The Definitive Answer For Teak/IrokoTreatments!

Zagato

Zagato

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Yes I know leave them alone....

But if you have a spanking newish boat and don't want the grey gunwales look what is best to treat with?

Deks Olje - seems to be OK but can be patchy

Teak oil - goes black eventually

Sadolin - goes black eventually

Boiled linseed oil - don't know

Burgess Woodsealer - don't know

International Woodskin & Epifanes oil based varnish - how long does it actually last before it all needs scraping off again :eek:

Any others...

What are your experiences?
 
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Just having the gaff and bowsprit done in Woodskin right now, but spruce not teak..may try it on the teak later.
You can check it's progress at the Fowey meet :)
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Looking good.

I used it on my Drifter 2-3 years ago (6 coats) and OK it's been largely under cover but it as good now as when I first I put it on and it's lovely stuff to use, difficult to produce bubbles or drip like ordinary varnish.

BUT when the time comes to strip it all off... Yikes I suspect an oily varnish would clog up sander making it doubly difficult but don't know. Nothing is perfect I suppose...
 
The definitive answer is....that there is no definitive answer.......Everything falls off eventually.

I have had the best results on my substantial teak toe rail using Coelan.......Coelan isz zer Churman Bote Kotink....and ...they say....lasts `up to ten years`...... (That advertising copywriters bull**** covers a multitude of sins.).... My current treatment is just coming up to 7 full years.... 5 of them spent under mediterranean sun....but presently my toe rails look as though they`ve got varnish pox with slightly raised very pale areas where moisture has got underneath the `skin` of the coating....but that is the indication that its time for a change and a new application of the coating....... A quick score with a Stanley knife.....and it all comes off in sheets....NO SANDING,THEN JUST PUT NEW BACK ON.............and £265 later its as good as new (thats the price of the materials).... Conventional varnish and brushes etc would cost about £40 per application...and would have to be done every year....7x40= £280....so... not only is Coelan cheaper slightly...but you only do the work once.......in seven years
I know some people have found Coelan too slippy underfoot when wet (unless anti-slip granules are added)...so potentially problematic for deck areas
 
If you want a long lasting finish but not necessarily shiny, try Starbrite Tropical Teak oil and Sealer. You can have classic teak which is a darker colour or natural teak which gives a more yellow teak finish. Zero maintenance and lasts a whole season or more, easy to touch up. Caveat is it isn't a shiny finish but looks good. Not to be confused with Starbrite teak oil which is the standard stuff that leaves a sticky finish. I think there is some videos of it on you tube and is designed for use in high UV areas.
 
NOHOH said:
The definitive answer is....that there is no definitive answer.......Everything falls off eventually.
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True dat.

My boat was used by a sailing magazine to test teak finishes: they used about eight different ones around her capping rail and grabrails, about five years before I bought her. When I did, it was all flaking off like a leper with sunburn. I cleaned it up and give it a light rub down with teak oil every so often.
 
Zagato said:
Yes I know leave them alone....

But if you have a spanking newish boat and don't want the grey gunwales look what is best to treat with?

Deks Olje - seems to be OK but can be patchy

Teak oil - goes black eventually

Sadolin - goes black eventually

Boiled linseed oil - don't know

Burgess Woodsealer - don't know

International Woodskin & Epifanes oil based varnish - how long does it actually last before it all needs scraping off again :eek:

Any others...

What are your experiences?
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Don't use ay oils or potions that claim to saturate the wood. All they do is attract dirt or evaporate.

Three choices. Leave bare. Apply many coats of varnish after thorough cleaning and be prepared to touch up regularly as film breaks down. Use a porous woodstain like International Woodskin and accept the less shiny finish in return for several years between recoating.
 
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Tranona said:
Don't use ay oils or potions that claim to saturate the wood. All they do is attract dirt or evaporate.
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Oiling is fine and works well if you rub it in and then off, leaving the wood just slightly slick/silky to the touch. Slobbering it on is, as you, pointless at best and counterprouctive at worst.
 
For decks - just salt water and a 6 monthly splash with mould killer.

