We [I] need to restore the floor boards. So....

Becky

Becky

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do you think the choice of Ronseal Ultra Tough polyurethane varnish (selected by none other than HWMBO himself) is good enough when compared with standard marine varnishes?

I have spent all afternoon sanding down a floor board, and a couple of hours clearing up the dust, so I don't much fancy having to do that too many times unnecessarily.

I am concerned that we might not have the strength and waterproof-ness of marine varnish.

Am I right to be concerned? Or do you think Ronseal is perfectly good enough?

I have lots more boards to do /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
 
I used Ronseal varnish on mine two years ago. Still look like they have been just varnished. You're welcome to come and have a look...
 
Becky, I suspect that your floor boards (and the rest of your interior woodwork) will have been spray lacquered, which is the way most production boat joinery is treated.

It's well worth checking, perhaps with the Moody Owners Association, to see what product was actually used.

For example, on Westerlys, it was a two-pot lacquer made by Morrell Woodfinishes (F T Morrell and Co as was) which is still available. This stuff is used because it's very quick to apply (good for bashing out boats!) extremely hard wearing as well as being impervious to petrol, diesel, fats etc.

Most lacquers are made in a range of 'finishes' varying from very high gloss to completely matt. They are very easy to use (especially the semi-matts and matts) as they are touch dry in approx 15 minutes and hard in less than 24 hours.

Well worth looking for some info before you decide to go for a softer varnish finish.

One further thought. You can put varnish on top of lacquer, but not the other way round, so make sure that you really want to be stuck using varnish in the future before deciding.

HTH's

Jerry
 
I was so impressed with le Tonkinois on my boat that I used it on the stairs at home. Even with the help of 4 "kids" (17-24) we haven't managed to wreck it yet, 3 years down the line, it could do with another coat but absolutely no flaking or chipping.
 
An alternative....

An alternative (if the wood is reasonably good) is to oil them. Mine are teak/holly faced ply and I oil them very sparingly now and again, using a pad of kitchen paper to apply, leaving for a couple of hours, then rubbing excess off with clean kitchen paper. Leaves a good surface, less slippy than varnish, very easy to touch up.
 
Ultra tough but probably more ultra brittle. The polyurethanes I've tried have been hard but prone to chip and to flake. But then, if it says "floors" on the tin they may have doctored the formulation
 
Without wishing to add diversity-Jerryat and Spuddy are on the money-,most modern half decent sanders can be hooked up to a regular vacuum cleaner hose..Have a word with your local toolshop/hire centre....More time spent sanding less on cleaning the cabin.

And when you apply the new finish,have a fan heater blowing before and after,especially venting the bilge-The floorboards are at about the dewpoint in a boat that is in the water(is it in the water?)
 
Removed all of my floorboards last year. They were spray laquered and took some sanding - tricky to avoid sanding out the 'white-stipe' inlay. Strongly advise removing them to varnish due to the fumes, but also I found it took a good month for the varnish to 'cure' from a slightly rubbery surface to a hard finish like glass - kept them in the warm for that period.

I went for six coats of thin varnish with light sanding in between, well worth varnishing the edges and underside as well to stop water ingress.
 
You might want to research school gymnasium finishes - a hard lacquer - because they have to be extremely hard wearing and, to a certain extent, non-skid.
 
I asked the charter company who had managed the boat I bought how they had kept the cabin floors in such good condition. Answer was that when the boat was new they stripped off all the manufacturers lacquer, and painted with two coats of two pot varnish, followed by three coats of gloss varnish. After that they rub down the surfaces every winter and renew the gloss varnish. I bought the boat at the end of the season, and only minor scuffing was evident. It is being varnished again this winter.
If your boat has reached the stage where the varnish has worn through in places, then simply re-varnishing will not produce a good result. Preparation is everything, and a complete strip back to bare wood is the only way to a perfect finish.
One of the toughest floor varnishes available is a water based product from Dulux. Very expensive (about £48 for 2.5 litres). Once fully dry it is water resistant for kitchen use, and can be washed. I know that there will be cries of shock at the idea of a water based varnish being used in a boat, but I suspect that some of the modern water based products are quite satisfactory for interior boat use, and they produce much less in the way of fumes.
 
