Teak sealer

[jon and michie]

Most of my teak is under canopy covers - I dont think it had been cleeaned for a long time so I cleaned with washing up liquid liquid and water as per Jon Mendez's video - in one area I had cleaned 3 times allowing to dry in between and it came up like a light honeysgoing to finish off the uckle colour which is perfect for me - but now I am going to finish off the rest of the flooring and just want to seal it up hence thinking of using this as per post #1
https://www.gaelforcemarine.co.uk/en/gb/Wessex-Teak-Sealer/m-8033.aspx

Or would I be better off using a clear varnish - @petem would this then stop the sticky caulking ?

Jon

 

[ashtead]

We had sticky caulking on our last boat (Bavaria) -I doubt it was by Sikaflex so not intended as oblique complaint of their products, but whatever we did it remained sticky and left black marks on clothing so we cut it out and regrouped with new caulk . It was a common issue on older Bavs I suspect but we never used any really tough cleaners on the teak. My suggestion is cut out and re caulk or more radically replace the deck with Flexiteak or suchlike decking of your choice. Lots of pictures from others on process and how good Flexiteak looks but we are a 2015 boat and no issues with Flexiteak fitted new.

 

[petem]

Most of my teak is under canopy covers - I dont think it had been cleeaned for a long time so I cleaned with washing up liquid liquid and water as per Jon Mendez's video - in one area I had cleaned 3 times allowing to dry in between and it came up like a light honeysgoing to finish off the uckle colour which is perfect for me - but now I am going to finish off the rest of the flooring and just want to seal it up hence thinking of using this as per post #1
https://www.gaelforcemarine.co.uk/en/gb/Wessex-Teak-Sealer/m-8033.aspx

Or would I be better off using a clear varnish - @petem would this then stop the sticky caulking ?

Jon

That Teak Sealer looks like Semco but possibly not as good. BUT, when I had the same issue as you on our boat, the application of a sealer just smudged the caulking and resulted on black marks on the teak.

Ref varnish, I doubt you will find anyone who considers that a good solution. It could be slippery, it won't last, it'll look crap, and once you've started down that route you'll have to keep applying it.

I still think the best advice is cleaning with mild detergents when it starts to look greasy and put no other chemicals, varnishes or sealants on it. If the caulking is leeching and causing black marks then put a mat at in font of your companionway door to protect the carpet. If you're lucky, after a year or two it will stabilize, like mine did.

Alternatively, you could dig out all of the old caulking and re-apply new caulking.

 

[ashtead]

Don’t know the OP location or skills in caulking but plenty of craftsmen out there who could sort this if just in cockpit for modest sum I suspect . Cutting out the old squidgy caulk isn’t that hard -it’s reapplying neatly if not a task previously attempted where a prossional adds value.

 

[jon and michie]

Thank you for your replies so far - @petem and @ashtead - I am based on the Hamble - I am thinking maybe re caulking would be the way to go - I believe the previous owner had caulking repairs done a couple of years ago (working away at the moment so need to check the Invoices) its whether his engineer or whoever used a decent sealer or not as there is / was black smears in a few places - I see that many use sika flex so I am assuming this is the correct brand and not a cheap one that will smudge.

 

[Hot Property]

I cleaned my teak with the Wessex system.

Then applied 2 coats of Ronseal trade teak stain. Then finished with a UV sealer from Wessex

I'm sure this will be my 4th bridge item but I live in hope....

 

[ashtead]

If looking for advice on such wood related matters (we are Gosport) then Russell Rennison would be my first port of call-whether he would travel to hamble I don’t know but clearly might be worth speaking to him to see if he’s interested. He repaired our teak cockpit table expertly and many others here in Gosport endorse him

 

[petem]

Thank you for your replies so far - @petem and @ashtead - I am based on the Hamble - I am thinking maybe re caulking would be the way to go - I believe the previous owner had caulking repairs done a couple of years ago (working away at the moment so need to check the Invoices) its whether his engineer or whoever used a decent sealer or not as there is / was black smears in a few places - I see that many use sika flex so I am assuming this is the correct brand and not a cheap one that will smudge.

Even the expensive stuff can leech, and in my opinion this isn't helped by the use of two pack cleaners.

Without wishing to sound like a doom merchant, you may find that your teak is now too thin for caulking repairs (we're probably going to have to replace ours in the next few years).

 

[Hurricane]

If looking for advice on such wood related matters (we are Gosport) then Russell Rennison would be my first port of call-whether he would travel to hamble I don’t know but clearly might be worth speaking to him to see if he’s interested. He repaired our teak cockpit table expertly and many others here in Gosport endorse him

Now - there's a blast from the past.
Russell was the first guy that I trusted in the Southampton area.
We had just bought our Sealine and he got us going.
A really useful guy to know.
And, yes, we were based on the Hamble and Russell came over to help/do our maintenance.
He specialised in teak and introduced me to the two part cleaner and how to use it.
A really helpful guy - does he still have a workshop in Gosport?

 

[Hurricane]

Without wishing to sound like a doom merchant, you may find that your teak is now too thin for caulking repairs (we're probably going to have to replace ours in the next few years).

That why I got out of that and now use synthetic teak everywhere.
Yes, I know it can get hot but most of the time it is MUCH nice to walk on than wood.
Shaded areas like under the bimini always stay cool.
These days, we also tend to avoid July and August so we miss most of those really hot days.
Real wood also gets hot in the Med sun.

As I say, most of the time, plastic teak is much nicer under foot - and, of course, WAY easier to keep clean.

Do the test - wet your wood teak and put your foot on the wet area.
Now step onto some white GRP/gelcoat.
You will leave a dirty footprint - now think of that dirt getting everywhere on the boat.
Wood teak is "just plain dirty".