcm]

Um depends on the "norm" for that boat. Like carwise, yer won't sell a merc without leather or ..well, you will, but you'll be last on the list. At the same price, a buyer will have the teak deck. And for a few grand more - still the teak?

Why not? not reason at all. Tightwaddedness . At this instant, there is a certain amount of teak, and your specifying teak will make not a jot of difference.

 

[DaveNTL]

I tend to agree with tcm

Busby has teak decks and I think she would the worse without them.

As a great school of thought seems to be not to maintain them beyond washing down with sea water, it's not a burden to maintain.

If I hadn't heard and read that from many sources I would have thought twice, but I'm delighted. Well, I have to be don't I?

 

[Evadne]

It's a rare thing indeed to try and justify a boaty purchase with the phrase "Is it worth it?" I find it tends to be "Do we want it?" followed by "Can we afford it?" If yes to both then do it. If not then don't, but personally I prefer the look of wood to white plastic and/or treadmaster. Most of the wood on our boat is varnished and a pain to maintain but I'm glad it's there.

 

[scarlett]

I always thoght that they were cooler than plastic or rubber, to walk on in Med. sun but they are not. And they are a liability as the mainatainance is frought with problems, especailly in hot dry climates. If I were seeking another boat I would avoid teak even in good condition, unless it was going cheap.

 

[jerryat]

Hi birdseye,

Agree with the 'if you want it and can afford, have it' argument and it does look attractive, but it does become a liability over the years. Replacement costs, partly because of the cost of removing the old, is horrendous IMHO.

Personally I wouldn't have teak decks (except for panels on the cockpit seats which are relatively small and easily renewable) if I was going to spend any length of time in warm/hot climates like the Med. or Caribbean. During the years we spent cruising these areas, we saw many cases of decks delaminating, twisting and generally being bu***red by the sun. Three of our friends re-laid their teak decks while afloat in the two years we over-wintered with them in the Med. although in fairness, one was on a very old, though well maintained boat.

Others we saw, but by no means all, felt it necessary to replace the odd strip or two that had lifted or warped, and indeed we ourselves have just had to replace the cockpit seat panels as part of our major refit, for the same reason.

Again, it's a question of what you personally want/can afford, and are prepared to maintain.

Cheers Jerry

 

[AIDY]

would agree with the above comments. depends on the boat. if you are looking at a AWB maybe not. But it all depends on the quality of the wood and caulking, as it could be more hassle than it's worth. A lot of lower end of the market boat builders do'nt actually use teak but a teak / ply laminate.

 

[AndrewB]

Yachts with fake "teak" decks are the marine equivalent of the half-timbered Morris Minors that were all the vogue 25 years ago. Or the mock-Tudor semis of a generation earlier. And every bit as naff! What is it about the English middle class that they so love daft wooden cladding?

 

[Guest]

I would never have a boat with teak decks for several reasons. First, I agree with AndrewB's comment about naffness. For me, design is only attractive if it is happily married with functionality, and I can't see any functionality, rather the opposite. There are better ways of getting a non-slip finish. They are ugly.

More importantly, I would be concerned about the effect on the boat's sailing and stability characteristics of all that weight on the deck.

Finally, I would be worried about it's effect on the resale value of the boat. After the value of a boat has depreciated in real terms for several years, then the teak decks will need replacing. The cost of doing so can be a large percentage of the value of the boat. Even if the decks aren't in bad condition, a sensible buyer wouldn't offer much for one because he would know that problems and major expense were likely or inevitable in a few year's time.

For example, in YM May 2004 p89-90, the coast of replacing the teak decks, not including the cockpit and coachroof, on an Oyster 39 was budgeted at 15-20,000, a substantial poroportion of the asking price of the boat (89,000). It makes osmosis look attractive by comparison. The prospective owner was quoted as saying that the boat was "drop-dead gorgeous, apart from the teak deck".

 

[tome]

Totally disagree, sorry!

Maintenance is simple provided you don't want them to look like new wood, they are functional (non-slip) and attractive. I sailed a Swan 47 which had spent 4 seasons in the Caribbean and the decks were in great nick.

The problem with Oyster decks is that they didn't counterbore the fixing screws sufficiently, so that slight wear exposes the screw heads. I have the same problem and the remedy (although time consuming) is to replace the round-head screws with countersunk. Cost for new plugs and screws is less than £100 for a 37 foot yacht.

Stability is a non-issue according to the designers, and resale value is enhanced by the teak deck option.

 

[iangrant]

Same here, agree with Tome..
- There is nought like a teak deck, both for grip when rough and wet and for laying on in the sunshine.

Ian

 

[Guest]

Not sure which designers think that stability is a non-issue, but i'm sure that the owner of the Oyster would be very happy to hear that the repair will cost 100 pounds instead of 20,000. Maybe someone should tell the boatyards.

A better (and better-looking) solution is bare GRP with an anti-slip finish. Wooden decks are nice, but only on a wooden boat. My (GRP) boat has a teak laid cockpit, and it is the only aspect of the boat that I regret.

 

[tome]

Holman & Pye designed my boat to take a teak deck as an option.

If you really think grp with a non-slip finish looks better than teak then I won't waste any further time on my reply!

 

[Mirelle]

No. (edited)

I have edited this post in the light of Tome's comments. Initially I deleted it, but then I thought - why should I be subservient to the Taste Police? And then I lost my temper.

Maybe I am guilty of "lofty self-opinion" by suggesting that a plastic boat with fake wood decks looks naff, and indeed faintly riduculous, and involves a good deal of unnecessary work.

Sorry, but your new boat will still look faintly ridiculous, just like the "stockbroker Tudor" house cited by Andrew B.

Fake is fake. You may not like me telling people that such a boat is a fake, but a fake is what it is. And it looks naff.

 

[Guest]

Designers also design boats to take in-mast furling, but that does that not mean that it does not have an effect on stability.

As for the aesthetics, that's obviously a question of personal taste, but AndrewB's comment about half-timbered houses summed up my feelings exactly.

 

[iangrant]

How on earth can you consider that non slip grp looks better than a teak deck.
I must be missing something..
I've had both and bare feet on teak is much more pleasant than bobley GRP or gritty paint.


Ian

 

[piscosour]

When it gets too hot below you throw a bucket of water or two over the teak deck and the effect of evaporation cools the cabin below. Try this on shiny plastic with no beneficial effect. Hot teak decks can be similarly cooled down easily. All of this is of minimal importance compared to the great looks. But who said anything boaty had to be practical and cost effective. Bring on the new Ford Escort range of budget Cruisers, without a teak option.

 

[Guest]

GRP decks look better because they speak of a boat that is designed for a purpose, without the need for cosmetic frills. Aethetically, teak decks are the equivalent of go-faster stripes and rear spoilers on a Ford Escort.

That is the attractiveness of a boat like a singlehander's Open 60. They are beautiful because their design is driven by pure function. An Open 60 would look ridiculous with fake teak decking. The same applies to any GRP boat.

The 'comfortable feeling of bare feet on teak' argument doesn't cut it - better to fit a carpet if that's what you're after - at least you won't get splinters!

 

[iangrant]

oh well better take it off then, and at the same time take me carpets out..guess them under functioning matresses will have to go as well.
Now then about this spoiler

ian