Exactly what the Morrell finishes were designed for, along with school furniture like lab. worktops etc, hence its resistance to just about everything kids and adults can throw at it!!.

Certainly it's not cheap stuff and can only be bought in minimum 4.5lit (1 gall) tins, but it lasts for years if kept in a cool place. The cabin furniture and floorboards in my 22 year old boat are literally as good as new.

I agree with NormanE (and others) re preparation. Once the initial lacquer has worn through/got scratched, the only sensible remedy is to take it all off back to bare wood. Of course it should never have got into that state, but that's life!

What I don't agree with, is using stuff that requires re-coating EVERY winter! I expect a lot more protection than that for that sort of money. BTW, the Morrell type lacquer is a bit more expensive than your varnish, but appears to do a better job.

It really is a HELL of a job, but putting 3-4 coats of lacquer on will give it many more years life, looking like new.

No connection with Morrells etc
 
I have done this job on my boat, where the floor was traditional holly and teak stripes, 20yo and in a poor condition. I removed all the floor and then sanded and varnished and can tell you three important points:
1) It is possible to sand the floor with a belt sander, but use the least abrasive belt you can get, and use a very light touch. The veneer is much thinner than you expect
2) Don't use water soluble varnish - I did first time and it looks great, but if it gets wet and stays wet for a few days witha few drips you will end up with a few white spots or patches.
3) I used the following 2 part Junckers matt specialist floor varnish from Decorating Direct - much cheaper than chandlery products. The fumes when you use it are very bad ! link is as follows:

http://www.decoratingdirect.co.uk/viewprod/j/JUNISOLAC/

it dries fairly quickly and their smallest amount they sell will be enough
 
In the case of my boat the reason for a re-coat every year was that the boat was in intensive charter use. I expect the varnish to last longer in my ownership, as it will not be used so hard.
 
Hi Norman,

Yep, I would expect that too, however, we were full time cruising for seven years and the woodwork/floors still look like new.

Our previous boat didn't fair as well, as the earlier owner had used varnish. The upkeep was considerably more work.

Anyway, good luck with yours. As you say, charter use will put a greater 'strain' on any boat. What puzzles me though, is why a charter company would use a softer, more easily damaged finish on their yachts. Lacquer would last a very minimum of two seasons, even with very heavy use.
 
I have taken the floor board home to experiment on. I agree that preparation is paramount, and also that sanding has to be done with extreme care to avoid loosing the holley stripe. On the other hand, there were some deep gouges where the guys from the boatard had been moving heavy things around so I had to ease them out first.

It isn't an easy process, so the use of a good finish is worth it. However the Ronseal does seem pretty good and at this stage looks very nice I have included the edges and underneath in the restoration as the boards seem to absorb moisture and become tight as he season porgresses.

Anyway, thank you all for all the useful advice.

Any suggestions on how to get Richard stimulated enough to help me? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
I have taken the floor board home to experiment on. I agree that preparation is paramount, and also that sanding has to be done with extreme care to avoid loosing the holley stripe. On the other hand, there were some deep gouges where the guys from the boatard had been moving heavy things around so I had to ease them out first.

It isn't an easy process, so the use of a good finish is worth it. However the Ronseal does seem pretty good and at this stage looks very nice. I have included the edges and underneath in the restoration as the boards seem to absorb moisture and become tight as the season porgresses.

Anyway, thank you all for all the useful advice.

Any suggestions on how to get Richard stimulated enough to help me? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
All I can say to that is that they maintained the boat in excellent condition. They use a local company to do the varnishing and any woodwork repairs. Labour costs are obviously less in Turkey than here. I think that they found by experience that the lacquer or varnish that Jeanneau used was not up to the job. It is a German charter company, and they seem to have higher standards than most, evidenced by their boats being well above the "minimum charter specification" other companies go for. Their boats all seem to have the largest available engine for example. Even the pair of binoculars that came with it are Steiners.
 
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