varnishing handrail

[martinriches]

How do I stop water ingress at the join of the handrail ? Last year I cut a vee grove in the join and filled with flexible filler but this hasn't worked.


Martin

 

[vyv_cox]

The cockpit surround on my motorsailer is varnished, several different pieces of wood. I bedded them on clear Stixall, a hybrid polymer from Toolstation. It has high elasticity and good adhesion which seems to be allowing the wood to expand and contract without allowing water in. Some of mine has been done for two years now, no sign of any deterioration.

 

[Ruffles]

How do I stop water ingress at the join of the handrail ? Last year I cut a vee groove in the join and filled with flexible filler but this hasn't worked.

My approach: strip the varnish off and let it go grey.
The handrails on our MAUB were varnished when we bought it. I let the sunlight strip off the varnish and have not regretted it.
I only varnish the stuff I can bring home.

 

[vyv_cox]

My approach: strip the varnish off and let it go grey.
The handrails on our MAUB were varnished when we bought it. I let the sunlight strip off the varnish and have not regretted it.
I only varnish the stuff I can bring home.

That's OK in the short term. After a couple of years of re-varnishing toerails when we reached the Med we gave up and stripped it all off, as you suggest. Over the following eight years or so the teak has become more and more eroded and has now considerably less volume than it did, so much so that the plugs over screws are all falling out. Last season I went for Woodskin, which so far is looking very promising and much easier to keep up than varnish.

 

[Poignard]

What I would do is to saw down the line of the joint so that there is a gap of, say, 3mm.

Next I would coat the exposed end grain with epoxy; either thinned epoxy or ordinary epoxy (eg WEST) with gentle heat applied so that it penetrates into the end grain as far as possible

Then inject a good long lasting flexible sealant all the way into the joint, eg CT1.

I like CT1 because it doesn't seem to shrink like others I have tried. Also it last a very long time in the tube so it might come in handy for other jobs later.

If I wanted to do a proper job I'd cut out a length of the rail and insert a new length; joining it to the existing lengths using scarf joints.

 

[martinriches]

I will give Stixall a try. I was intend to sand back to bare wood a use Woodskin as I used it on the cabin doors and liked the effect.


Martin

 

[Ruffles]

That's OK in the short term. After a couple of years of re-varnishing toerails when we reached the Med we gave up and stripped it all off, as you suggest. Over the following eight years or so the teak has become more and more eroded and has now considerably less volume than it did, so much so that the plugs over screws are all falling out. Last season I went for Woodskin, which so far is looking very promising and much easier to keep up than varnish.

You are right of course, it does erode away. I need to replace my handrails - after 15 years. But I enjoy woodwork and hate varnishing...

 

[Otter]

You are right of course, it does erode away. I need to replace my handrails - after 15 years. But I enjoy woodwork and hate varnishing...

I first started using Woodskin three years ago and it's superb stuff. For that join I would cut the filler out and use Ronseal exterior two part wood filler. It will expand and contract and give a permanent watertight join. Then sand to bare wood and put three coats of Woodskin on, no sanding between. Then a gentle wipe with a cloth and a fourth coat about a week later. No need to ever sand again, just put two new coats on a year - it's very quick to apply and the teak colour gently fades to a lighter shade. Excellent stuff.