For cap rails, gunwales, trim etc use either International Woodskin, Sadolin Ultra or Sikkens Cetol Filter 7 Plus. Any of these will be good for 4/5 years. Dinks and scrapes can be touched up in seconds with a dab of a paintbrush.

Conventional varnish - life is too short.

Oil - whether linseed, tung or expensive marine gloop = muck, wears off in about 6 months.
Burgess- ugh, water gets under it and goes horrid.

Robin
Pleiades of Birdham
MXWQ5
 
robmcg said:
If you want a long lasting finish but not necessarily shiny, try Starbrite Tropical Teak oil and Sealer. You can have classic teak which is a darker colour or natural teak which gives a more yellow teak finish. Zero maintenance and lasts a whole season or more, easy to touch up. Caveat is it isn't a shiny finish but looks good. Not to be confused with Starbrite teak oil which is the standard stuff that leaves a sticky finish. I think there is some videos of it on you tube and is designed for use in high UV areas.
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I've used just about everything mentioned in this thread. Ultimately settled on Sikkens which worked well but does build up and need stripping every three years or so. Then I read about Starbrite Tropical Teak oil, which is more like a gel. Not cheap but worth every penny, lasts well, looks great and easy to apply.
 
Dare I mention Varnol? It is no longer made but I did some experiments and have a recipe. Rubs on with a cloth, attracts dirt no doubt, looks good for a while and needs frequent re coating although it is quick to do. But the real point of it is that it smells wonderful!

Kiln burnt Stockholm tar, boiled linseed oil, a hardener that I have forgotten the name of, and real pine turpentine, not the substitute. I have the proportions written down somewhere if you want a boat that smells right! Lovely stuff.
 
>Teak oil - goes black eventually

Teak oil sold by chandlers contains linseed oil although it doesn't say so on the pack but is why it goes black caused by UV damage. The only thing to use is pure teak oil which is not cheap because it isn't diluted.
 
A warning against doing nothing. After trying a variety of different treatments on our toe rails and coachroof handrails we decided to remove it all and leave it to age naturally. Over the past eight or so years the volume of timber of each length has reduced considerably, so that plugs will no longer remain in place. Every time we wash the timber we see oxidised wood disappearing over the side. Before too long there will be nothing left at all!

By far the worst treatment we tried was Deks Olie. Not only did its low viscosity make it very tedious to apply, it lasted less than a season before flaking off. Following good experience with Woodskin elsewhere I am now thinking of going back to coatings, using it. I have seen other boats in the Med with it, perfect after three years.
 
vyv_cox said:
By far the worst treatment we tried was Deks Olie. Not only did its low viscosity make it very tedious to apply, it lasted less than a season before flaking off.
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I have been using Deks Olje No 1 (the satin stuff) on cabin soles for years and it works very well indeed there. I did a brief experiment of using it outside on a couple of teak grab rails, with much the results you describe.
 
The decks and all the superstructure of my boat is teak. It is left untreated, apart from yearly patio magic to keep it clean.
There appears to be no harm done at all in leaving it bare, it's been like this for several years.
 
dylan said:
The decks and all the superstructure of my boat is teak. It is left untreated, apart from yearly patio magic to keep it clean.
There appears to be no harm done at all in leaving it bare, it's been like this for several years.
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Yup.
The only way to seal timber is to seal it in its entirety before assembly.

Coating coamings etc where water can creep into an open joint line...well....

I have solid teak washboards I made, a vanity statement really, but they got epoxy then UV protection from any good varnish.
All else gets the seawater/ mould stuff like wot Pleiades knows too
 
Blueboatman said:
Yup.
The only way to seal timber is to seal it in its entirety before assembly.

Coating coamings etc where water can creep into an open joint line...well....

I have solid teak washboards I made, a vanity statement really, but they got epoxy then UV protection from any good varnish.
All else gets the seawater/ mould stuff like wot Pleiades knows too
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Not sure why you quoted me ?
All my teak is bare, it's kept mould free by a yearly wash over with Patio Magic.
 
Semco teak sealer is good is you like the original wood look. It is not a coating, it soaks in. Water beads on the surface of the wood after treatment. Downside is that it is expensive and needs redoing frequently (more so than the product claims). Easy to apply and no prep required.
 
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